“A declaration of war against the poor”: AbM leads resistance against South Africa’s anti-occupation bill : Peoples Dispatch
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The PIE Amendment Bill gazetted in 2026 is facing criticism for the changes it seeks to make to a law that was originally introduced after apartheid to protect poor and vulnerable communities from arbitrary evictions and homelessness.

The proposed Prevention of Illegal Eviction from an Unlawful Occupation of Land (PIE) Amendment Bill in South Africa has caused widespread outrage among grassroots movements, housing activists, trade unions, and progressive organizations. Leading this resistance is Abahlali baseMjondolo, the country’s largest social movement of the urban poor, which has described the bill as “a declaration of war against the poor.”

Abahlali baseMjondolo and allied organizations, say the bill is not just a legal amendment. It represents a broader political attempt to criminalize poverty, suppress grassroots organizing, and deepen repression in a society already marked by massive inequality, unemployment, and landlessness.

South Africa’s deepening housing crisis

Thirty-two years after the end of apartheid, millions of South Africans continue to live without secure housing, land, or dignity. Informal settlements continue to grow as unemployment, inequality, and the high cost of living push more people into precarious conditions.

According to organizations opposing the bill, more than 3.7 million families remain without housing, while the shortage grows by approximately 178,000 households every year. For many poor and working-class communities, land occupation has become a necessity rather than a choice. In the absence of affordable housing and meaningful land reform, occupations are often the only means through which people can secure shelter and survive.

Abahlali baseMjondolo argues that these occupations should not be understood as criminal acts, but rather as forms of “grassroots urban planning” carried out by communities abandoned by the state. The movement insists that the social value of land must take precedence over private profit and speculative interests and where there are real challenges around land use, they must be resolved through negotiations, not state violence.

What is the PIE Amendment Bill?

The original PIE Act was introduced after apartheid to prevent arbitrary and violent evictions. It gave effect to Section 26(3) of the South African Constitution, which states that no one may be evicted from their home without a court order after all relevant circumstances have been considered.

The law required courts to examine whether evictions would leave people homeless and whether alternative accommodation existed. It also recognized the vulnerabilities of children, women-headed households, elderly people, and persons with disabilities.

However, the proposed PIE Amendment Bill, gazetted by the GNU Cabinet on April 16, 2026, seeks to significantly alter these protections.

AbM and other organizations point out that the amendments would make evictions easier while weakening constitutional safeguards for poor communities. Courts could grant eviction orders even where no alternative accommodation exists. Temporary accommodation could also be limited in duration, potentially pushing evicted families back into homelessness.

More controversially, the bill introduces criminal penalties for people accused of organizing or supporting land occupations. Individuals who “incite, arrange, organize or permit” occupations could face severe punishment, including prison sentences, fines of up to R2 million, and asset seizures.

For social movements, this provision is particularly dangerous because it directly targets organizers, activists, community leaders, and organizations of the poor.

AbM argues that the Bill attempts to reverse the democratic gains made after apartheid by reintroducing punitive approaches to land occupation reminiscent of apartheid-era legislation such as the Prevention of Illegal Squatting Act.

Abahlali baseMjondolo further warns that the law seeks to criminalize the everyday survival strategies of poor communities. Membership fees, community contributions, and funds used to construct basic infrastructure in occupied settlements could all be interpreted as criminal activity under the proposed legislation.

Read more: The death, and life, of Khabazela: a portrait of Abahlali’s 26th martyr for land rights

The movement also argues that the bill specifically punishes collective organization. Courts would be instructed to consider the “pace, scale and frequency” of occupations when deciding eviction matters, effectively treating organized resistance as an aggravating factor.

A wider alliance against the bill

The struggle against the PIE Amendment Bill is not being led by Abahlali baseMjondolo alone. A broad coalition of organizations has united against the proposed law, including:

Ndifuna Ukwazi (NU), Reclaim the City (RTC), General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (GIWUSA), South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU), and the Socio-Economic Rights Institute (SERI).

They also argue that the bill undermines constitutional protections and shifts South Africa back toward authoritarian approaches to land and housing.

Their joint statement warns that criminalizing occupation ignores the structural causes of landlessness and homelessness, including unemployment, inadequate housing policy, and the slow pace of land reform.

The coalition insists that the solution to the housing crisis lies not in repression, but in meaningful urban land reform, expanded affordable housing, and democratic planning rooted in the needs of poor and working-class communities.

Trade unions, including GIWUSA and SAFTU, have also released statements opposing this bill.

Resistance on the ground

Opposition to the bill is already taking shape across South Africa through protests and community mobilization.

The Hlanganani branch of AbM in Salt Rock, within KwaDukuza Municipality, organized protests rejecting the bill. Branches from Bambanani, Esitineni, eNkanini, and Vusumuzi marched through the streets of Thembisa to raise awareness about what they described as an outright attack on the poor.

Community leaders also held political discussions and public pickets on Andrew Mapheto Drive in Thembisa, where organizers educated residents about the implications of the proposed law and prepared for broader resistance.

Abahlali baseMjondolo has stated clearly that the bill will face resistance “in the public consultation process, on the streets and in the courts.”

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