Activists demand SASSA fix “flawed” Covid-19 grant application process

SASSA says only 8 million of the 13 million people who applied for the R350 grant were approved By Masego Mafata About 20 activists picketed outside the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) offices in Pretoria on Thursday, demanding fixes to flaws that they have identified in the R350 Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant application system. Many of the activists, affiliated...

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Court victory for blind people after 11-year battle

The “book famine” is over as Copyright Act declared unconstitutional By Tania Broughton The “book famine” for blind and visually impaired people in South Africa has come to an end. The Copyright Act, which bars the conversion of written material to braille, or other accessible formats without the permission of the copyright holders, has been declared unconstitutional by Gauteng High Court Judge Mandla...

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How a determined community is fighting the army’s attempts to evict them

Happiness Village’s residents fear for their lives and face unlawful evictions, beatings and intimidation, legal action and shack demolitions By Kimberly Mutandiro Since their unlawful eviction from their homes at the Marievale military base in 2017, the residents of Happiness Village informal settlement have fought for their right to remain on army land. In and out of court ever since, helped...

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