JOHANNESBURG, 18 November 2009 (IRIN) - The number of Zimbabweans displaced after some of their shacks in an informal settlement outside De Doorns, a farming town about 140km from Cape Town, South Africa, were attacked and demolished by local South African residents, has risen to about 3,000, said the South African Red Cross Society.

The Red Cross has appealed for R2 million (about US$270,880) to help provide urgently needed blankets, water, food, first-aid kits, toiletries, clothing, fuel for transport, and logistical support for the displaced.

Red Cross spokesman Kelvin Glen told IRIN that the aid agency had responded to a call for help by local authorities on 15 November to provide meals and blankets for about 80 people, "but the numbers have risen since". Most of the displaced are being sheltered in a marquee tent pitched on the local sports ground.

More Zimbabweans fled following attacks by local residents early in the morning of 17 November. The South Africans were unhappy that local farm owners were employing Zimbabweans, according to police at De Doorns. The situation was stable at the moment, said the police.


Source http://www.irinnews.org