While premier Helen Zille says the Cape Minstrels need to be better organised to be taken seriously on the world stage, a 12 000-strong breakaway group was expected to march in protest in the city in full minstrel uniform on Monday morning.
The group will be protesting over the hosting of this weekend’s march on New Year’s Day instead of today. They also want to march through the Bo-Kaap for next year’s parade.
After being refused permission to have its annual Tweede Nuwejaar procession on the date it wanted, the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association (CTMCA) was given the go-ahead to march in protest instead on January 3.
It has insisted on having its Tweede Nuwejaar procession on January 3 because January 2 was a Sunday, but the city gave other minstrel organisations the OK to have their procession on New Year’s Day.
In refusing permission, the city had cited concerns for traffic flow, effects on businesses, noise pollution and safety.
Kevin Momberg of the CTMCA said the protest march would start at 10.30am at Keizergracht, District Six, and snake along Darling Street and up Adderley to Zille’s offices in Wale Street.
“We will hand over a memorandum to the mayor and the premier. We are still dissatisfied over the date. And another issue is that we’ve been going to Bo-Kaap for many years, which is why we’re bringing the High Court application.”
On Friday, a High Court application was lodged in a bid to restore the traditional route.
The application by the Bo-Kaap Civic Association, the CTMCA and the Cape Malay Choir Board was lodged in the Western Cape High Court.
Momberg said: “This is a services issue. We are in partnership with the city since 1996. We were under one umbrella body, but two to three years down the line, the guys got into a fight and opened up their own organisation.”
He said his organisation’s troupes would be in full regalia.
“There will be 12 000 people going. They will be all dressed and their faces will be painted.”
The court application suggested that the city’s by-laws, policies and guidelines relating to events were unconstitutional because the city had failed to promote and protect “the fundamental rights of the Cape Malay and coloured population groups to participate in and celebrate cultural activities”.
It also demanded that the city provide the 2011 dates and routes for both the Cape Malay Choir and Kaapse Klopse street marches by April 30.
Zille said she would not be able to accept the memorandum today because of a family commitment.
She urged the Minstrels to be better organised to be able to compete with carnivals such as Brazil’s.
“We’ve just got to organise the Minstrels better because we spend a lot of public funds. It can be a world-class event if managed better,” said Zille. - Cape Times