location republish phone mail print search twitter facebook rss youtube copyright menu cross whatsapp share home creative-commons
GroundUp Logo
  • Topics
    • Latest stories
    • Gallery
    • Social grants guide
    • Housing guide
    • Answers to your questions
    • features
    • Photo essays
    • Our editorials
    • Opinion and analysis
    • Authors
    • Topics and categories
  • About
  • Donate
Gallery front |  Albums

Animals

Animals in Plett Get Aid
Animals in Plett Get Aid
Volunteers under the name Muddy Pooches feed and assist 250 pets from informal settlements every Saturday in Plettenberg Bay in the Western Cape.
29 August 2020
Cows Graze in Dumpsite
Cows Graze in Dumpsite
Cows graze among the dirty nappies in a dumpsite in Uitenhage.
7 August 2020
Day 1 of the Covid-19 Lockdown in South Africa
Day 1 of the Covid-19 Lockdown in South Africa
A law enforcement officer stationed at Greenmarket Square is befriended by a squirrel during day 1 of the Covid-19 lockdown in Cape Town, South Africa.
27 March 2020
COSATU marches against state capture
COSATU marches against state capture
Egyptian Geese wander through the COSATU (Congress of South African Trade Unions) protest in Cape Town. Thousands marched under the banner of COSATU calling for an end to state capture.
27 September 2017

Art & Entertainment

Cape Town’s iconic murals
Cape Town’s iconic murals
Public art in Cape Town, South Africa
14 March 2019
Willie Bester
Willie Bester
South African artist Willie Bester at his home in Kuilsriver.
25 May 2017
Graffiti in Salt River
Graffiti in Salt River
Graffiti by artist 'Nardstar' in Salt River
4 April 2017
Cape Town’s iconic murals
Cape Town’s iconic murals
Public art in Cape Town, South Africa
14 March 2019

Back to School

Photo of First day of school in Khayelitsha
Photo of First day of school in Khayelitsha
Grade R student attend their first day of school at Isiphiwo Public Primary in Khayelitsha
11 January 2017
Photo of first day of school in Khayelitsha
Photo of first day of school in Khayelitsha
Grade R student attend their first day of school at Isiphiwo Public Primary in Khayelitsha
11 January 2017
Photo of first day of school in Khayelitsha
Photo of first day of school in Khayelitsha
Grade R student attend their first day of school at Isiphiwo Public Primary in Khayelitsha
11 January 2017
Photo of first day of school in Khayelitsha
Photo of first day of school in Khayelitsha
Grade R student attend their first day of school at Isiphiwo Public Primary in Khayelitsha
11 January 2017

Cape Minstrels

Photo of Cape Minstrels 2017
Photo of Cape Minstrels 2017
A Cape Minstrel performer gets his makeup done in Athlone
2 January 2017
Photo of Cape Minstrels 2017
Photo of Cape Minstrels 2017
Cape Minstrel performers in Athlone
2 January 2017
Photo of Cape Minstrels 2017
Photo of Cape Minstrels 2017
A Cape Minstrel performer gets his makeup done in Athlone
2 January 2017
No Confidence Vote
No Confidence Vote
ANC Pro Zuma supporters gather outside Parliament before the vote of no confidence against Jacob Zuma in Cape Town. Several opposition parties came together, calling on parliamentarians to vote Zuma out.
8 August 2017

Civil Society Organisations

Land for Living March
Land for Living March
Thousands of people marched towards the Cape Town Civic Centre on Human Rights Day to demand land for better housing.
21 March 2018
#UniteBehind Debate
#UniteBehind Debate
President of the UDM Bantu Holomisa during the #UniteBehind debate at the Community House in Salt River, Cape Town. The debate was about whether President Zuma's vote of no confidence should be a secret ballot.
11 July 2017
Reclaim the City occupy Woodstock Hospital
Reclaim the City occupy Woodstock Hospital
Reclaim the City supporters occupy the Woodstock Hospital. The occupiers are protesting against the sale of Tafelberg and are demanding clarity on affordable housing on the Helen Bowden and Woodstock Hospital sites.
27 March 2017
Social Grants in the Constitutional Court
Social Grants in the Constitutional Court
People affiliated with the Black Sash movement can be seen holding a protest outside the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg as the case involving the social grants proceeded inside. In green are women from the ANCWL who come to show support for the Minister Dlamini.
15 March 2017

