Cape Town - A UCT interdisciplinary team of academics and two international institutions have conducted a series of scientific studies on the remains of nine people from Sutherland to effect restorative justice.
The study followed a request from the Abraham and Stuurman families in Sutherland, where the remains were buried before they were donated to the university in the 1920s.
On Monday, the team released pictures and the identities of the remains after reconstructing their faces as they would have appeared at the time of death, provided insights into where they lived, their diet and the conditions in which they lived.
They also determined their gender, height and estimated age, established medical conditions they had and the cause of deaths, and determined their genetic relationship.
The team conducted a survey of the Kruisrivier farm cemetery they had originally been buried at, did an in-depth analysis of the disturbed graves, and examined the history of the farm and of the area.
The team comprised of five academics from UCT, two from Face Lab at the Liverpool John Moores University, UK, and two from Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, Germany.
UCT vice-chancellor Mamokgethi Phakeng said since the discovery of the remains, “UCT’s priority was to reconnect them with their families. We have been able to participate in a process that's been transformational for all of us - for UCT, the family and the Sutherland community.”
She said one of the lessons of this process was the importance of reconnecting community members to their past and to their own story.
In previous reports, Phakeng said, during an archiving audit of the university's skeletal collection in 2017, Dr Victoria Gibbon, the curator of human remains at the university, identified 11 skeletons that were obtained unethically.
“Nine of these individuals were brought to the university by a farmer from Sutherland in the Northern Cape in the early 20th century. The available records detail the first names of seven of these individuals and the surnames of two: Abraham and Stuurman.”
UCT’s deputy vice-chancellor for Transformation, Loretta Feris, and the office for Inclusivity and Change led the process of engaging with the
families.
Loretta provided an overview of the entire process and said the process has established a significant bond with the families and people from the region.
“We look forward to our continued role in this journey with the Sutherland community.”
UCT’s deputy vice-chancellor for Transformation, Loretta Feris, and the office for Inclusivity and Change led the process of engaging with the families. Video: Sisonke Mlamla/Cape Argus
Some of the key findings by Dr Gibbon included that the remains consisted of seven adults and two children.
The older child was a girl between the ages of 6-8 years and showed signs such as malnourishment or infection.
Family members attended included, Alfred Stuurman who described his relief when he heard the news about the remains, and said “although it was a shock, it had solved a long-time mystery over which my family had agonised - about what had happened to our forebears”.
Another family member, Anthony Mietas, said he was happy about the engagements. “This was an emotional roller coaster. We are looking forward to work with the university in reburying our ancestor.”
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