Black Twitter users are threatening to change their holiday plans to invade Hout Bay in Cape Town after a white resident of the city created a race row at the weekend by complaining about black beach users. So what is the suburb like?
It is known for sailing‚ fishing and swimming‚ with a long sandy beach. It also offers mountain hiking options as well as “cutesie” shops and a craft market along with a choice of restaurants. It has a working harbour that provides picturesque views for holiday photographs.
But be warned: Crime hotspots in the suburb warranted four new CCTV cameras being installed in August this year‚ to complement existing security measures by the City of Cape Town‚ at a cost of R700‚000.
A once peaceful harbour village hugging Cape Town’s dramatically beautiful coastline and mountains‚ Hout Bay is representative of all wealth classes‚ with houses valued in the millions‚ council-funded flats‚ low cost housing as well as shacks.
Poachers‚ prostitutes and thieves mar the area‚ affecting rich and poor alike.
Its criminals range from the downmarket to the flamboyant.
Derelict vessels in the Hout Bay Harbour have become home to gangsters. Hopefully this is being tackled with the appointment of Pumla Seni‚ the country’s first female harbour master‚ who is winning respect with a no-nonsense approach to crime in her waters. She is collaborating with law-enforcement agencies to raid the ships.
One big time crook with a Hout Bay address is a former super rich businessman who is now serving a 20-year jail term. Johannes van Staden went from a R8.5 million Hout Bay mansion to jail this year‚ after being convicted of fake VAT claims for his fishing company. The South African Revenue Service had paid him out more than R250-million in VAT prior to his conviction for fraud‚ racketeering‚ money laundering and reckless trading. He spent his ill-gotten rands on two game farms in Limpopo‚ amongst other properties‚ as well as two planes and more than 40 vehicles registered in the name of his family trust. He also loved shopping for diamonds‚ Rolex watches and tanzanite.
IN SHORT: So what is Hout Bay like?...
Black Twitter users are threatening to change their holiday plans to invade Hout Bay in Cape Town after a white resident of the city created a race row at the weekend by complaining about black beach users. So what is the suburb like?
It is known for sailing‚ fishing and swimming‚ with a long sandy beach. It also offers mountain hiking options as well as “cutesie” shops and a craft market along with a choice of restaurants. It has a working harbour that provides picturesque views for holiday photographs.
But be warned: Crime hotspots in the suburb warranted four new CCTV cameras being installed in August this year‚ to complement existing security measures by the City of Cape Town‚ at a cost of R700‚000.
A once peaceful harbour village hugging Cape Town’s dramatically beautiful coastline and mountains‚ Hout Bay is representative of all wealth classes‚ with houses valued in the millions‚ council-funded flats‚ low cost housing as well as shacks.
Poachers‚ prostitutes and thieves mar the area‚ affecting rich and poor alike.
Its criminals range from the downmarket to the flamboyant.
Derelict vessels in the Hout Bay Harbour have become home to gangsters. Hopefully this is being tackled with the appointment of Pumla Seni‚ the country’s first female harbour master‚ who is winning respect with a no-nonsense approach to crime in her waters. She is collaborating with law-enforcement agencies to raid the ships.
One big time crook with a Hout Bay address is a former super rich businessman who is now serving a 20-year jail term. Johannes van Staden went from a R8.5 million Hout Bay mansion to jail this year‚ after being convicted of fake VAT claims for his fishing company. The South African Revenue Service had paid him out more than R250-million in VAT prior to his conviction for fraud‚ racketeering‚ money laundering and reckless trading. He spent his ill-gotten rands on two game farms in Limpopo‚ amongst other properties‚ as well as two planes and more than 40 vehicles registered in the name of his family trust. He also loved shopping for diamonds‚ Rolex watches and tanzanite.
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