Mobile fishmonger claims ‘harassment’ by private security officer

A Cape Town seafood trader has described how he was told he 'doesn’t belong' while carrying out his trade in neighbourhoods he has been operating in for years.

Ishmaeel Kippie, a mobile fishmonger, has taken to social media to share how he and other traders are allegedly being stopped, confronted and even followed by private security while selling seafood in residential areas.

He says they are simply driving on public roads and trying to earn a living.

"I'm just selling fish. [They] think I'm a criminal; I'm not. I'm doing an honest living."

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Speaking to CapeTalk's Lester Kiewit, he explained he was recently stopped and questioned by a private security firm in Kuilsriver, then 'tailed' while on his way to meet a client.

"He was just trailing me the whole time in the area, wherever I moved. If I moved right, he moved right; if I moved left, he moved left."

In a video (now removed) seen by thousands of social media users, Kippie described being told by one security officer that they were not welcome.

"He told me that I don't belong there, and that's very hurtful, and I know I'm in a public space."

He maintains that neither he nor his fellow traders are breaking any laws.

When asked if he would pursue the matter with the security officer's employers, Kippie says he will not.

"I don't want to take it up with the company; the guy also has a family, we're all just trying to make a living."

To listen to Kippie in conversation with CapeTalk’s Lester Kiewit, use the audio player below: