'Table Mountain suitable for initiations'

Published Jul 3, 2015

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Cape Town - The ANC Youth League in the Western Cape wants a portion of Table Mountain to be made available for initiations.

Siyabulela Tom, a youth league Western Cape PEC member, said they had identified a piece of land which they wanted but would only divulge exactly where it was, next week.

“But we are very confident based on our research that a portion of land will be made available.”

Tom also declined to say if they had approached South African National Parks (SANParks) about its proposal.

Merle Collins, the regional spokeswoman for SANParks, said they had never had a request like this before.

“SANParks has a cultural heritage responsibility; however this is new to us.”

She said they would investigate the possibility of whether the proposal was feasible.

Asked whether initiations were something that would be permitted in a national park, Collins said: “It is difficult to answer at this stage, especially since we were not formally approached by the youth league as yet and we are not sure of the extent of their request.

“We will have to engage with them.”

Table Mountain National Park is part of the Unesco Cape Floral Region World Heritage Site and was proclaimed to protect its rare fynbos vegetation.

In a statement the youth league said a major problem faced by prospective initiates in the province was the shortage of land for the traditional practice.

“Traditionally the practice has to take place in areas far from communities and areas where there are not many people, especially women passing by.”

This, it said, was why Table Mountain was suitable “with enough space to accommodate initiates from all over the province”.

The youth league said that in many cases initiation schools were near train stations and highways. “The situation is exacerbated by the spate of land grabs.

“In a province where we ought to respect our diverse cultural heritage, this shortage of space does not give this African tradition the respect it deserves,” it added.

There are 25 registered initiation sites in the Western Cape but also a number of illegal schools over the country where scores of initiates die each year.

Tania Colyn, spokeswoman for MEC of Cultural Affairs and Sport Anroux Marais, said the Marais could not comment on the use of land at Table Mountain as it did not fall under their department’s jurisdiction.

“Our mandate is to ensure the safety of initiates at all registered sites and to ensure that caregivers are trained in order to guide the initiates through this journey,” she said.

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Cape Argus

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