Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera
Business
Oupa Nkosi

‘We share with rats’: Neglect, empty promises for S African hostel-dwellers

A resident of Diepkloof hostel looks out of a dilapidated building he calls home [File: Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters]

Johannesburg, South Africa – On a chilly afternoon in Soweto, Mlindelwa Mtungwa, 61, cooks in his tiny, dimly lit room at the Diepkloof hostel, using a small two-plate stove connected to an electricity source outside.

The father of six from Msinga village in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province moved to South Africa’s economic hub in 1979 in search of a better life, settling at the hostel some 14km (9 miles) south of the city centre. He has lived there ever since.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.