A fight broke out at the Klipfontein Mission Station after a local church was petrol-bombed on Wednesday night during violent clashes over land.
Earlier in the day, residents living at the mission station marched towards police along Japhta K Masemola Road to demand that authorities take action against land invaders.
Community leader for the Mission Station, Melvin Rynhaardt, said there are thousands of coloured families who inherited the land owned by the Methodist Church, which is now under siege from people living on the outskirts of Marikana.
Residents and land invaders were involved in a tense stand-off on Wednesday over who is allowed to live there, but the City of Cape Town has confirmed that the Methodist Church has a court interdict which authorises the owner and police to remove any illegal structures on the property.
Resident Houston Rynhardt, 31, says shortly after 8pm, residents living in a section of the mission station known as “Die Kampie” got a skrik when they heard a loud bang.
This was a petrol bomb being thrown into the Pinkster Protestante Church of Emmanuel.
“There are two groups fighting with the mission people. It is the people from Boys Town that are fighting with Die Kampie and the people from Marikana are fighting with the people in the main section of the mission,” he explains.
“They put up hokkies and the anti-land invasion cops came after 6pm to knock it down. They got angry and threw the petrol bomb into the church. We panicked and broke the door to put the fire out.”
Rynhardt says as they were extinguishing the fire, they were pelted with stones and a fight broke out.
TENSION: Residents and land invaders in street
Mayco member for informal settlements, Xanthea Limberg, confirms the City cleared the area of illegal shacks, adding: “Given the volatility of the situation, the City relies on the SAPS.”
When Daily Voice visited Die Kampie on Thursday, a group of men were seen breaking down electricity poles but were stopped by Metro Police.
Resident Shana Stoffels, 27, says the community is being held hostage.
She says residents have been without electricity for several days now and have resorted to candles and making fires to cook meals.
On Wednesday, a woman said they would call in gangsters from Manenberg and Hanover Park to get rid of land invaders if authorities failed to help them.