Constitutional Court

Social Grants in the Constitutional Court
Social Grants in the Constitutional Court
People affiliated with the Black Sash movement can be seen holding a protest outside the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg as the case involving the social grants proceeded inside. In green are women from the ANCWL who come to show support for the Minister Dlamini.
15 March 2017
Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court in Johannesburg.
17 January 2017
Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court in Johannesburg.
17 January 2017
Photo of Constitutional Court
Photo of Constitutional Court
Photo of Constitutional Court
17 January 2017

Covid-19

Hospitality Employees Protest Against Covid-19 Restrictions
Hospitality Employees Protest Against Covid-19 Restrictions
Police disperse demonstrators during a protest against Covid-19 restrictions in the hospitality and tourism industry outside Parliament in Cape Town.
24 September 2020
Covid Village in Uitenhage
Covid Village in Uitenhage
Covid Village informal settlement in Uitenhage
18 June 2020
Meat vendor in Port Elizabeth
Meat vendor in Port Elizabeth
Ntombekhaya Paka selling cow feet in Port Elizabeth during lockdown.
11 April 2020
Children wait for food in Lavender Hill
Children wait for food in Lavender Hill
Children wait for food in Lavender Hill during the Covid-19 lockdown in Cape Town.
16 April 2020

Events

Open Streets Mitchells Plain
Open Streets Mitchells Plain
Thousands celebrate during the Open Streets festival in Mitchells Plain.
25 March 2018
De Waal Drive renamed after Philip Kgosana
De Waal Drive renamed after Philip Kgosana
Tony Heard, Archbishop Njongonkulu Ndungane, Philip Kgosana’s sister Louisa Makgopela, Kgosana’s wife Alice, Mayor Patricia De Lille and Kgosana’s son Bani attend the unveiling of the De Waal Drive being renamed after struggle veteran Philip Kgosana in Cape Town.
12 October 2017
The Conference for The Future of South Africa
The Conference for The Future of South Africa
Outspoken ANC MP Makhosi Khoza addresses the gathering at The Conference for The Future of South Africa at the Rhema Bible Church in Randburg.
18 July 2017
#UniteBehind Debate
#UniteBehind Debate
President of the UDM Bantu Holomisa during the #UniteBehind debate at the Community House in Salt River, Cape Town. The debate was about whether President Zuma's vote of no confidence should be a secret ballot.
11 July 2017

Evictions

Evictions in Khayelitsha
Evictions in Khayelitsha
Empolweni in Khayelitsha, Cape Town.
22 April 2020
Evictions in Khayelitsha
Evictions in Khayelitsha
Alex Midikana sits amongst his belongings as shacks are removed next to Empolweni in Khayelitsha, Cape Town.
22 April 2020
Refugees Relocated to Bellville
Refugees Relocated to Bellville
Sandra Bahibitugu who was originally from Burundi was one of the refugees relocated. Hundreds of refugees evicted from the Central Methodist Mission Church are moved to "Paint City" in Bellville.
3 April 2020
Refugees Evicted From Church
Refugees Evicted From Church
Police evict refugees from the Central Methodist Mission Church on Greenmarket Square after a five-month long occupation.
2 April 2020

