Joburg is ordered by the Gauteng High Court to expedite the registration of informal traders

The South Gauteng High Court has ordered the City of Johannesburg to speedily "verify and process" the registration of informal traders who were recently removed from their trading stalls in the city centre.

The Metro was given 21 days to finalise its verification process after informal traders, through the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI), took the municipality to court after they were removed from operating outside designated areas.

Last month, the city began enforcing its regulations, resulting in scores of informal traders being unable to trade due to the status of their paperwork.

SERI took up the matter, arguing that affected traders have been treated unfairly and that their rights to trade and earn a living have been violated through the enforcement of these recent by-laws.

On Monday, scores of demonstrators, from the two opposing sides, gathered outside the Gauteng High Court ahead of the much-anticipated judgment, which was handed down by Judge Brad Wanless.

The legal battle between the city and informal traders stems from their recent removal from De Villiers Street and other trading areas in the CBD after the city began enforcing new trading rules, affecting scores of traders in the process.

Judge Wanless said the City of Johannesburg must conduct the process “expeditiously and transparently,” stressing that the outcome must be in line with the city’s own by-laws and national legislation governing informal trading.

"The first respondent, the City of Johannesburg, is to conduct an expedited verification, registration, re-registration, and allocation process as contemplated by the informal trading by-laws and the Businesses Act,” the judge ruled.

The court further ordered that the process must start on Tuesday and be finalised by November 18, giving officials just two weeks to complete the verification.

Judge Wanless emphasised the importance of procedural fairness and accountability, warning the city against arbitrary or discriminatory practices during the re-registration.

"This court cannot allow a situation where traders’ livelihoods are destroyed through administrative confusion or selective enforcement. The rule of law applies equally to the city and to the traders."

The ruling comes just days after the two parties met in court on Friday, with the matter postponed after the parties failed to reach an agreement.

"We are not going to back down from trading on De Villiers Street. We are selling clothes and are trying to make a living. We need the city to allow us to do that and resolve our cries with speed so we can feed our families," a trader, who did not want to be named, said outside court.

Acting Johannesburg Mayor Eunice Mgcina, reacting to the ruling, stated: "We definitely see it as a victory, as the City of Johannesburg. It’s basically what we want to do. We want to ensure that everyone is here legally and that everyone operates in Johannesburg with the relevant documentation that is permitted by the social development department."

Meanwhile, the Johannesburg Metropolitan Department has stood firm on its by-law enforcement drive, saying illegal trading will not be tolerated.

"Illegal trading will not be tolerated in the city centre, as JMPD officers are impounding both perishable and non-perishable goods from illegal informal traders. Pushing trolleys on the road is illegal and dangerous as it obstructs the flow of traffic, endangers pedestrians, and puts the person pushing the trolley at risk of being struck by a vehicle. It can also cause accidents when drivers are forced to swerve or brake suddenly," JMPD said in a statement.

siyabonga.sithole@inl.co.za