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[thepowerofubuntu-blog]

WARWICK MARKET

MY PERCEPTION AFTER THE TOUR AS AN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY STUDENT

A Zulu proverb that states “Umuntu ngumuntu ngabantu” people are able to eat because someone woke up and planted a seed that geminated, then someone decided to stock food and sell it at a reasonable price, one fought for people’s rights hence we need other people to be where we are.

I have lived in Durban for four year, walked pass the Warwick Market but little did I know that it is not just a market but a place of pride. It has managed to help many South African citizens located in Durban not only for survival but resulted in self-pride that their survival is due to their own effort not just handouts from the government. It has opened opportunities for people not to depend on an employer but to be self-employed hence promoting entrepreneurship.

The Warwick Market does not only help the service providers/traders however it is part of something that keeps the city and country going. It has taxi drivers, traders, hairstylist, dress makers and restaurants that provide affordable services. They even allow money to be paid in instalments. This to me indicated that without such areas in Durban some people would starve or stay without clothing as clothes and food is expensive at a formal sector such as spar, woolworths etc.

It was mentioned that the Early Morning Market which is part of Warwick Market was in plan to be diminished and be replaced by a mall. However, several people came together forming a non-organisation to fight against the government. This raised a flag, that there is a loophole in our governmental system because it is unreasonable to destroy a place that offers approximately 45000 people income to replace it with a place that will only provide 450 jobs.

Note, without the NGO to advocate for the traders/ informal placements no one would have risen and this is a red flag, that the traders themselves have a lack of insight into their rights as traders.

The main role of Occupational Therapist is to advocate for people who cannot voice their opinions but sadly occupational therapist are nowhere to be found. Dhilion .S. (2010). OTs should have been there to access how dirty the surrounding of the market is and see that it is not that the traders are polluting the environment but it is due to the lack of cleaning services around the area as their own selling stations were clean. This impacts negatively on traders’ right to a clean and safe environment Bill of rights S.A (1996). The dirtiness of the surrounding area is unhygienic to the traders and the customers especially where food is involved. If good occupational therapist advocators can thoroughly assess the Early Morning Market, it is more likely to find that other structures are not safe and conducive for traders to work on hence external motivation is needed to motivate the government to renovate the area or even people to fund and improve a place that I will like to call “A Place of Pride.”

I conclude with a question, Where are the occupational therapist? May they arise because Warwick Market is in need of them?

References:

South Africa Bill of rights (1996) Chapter 2, section 24:(a)(b)(i)(ii)(iii)

Cross J.C. (1998) Informal Politics: Street Vendors and the State in Mexico City. Standford, California: Standford University Press

Dhillon .S. (2010) Advocacy in Occupational Therapy: Exploring Clinicians Reasons and Experinces of Advocacy 77(4),241-248