General

District 6 Ruins
District 6 Ruins
Long-buried houses revealed after diggers clear a site for housing in District 6 in Cape Town, South Africa.
4 July 2020
Homeless People
Homeless People
Homeless people living under a bridge in the Cape Town CBD.
22 May 2020
Evictions in Khayelitsha
Evictions in Khayelitsha
Empolweni in Khayelitsha, Cape Town.
22 April 2020
Waste-picker in Johannesburg
Waste-picker in Johannesburg
Luyanda Hlatshwayo sorts waste in the informal settlement of Bekezela, Johannesburg.
14 April 2020

Government

Army Deployed Quell Gang Violence
Army Deployed Quell Gang Violence
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is deployed to assist the police to quell gang violence on the Cape flats in Cape Town, South Africa. Since November 2018, over 2,300 people have been murdered in the Western Cape.
18 July 2019
Fikile Mbalula after the Western Cape's train system was suspended
Fikile Mbalula after the Western Cape's train system was suspended
Minister of Transport Fikile Mbalula briefed the media at Cape Town train station after the Western Cape Metrorail service was suspended for the afternoon.
27 February 2020
Raymond Maseko after the Western Cape's train system was suspended
Raymond Maseko after the Western Cape's train system was suspended
PRASA Acting Regional Manager Raymond Maseko joined Minister of Transport Fikile Mbalula (not pictured) during a media briefing at Cape Town train station after the the Western Cape Metrorail service was suspended for the afternoon.
27 February 2020
Cyril Ramaphosa Keynote at World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa
Cyril Ramaphosa Keynote at World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa
Former Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan attends the 2019 World Economic Form (WEF) on Africa at the Orange Hotel in Cape Town.
4 September 2019

Immigration

Refugees Evicted outside UNHCR
Refugees Evicted outside UNHCR
After 3 weeks of occupying outside the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) offices in Cape Town, refugees and asylum seekers wanting to leave the country due to xenophobia were evicted by police and law enforcement. Many were arrested.
30 October 2019
Refugees Camp Outside the UNHCR
Refugees Camp Outside the UNHCR
Refugees camp outside the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) offices in Cape Town, South Africa. Many of them are from Somalia, the DRC and Burundi and were forced to leave their countries of birth due to civil war. They are now pleading with UNHCR to be taken back home for fear of their lives in South Africa due to xenophobia.
24 October 2019
Refugees Camp Outside the UNHCR
Refugees Camp Outside the UNHCR
Refugees camp outside the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) offices in Cape Town, South Africa. Many of them are from Somalia, the DRC and Burundi and were forced to leave their countries of birth due to civil war. They are now pleading with UNHCR to be taken back home for fear of their lives in South Africa due to xenophobia.
18 October 2019
Refugees Evicted outside UNHCR
Refugees Evicted outside UNHCR
After 3 weeks of occupying outside the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) offices in Cape Town, refugees and asylum seekers wanting to leave the country due to xenophobia were evicted by police and law enforcement. Many were arrested.
30 October 2019

Informal Settlements

Siyahlala Informal Settlement
Siyahlala Informal Settlement
Shacks built against an old railway line in Siyahlala informal settlement in Langa Cape Town.
1 October 2020
Covid Village in Uitenhage
Covid Village in Uitenhage
Covid Village informal settlement in Uitenhage
18 June 2020
Flooding at Waterfront Informal Settlement
Flooding at Waterfront Informal Settlement
Flooding after heavy rain at the Waterfront informal settlement in Philippi, Cape Town.
10 June 2020
Moeggesukkel informal settlement
Moeggesukkel informal settlement
Moeggesukkel informal settlement in Uitenhage.
11 June 2020

