Ann Eveleth
Crime along Durban’s beachfront was at an all-time low this Christmas season, according to city officials.
Fear of beachfront violence saw several businesses close on certain days and surround their premises with razor-wire in advance of the holiday season.
While the local press shrieked “Bloody beachfront” headlines during the holiday period, SAPS director Bala Naidoo said this week that a record low of 18 crimes had been recorded on the beachfront between New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day: “Those few incidents were reported despite crowds swelling to more than 200 000 over the two days and a lot of alcohol being consumed. Last year we recorded 39 crimes over the same period,” he said.
Naidoo dismissed the widely reported claim by one police reservist of “a crime every 30 seconds” over the New Year holiday: “We are investigating that comment, but common sense says it is impossible. That would mean two crimes a minute, 120 an hour and almost 3 000 a day. It’s ridiculous.”
Christmas Day was also peaceful, with few incidents marring signs of racial integration in the crowded swimming areas as a handful of white and Indian families sunbathed and played together with the black majority.
Durban North Central African National Congress councillor and executive committee chairperson Nomusa Dube, whose area includes most of the beachfront, said she was “convinced the paranoia promoted in some quarters is rooted in racism and nothing else.
“There were problems, but these involved a tiny minority of trouble- makers, and this year marked a 50% relief over last year.”
Inkatha Freedom Party Durban Metro councillor Anthony Grinker agreed: “The problems were the exception. This debate has taken on serious racial overtones, with some white Durbanites comparing the beach to how it was ten years ago.
“Other signs of racial problems included the mysterious disappearance of the street children over the holidays and the whiteness of the new official car-guards.
“Where did all the black parking attendants go?” he asked.
The ANC’s Dube also slated the closure of several beachfront businesses – one of which she said denied her entry in early December – over the holidays, and called for the city council to “take a hard line against this practice. Those businesses are leasing council land – the people’s land – and many of them are renting it for next to nothing. If they can’t provide services for all the people, they should not get those leases.”
Dube was referring to the decision by the popular – but mainly white – beachfront nightclub Joe Kools, the newly constructed Ocean Action Bar and several shops and restaurants, including the large pseudo- Spanish Tapas restuarant – which closed their doors on peak days, surrounding their premises with menacing-looking fences.
Durban Unlimited chief executive Geoff Austin said the businesses which closed argued they weren’t doing any business over the period: “The holiday crowds don’t frequent these places and they were afraid of damage,” he said.
Other beachfront businesses said their colleagues were “foolish”.
The normally white-dominated beachfront bar, Riptides, was packed over the holidays with a mixed-race crowd: “We doubled our turnover compared to the same period last year. We are finding that every year since the beaches opened, black patrons have more money to spend.
“We had no security and no problems. The only incident was one person dropped their glass and someone cut their foot on it,” said Riptides manager Alex Arhondonis.
Grinker said businesses were free do do as they wished, but added that closure “didn’t make a lot of business sense.
“Durbanites need to welcome the opportunities provided by the new era. Calls for locals to vacate the beach are crazy. The problem is not too many locals on the beach over the holidays, but too few for the rest of the year.
“We need more people to use the beach year- round, so we can have more facilities, spread out the crowds and cater for the new clientele.”
The ANC’s Dube agreed: “Many of the people who come now are crowding into Checkers and other places. They don’t need a Joe Kools, they need a place to buy their bread.
“This has been a very good eye-opener for the city. We need to consult communities about how to make them feel welcome on the beach.
“The first challenge we face, however, is to realise the race lines are still open in this city.”