The removal of traders, legally present and sometimes illegally, from the inner city, as part of a ‘clean up’ may be one of the most ruthless and callous acts in recent times, placing at jeopardy not only the trading of the individuals moved, but the education, housing and food security of all those who depend on the small amount they eke out. In the meantime, the City is taking its time ‘verifying’ who has legal permits and who has not. This is an active assault on the lives of people who ask nothing but to be able to do their work in a time of high level unemployment.