Where the lion feeds

They have lions for neighbours in the Steve Bikoville section of Hammanskraal, north of Pretoria.

Residents tore down more than 1.5km of the electric fence separating them from the Dinokeng Game Reserve, set fire to the veld and uprooted trees.

They want the reserve to be cleared of its wildlife - which includes lions, leopards, rhino, elephants and buffalo - because, they say, the 8500ha of land belongs to them.

The cost of repairing the damage they have inflicted is estimated at R350000 - but they could pay for it with their lives because free-roaming lions are just 3km away.

The game reserve's management said it could not guarantee the safety of residents.

General manager Pieter Venter said: "It's a sad situation and I do not think the residents are aware of the danger they have put themselves in ."

Venter said community leaders gave him two days to remove the animals and the fence, more than a week ago.

He challenged them to bring proof of land ownership but nothing was produced.

He said that on Friday more than 500 people descended on the game reserve office .

"I told them that if they have proof I won't stand in their way. They left and the next thing I saw smoke billowing out of the settlement. At night they started removing the fence," he said.

Venter said 4000ha of the land belonged to the state, the rest to private game farmers.

One resident carrying a bunch of steel rods from the fence said: "There are no lions here. These people just want to scare us so they could rob us of our land."

The Pretoria High Court on Saturday interdicted the residents from invading the reserve.

Community leader Amos Hlupo said there were people "misleading the community so they could make money out of selling stands in the game reserve".