Page 28 - SCAT Rural Voice II - 35 Stories for 35 Years

Access to Justice
dordrecht
ADVICE OFFICE
Dordrecht is a small rural town nestled in the stormberg mountains in the eastern cape.1 Located just north of Queenstown between Middelburg and Mthatha, Dordrecht is surrounded by a number of sheep, cattle and potato farms. The town was founded in 1856 by Baron smiddolff, a minister of the Dutch Reformed church, who named the town after Dordrecht in Holland. census 2011 records the population size as 2 023 inhabitants, 58.18% who speak isiXhosa and 31.20% who speak Afrikaans.2
The Dordrecht Advice Office was initially established to empower farm workers who faced unfair dismissals, wage disputes, unlawful evictions and even assault at the hands of farm owners. The Advice Office’s ability to mediate labour disputes has earned them respect from both farmworkers and farm owners. They have also played a pivotal role in assisting the police with regard to specific crimes affecting the community, and is seen as a major strength of this LDA. The Advice Office received funding from the Department of Labour to run workshops on labour rights for farm workers in neighbouring farms.
Inside the advice centre office.
Dordrecht’s stone church.
Administrator Nonceba Ndala and fieldworker Dimakatso Tsulo.
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1. 2.
Routes Travel Info Portal: Dordrecht. (n.d.). Retrieved October 4, 2019, from https://web.archive.org/web/20070315232644/ http://www.routes.co.za/ec/dordrecht/index.html
Frith, A. (2019) census 2011: Main Place: Dordrecht. Retrieved October 4, 2019, from https://census2011.adrianfrith.com/ place/283001
FAst FACTS
NaMe: Dordrecht Advice Office
LeD By: Monica Tyalimpi
MaiN cHaLLeNGes faceD By tHe coMMuNity: Labour disputes on farms, farm evictions, youth unemployment, crime
MaiN actiVities: Paralegal support; labour disputes; economic empowerment; community development
aDDress: 5 Klip street, Dordrecht
coNtact: Phone: 045 943 1045, cell: 082 225 6328