From: Karin Chubb
Sent: Wednesday, July 09, 2008 9:41 PM
Subject: Soetwater today, 9 July 2008
“A child … brings hope with it, and forward looking thoughts ….”
Yesterday there were 850 people at Soetwater, today there are 851. Trudging 
through the freezing weather and drizzle, I found myself in a family tent where there was warmth, people smiled, and the cause for the lightness and happy mood slept blissfully in his father’s arms – quite unaware of just how much hope and quiet joy his safe arrival last night has brought to this beleaguered community. I cannot begin to imagine what it must have been like to go through the last two months of pregnancy in the Soetwater conditions, which deteriorated so sharply in that time. And we know too well that some babies did not make it to a safe delivery.
Food
Since the beginning of the week, the food situation has improved somewhat because more volunteers are again active in Soetwater. Since about last Saturday, volunteers, mainly from Ocean View, have made hot porridge for breakfast, and there is milk and babyfood. However, the camp workers fear that, with so much information in the media that the camp is to be closed and there are now so many other centres and temporary shelters that need help, resources for Soetwater are again drying up. However, the TAC has been very generous and there is formula for babies (though still a shortage of Nido No 3) there is cereal and there are also now enough nappies.
The Camp is now in the curious situation that volunteers are back, but resources are being withdrawn, also physical infrastructure like gas stoves. The management of the camp is making alternative arrangements where it can, using donations, as the shortage of fruit and vegetables is still of great concern. The quality of the cooked evening meal is still inadequate.
The delivery itself became more problematic with the recent floods, and the City Council has now taken over transporting the food. On Friday there will be a meeting of several concerned monitors and NGO’s, together with the camp management, to try and improve the food quality in terms of setting a standard of what people should be receiving.
Medical Care
This has improved since my last report. Nurses from Masiphumelele Clinic and FBH are on duty every day now, from 8.30 until the last patient has been seen. They flag cases that should be seen by a medical practioner, who comes regularly. Serious cases are sent to FBH by ambulance. The child with the nasty burn wound whom I mentioned in my last report is now being seen, and her condition is improving.
Today there were two delegates from UNICEF, investigating gender-based violence in refugee camps. There have been cases of sexual assault at Soetwater, but it is extremely difficult to deal with these properly in the face of denial and fear. The camp management is aware of the problem and is doing its best, but people are reluctant to speak out.
The extreme cold and the very wet conditions are leading to more respiratory problems and also to influenza. One woman was taken to FBH by ambulance while I was there this afternoon.
Hygiene is a challenge, as it is impossible to dry anything in the prevailing conditions, though the women try to wash clothes when and where they can. The camp looked relatively clean when I visited, but there is still quite a bit of litter. Children were playing in pools of water everywhere, which can probably also be quite hazardous in view of their weakened immune systems and lack of proper food and vitamins. I can’t imagine anyone having much resistance to disease and infections in Soetwater at this stage.
The washrooms which had been occupied by men who were living there (see my previous report), causing some tensions especially for the women who could not then use the facility, have been returned to their original purpose.
Infrastructural problems
People have made their tents stronger and more weather-resistant in quite ingenious ways. Pallets from dismantled tents are now re-inforcing flimsy plastic sides, and carpeting from tents no longer in use is serving as roof insulation. But – for how long can people continue to live in this way? And why should they have to live like this? The whole camp is freezing cold, and such makeshift arrangements don’t really begin to address the needs of the people living there.
The condition of the electrical installation is cause for concern. Current is taken 
from boxes which are broken and from which the covers are missing. Even with earth leakage, this is highly dangerous.
A volatile situation
The intention seems to be to close the camp by 23 July, or at least this is the perception, and tensions are arising around this date. While there seems to be ongoing communication with the leaders at some levels, people are clearly unsettled by the continuing uncertainties around their future. This contributes to a volatility which can quickly destabilise the fragile order in the camp. One example is the removal of the gas stoves I mentioned above, when a kitchen facility was dismantled and taken away, to be used elsewhere for flood victims. The way it was done created panic and caused a stampede on the kitchen, during which there was some looting. A resolution was eventually achieved and some of the looted things were returned. But this points to a bigger problem: Everything that is done now, for whatever reason, is perceived as a push to get people out of the camp. This will intensify in the coming days. As “bigger” emergencies claim resources, the instability and uncertainty among the residents of Soetwater will intensify.
Karin Chubb
Black Sash/HRC monitor