Politics

Anti-Gang Unit launch in Hanover Park
Anti-Gang Unit launch in Hanover Park
South African president Cyril Ramaphosa speaks to residents in Hanover Park during a walk around for the launch of the Anti-Gang Unit. The aim of the unit is to fight organised crime and drug distribution in the cape flats.
2 November 2018
No Confidence Vote
No Confidence Vote
DA leader Mmusi Maimane and EFF leader Julius Malema is seen before the vote of no confidence against president Jacob Zuma outside Parliament in Cape Town. Thousands marched and several opposition parties came together, calling on parliamentarians to vote Zuma out.
8 August 2017
No Confidence Vote
No Confidence Vote
Thousands of protesters march to Parliament before the vote of no confidence against Jacob Zuma in Cape Town. Several opposition parties came together, calling on parliamentarians to vote Zuma out.
8 August 2017
Minster Fikile Mbalula Train Ride
Minster Fikile Mbalula Train Ride
Minister of Transport Fikile Mbalula was planning on taking a train from Khayelitsha to Langa but it didn't go as planned after numerous delays.
25 June 2019

Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit

Photo of Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit
Photo of Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit
A prisoner inside the Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit
28 September 2016
Tattoos are seen on a female ex-convict hand as she holds her baby
Tattoos are seen on a female ex-convict hand as she holds her baby
Female ex-convict holds her baby
28 September 2016
Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit
Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit
A female Pollsmoor prisoner pushes a baby in a pram inside Pollsmoor
28 September 2016
Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit
Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit
A prisoner inside the Pollsmoor Baby Mother Unit
28 September 2016

Protests and pickets

Hospitality Employees Protest Against Covid-19 Restrictions
Hospitality Employees Protest Against Covid-19 Restrictions
Police disperse demonstrators during a protest against Covid-19 restrictions in the hospitality and tourism industry outside Parliament in Cape Town.
24 September 2020
Climate Change Activists protest at Africa Oil Week
Climate Change Activists protest at Africa Oil Week
Climate change activists dump fake “blood” and “oil” in the lobby of the Cape Town International’s Convention Centre (CTICC) in South Africa, during the the Africa Oil Week conference.
5 November 2019
Thousands Protest Against Gender Based Violence
Thousands Protest Against Gender Based Violence
Thousands Protest against gender based violence outside Parliament in Cape Town, South Africa.
4 September 2019
Marikana Informal Settlement Protest
Marikana Informal Settlement Protest
A family tries is affected by teargas during a protest for services in Marikana informal settlement in Philippi East.
24 June 2019

Public Figures

State of the Nation Address 2020
State of the Nation Address 2020
South African president Cyril Ramaphosa and his wife Tshepo Motsepe attends the 2020 State of the Nation Address at Parliament in Cape Town.
13 February 2020
Bheki Cele Walkaround in Lavender Hill
Bheki Cele Walkaround in Lavender Hill
Minister of Police Bheki Cele meets residents in Lavender Hill during a walk around though the area.
8 March 2019
SAFTU March
SAFTU March
Minister of Finance Tito Mboweni arrives to collect a memorandum outside of Parliament ahead of the annual budget speech. Hundreds of SAFTU members and its affiliated unions march to Parliament to protest against joblessness and the unbundling of Eskom.
20 February 2019
Gwede Mantashe visits Gloria Coal Mine
Gwede Mantashe visits Gloria Coal Mine
Minister of MIneral Resources Gwede Mantashe visits Gloria Coal Mine in Mpumalanga. This came after 22 men were trapped underground, presumed dead.
15 February 2019

School Protest

Philippi High School students protest
Philippi High School students protest
Students from Philippi High marched to the offices of the Department of Education in Mitchells Plain demanding a new school be built.
6 March 2017
San Souci learners protest
San Souci learners protest
Students from San Souci High School cry after protesting the school's hair policies and code of conduct
2 September 2016
San Souci learners protest
San Souci learners protest
Students from San Souci High School protest the school's hair policies and code of conduct
2 September 2016
Protest to keep schools closed during Covid peak
Protest to keep schools closed during Covid peak
Yolanda Jackson, a teacher at Portia Primary protests in Cape Town to keep school closed during the Covid-19 "peak".
25 June 2020

