Africa-Press – South-Africa. Two informal recyclers were shot dead in an alleged turf war between rival waste picking groups in Johannesburg.
They were shot by unknown assailants at Robinson Deep Landfill Site on Thursday evening.
City of Joburg’s Environment and Infrastructure Service Department (EISD) has condemned the killing.
The department’s Michael Sun said: “Senseless violence has taken the lives of two individuals trying to eke out a living in the informal waste economy.
“This is completely unacceptable.”
He added:
According to Sun, circumstances surrounding the matter were allegedly linked to turf rivals amongst waste picking groups.
Sun said although the informal waste picking economy is a unique opportunity for economic development, it must be done orderly and peacefully.
As a result of the incident, he said his department would be taking swift action to intensify security measures at the site.
He has also requested assistance from the police to conduct random searches for weapons and other contraband on people entering their facilities and to ensure all reclaimers operating on site adhere to its rules and regulations.
A case of double murder is being investigated.
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