Western Cape High Court clears way for Knoflokskraal notices as 15 000 wait to hear their fate

The Western Cape High Court has authorised the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure to proceed with substituted service of its main court application over Knoflokskraal, the 2 000-hectare tract of state-owned land in the Elgin Valley near Grabouw.

Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson welcomed the order, which the department described as the first step in a process to obtain evidence and information on who is occupying the site, to address unlawful occupation and to ensure the law is applied fairly and consistently there.

What the order does is procedural, and it matters to the people living on the land because it decides how they will be told that the state is coming to court about them. The ministry said the substituted service authorises notification of all affected parties, including individuals whose identities are unknown, through notices in English, Afrikaans and isiXhosa at prominent locations across the affected properties, loudhailer announcements, direct service on community structures, newspaper publications, and access to the court papers through the department’s official digital platforms.

“The substituted service process is an important procedural step in ensuring that the matter can be considered by the Court after affected parties have been notified in accordance with the order,” the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday.

The department said its main application is expected to be heard by February next year. Last week it said government was preparing to approach the Western Cape High Court to halt the further expansion of the occupation, and that the application would be submitted on Monday, 19 October. The department said the application followed six months of preparation, investigations and engagements aimed at establishing the circumstances surrounding the occupation.

Knoflokskraal was reportedly unlawfully occupied in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is now said to have grown to over 4 000 structures, housing an estimated 15 000 to 20 000 people. The site comprises six state-owned farms under the custodianship of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, and was historically intended for forestry to support job creation and economic development in the region.

Macpherson framed the order as the start of a court-supervised process rather than its conclusion. “The restoration of the rule of law at Knoflokskraal begins with ensuring that the law is respected and that the proper legal processes are followed. We welcome this order because it allows us to take the next step in our application and ensures that affected parties are properly notified,” he said.

“We will not allow unlawful occupation and the breakdown of the rule of law to go unaddressed. At the same time, we are committed to ensuring that our actions are lawful, procedurally fair and subject to judicial oversight.”

The department said it remains committed to working with the relevant authorities to address the challenges at Knoflokskraal and to restoring lawful governance over the affected state properties. What the application will ask the court to do with the land and the people on it, and what the state intends for those who cannot show a right to remain, is not set out in the department’s statement.

This report is based on the account published by SAnews (South African Government News Agency) at https://www.sanews.gov.za/south-africa/macpherson-welcomes-high-court-order-knoflokskraal, which summarises the ministry’s statement and the court order rather than reproducing the order itself.