Social Grants

Social Grants in the Constitutional Court
Social Grants in the Constitutional Court
People affiliated with the Black Sash movement can be seen holding a protest outside the Constitutional Court in Johannesburg as the case involving the social grants proceeded inside. In green are women from the ANCWL who come to show support for the Minister Dlamini.
15 March 2017
Bathabile Dlamini appears before SCOPA
Bathabile Dlamini appears before SCOPA
Minister of Social Development Bathabile Dlamini appears before Parliament's Standing Committee On Public Accounts (SCOPA) in the Old Assembly in Parliament. Dlamini was asked before SCOPA to discuss social grants.
7 March 2017
Photo of people queuing for social grants
Photo of people queuing for social grants
People queue for social grants in Gugulethu, Cape Town
1 February 2017
Sassa office
Sassa office
People queue for social grants outside the Sassa office in Eerste River.
10 October 2018

SONA

State of the Nation Address 2020
State of the Nation Address 2020
South African president Cyril Ramaphosa and his wife Tshepo Motsepe attends the 2020 State of the Nation Address at Parliament in Cape Town.
13 February 2020
State of the Nation Address 2019
State of the Nation Address 2019
The entrance to the National Assembly at Parliament during the 2019 State of the Nation Address (SONA) in Cape Town, South Africa.
22 June 2019
SONA 2019
SONA 2019
UCT vice-chancellor Mamokgethi Phakeng poses with media during the 2019 South African State of the Nation Address at Parliament in Cape Town.
7 February 2019
SONA 2019
SONA 2019
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and his wife Tshepo Motsepe during the 2019 State of the Nation Addressat Parliament in Cape Town, South Africa.
7 February 2019

University Protests

UCT Student Protests
UCT Student Protests
Student protesters block an entrance to the University of Cape Town (UCT) during a protest over fees.
2 November 2017
Photo of Wits students
Photo of Wits students
Wits university students shut down the university and clash with police during protests over free education.
4 October 2016
Photo of Wits students
Photo of Wits students
Wits university students shut down the university and clash with police during protests over free education.
4 October 2016
Photo of 3rd October protest and shutdown at UCT
Photo of 3rd October protest and shutdown at UCT
Masixole Mlandu and other protesters shut down UCT on 3rd October 2016
3 October 2016

Zimbabwe

Hundreds dead and missing after Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe.
Hundreds dead and missing after Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe.
Residents cross a makeshift bridge in Copa where 63 houses disappeared under mud and rocks brought downstream by Cyclone Idai’s torrential rain. On 15 March, Cyclone Idai slammed into the Chimanimani Mountains in Zimbabwe killing hundreds and leaving many more displaced.
15 April 2019
Robert Mugabe resigns
Robert Mugabe resigns
People celebrate in Harare after Robert Mugabe resigns.
21 November 2017
Hundreds dead and missing after Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe.
Hundreds dead and missing after Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe.
Arrows point to where sniffer dogs picked up the scent of possible dead bodies. On 15 March, Cyclone Idai slammed into the Chimanimani Mountains in Zimbabwe killing hundreds and leaving many more displaced.
15 April 2019
Hundreds dead and missing after Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe.
Hundreds dead and missing after Cyclone Idai in Zimbabwe.
The first bridge on the most direct route between Mutare and Chimanimani, across the Umvumvumvu River, has been destroyed by flooding from the cyclone. On 15 March, Cyclone Idai slammed into the Chimanimani Mountains in Zimbabwe killing hundreds and leaving many more displaced.
15 April 2019
GroundUp Logo

Copyright © 2012-2021 GroundUp.

See copyright notice on articles for terms.

  • About
  • News
  • Donate
  • Copyright policy
  • Privacy
Get Our Newsletter

Contact us

+27 (0) 21 788 9163 We seldom work in our office during the Covid-19 pandemic and this phone is not usually answered.
[email protected]

Suite 08SB, 1st floor
South  Block, Tannery Park
21 Belmont Road
Rondebosch
Cape Town 7700

Google Maps
OpenStreetMap