A non-stop church meets every day on Pecks Peak behind Muizenberg in Cape Town. The
group is mainly from Burundi but also offers a haven for many other foreign Africans who
come from townships on the Cape Flats to attend these ceremonies. Like the small Nigerian
church gathering on Signal Hill, this small outdoor church attracts a steady flow of followers.
I met Zimbabweans, Rwandans, Malawians and people from the DRC on the way up the
mountain. The preacher told me his story, which could probably be repeated by all on the
mountain trail. “It was very difficult to get here. I left my country because of unstable politics.
I do piecework to support my wife and two children. Even though I’ve been here for 14 years,
I still struggle to get formal work because I am not registered as I don’t have citizenship.” The
view from the church site stretches from the Indian Ocean to Cape Town’s Flats and endlessly
north, to those places from which the congregants have come. Two days before my visit,
there were attacks against foreigners in the country. Lost in prayer and speaking in French,
snuggled in the fold of the mountain, this small group were safe amongst each other in their
temporary sanctuary.