Page 54 - Rural Voice III - Responding to a Pandemic

Johnay mEntoor
“The COVID pandemic had a devastating effect on our community, because more people became
unemployed.”
COVID-19 BROUGHT
HUNGER TO MERWEVILLE
johnay menToor, recenTly appoinTed coordinaTor of The merweville advice office, reflecTs on The impacT of covid-19 on his Town, where job losses meanT many people wenT To bed wiThouT food
The social issues in Merweville before COVID-19 were the same as any other town: high levels of poverty, unemployment, and drug abuse among young people. Our day- to-day activities involved the case handling and mediating of labour disputes between employers and employees. Most people are employed locally by the Community Work Programme or by sheep farmers.
Merweville is a small town and people didn’t adhere to lockdown restrictions during the level 5 to level 3 period, as there were no reported cases at that time. People failed to wear masks or social distance. When the first case came to Merweville, people became serious about the pandemic. There have only been 10 reported cases, and all recovered after mostly self-isolating at home.
how The pandemic impacTed The work of The merweville advice office in The communiTy
The COVID pandemic had a devastating effect on our community, because more people became unemployed. Most of the farmers didn’t get the TERS [COVID-19 Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme] money and let their workers go, because they
MERWEVILLE ADVICE OFFICE
The Merweville Advice Office is located in a small, remote Karoo town in the Beaufort West Municipality, 130 kilometres away from the town of Beaufort West. It was established in 2013, in response to a need by local farmworkers for legal advice, with regard to civil and labour-related matters and farm worker evictions. The Advice Office helps community members to access social security and is involved in food security programmes. Staff facilitate educational workshops on consumer, women and youth issues.
DISTRICT: Central Karoo District
COVID-19 CASES: From March to the 19th November 2020, there were 1,062 cases of COVID-19, with 81 deaths and 981 recoveries reported in the Central Karoo District of the Western Cape.
COORDINATOR: Johnay Mentoor
NUMBER OF STAFF: 3, NUMBER OF VOLUNTEERS: 0
BOARD CHAIR: Jan Bostander
BOARD MEMBERS: Anna van der Horst; Niklaas Voster; Klara Links;
Marie Jors Jonkers
ADDRESS: 92 Skema Street, Merweville, Western Cape, 6940
PHONE: 078 008 6051, EMAIL: merwevilleadvice92@gmail.com
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