The taxi strike in Cape Town is over

On Monday chaos erupted on busy roads in the Mother City - buses were torched‚ commuters injured‚ law enforcement officials were attacked and their vehicles were damaged.

According to the City of Cape Town's mayoral committee chairman for safety and security‚ JP Smith‚ the strike has been called off by taxi associations following a meeting with provincial government.

Mayoral committee member for transport and urban development‚ Brett Herron‚ condemned violent attacks on MyCiTi buses and the injuries sustained by two passengers including a pregnant woman in Khayelitsha.

"One of the commuters was hit in the face by a flying rock and the pregnant commuter fell during the violent attack near the Kuyasa stop. Both women were severely traumatised and admitted to hospital for treatment‚" he said.

A motorcyclist‚ Jaco Prins‚ was attacked when he tried to pass a barricade of burning debris on the N7 near Dunoon. "I saw the cars turn around and I thought‚ I'm fed up being intimidated by this rubbish I'm going to drive through. They attacked me with rocks and hit me on my helmet‚" said Prins.

"It's just absolute lawlessness and at some point someone has to just not take it anymore…These are thugs next to the road‚ that's not taxi people‚ this is political unrest and it needs to stop in this country."

Transport MEC in the Western Cape Donald Grant met with the taxi organisation Santaco and an industry “Task Team” on Monday.

The meeting followed unsuccessful talks held between the groups last week over leadership ahead of upcoming elections for the industry’s governing body.

Taxi operators were also frustrated over the city's hard line approach to impounding their vehicles.

The “Task Team” is made up of Santaco affiliates who disagreed with the current make up of the union’s leadership.

Grant said in a statement that the internal division within the industry threatened the stability of the industry and called for an inclusive and democratic election of new leadership.

“At the centre of the disagreement is a dispute over internal constitutional processes that must be followed in the election of a new leadership‚” he said.

“While many of the concerns are yet to be resolved‚ there was agreement that both parties would willingly and freely enter into a departmentally-facilitated mediation process‚ as well as inform all of their members to cease strike action with immediate effect‚ while we embark on this mediation process.”

Grant‚ who was “satisfied” with the outcome of the meeting‚ said he warned that violence and criminal acts would not be tolerated.

“I further appealed to industry leaders to call for calm and level heads from their members‚ and reassert their commitment to providing safe and reliable public transport to the many commuters who rely on minibus taxis as their primary mode of transport.”

Meanwhile social development MEC Albert Fritz said one of their social workers in Kraaifontein was injured by striking operators. The department's vehicle she had been travelling in was stoned and all the windows were smashed in.

Offices in Khayelitsha‚ Kraaifontein‚ Somerset West and Eerste River had to shut down due to the violence. In addition offices in Mitchells Plain‚ Langa and Delft reported disruptions.

"The conduct of the protestors has been violent‚ disruptive and shameful. That attack on our officials is particularly outrageous given that our staff works with the poorest residents of the city and province. Today's violent strike means the poor suffered the most‚'' said Fritz.