Heritage Agency condemns statue vandals

Published Apr 10, 2015

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Cape Town - The South African Heritage Resources Agency (SAHRA) on Friday strongly condemned the numerous acts of vandalism around the country targeting colonial and apartheid era monuments and symbols.

In the most recent incident, the statue of Queen Victoria in Port Elizabeth (PE) was found vandalised on Friday.

“We condemn, in the strongest possible terms, any destruction or vandalism of heritage sites in South Africa. There is a process that must be followed,” said SAHRA chief executive Veliswa Baduza.

Her comments followed the recent vandalism of the Horse Memorial, also in PE, the statue of Louis Botha in Cape Town, the Paul Kruger statue in Pretoria and the War Memorial in Uitenhage.

“Section 27 of the National Heritage Resources Act makes it very clear: No person may vandalise or cause any destruction to heritage sites. If you do, there will be penalties,” said Baduza.

According to the Act, heritage sites could fall under one of the three tiers of jurisdiction: national (SAHRA), provincial (such as Heritage Western Cape), or local. Penalties imposed was the responsibility of the relevant tier.

“This means that if a vandalised statue in PE falls under the metropole, it is their responsibility to provide security and fund the cleaning up,” said Baduza.

Baduza said the problem heritage bodies had encountered was that most of the vandals were faceless.

She said SAHRA did have a special unit which communicated with protection services and research had been done to identify colonial and apartheid era statues around the country which could be under threat and fall under national jurisdiction.

“These attacks make it clear that citizens are not aware of processes for the removal of statues. You do not need to destroy them. You can submit a written application to your relevant heritage council and I have no doubt they will consider it,” she said.

Baduza refuted claims that government had not erected statues reflective of indigenous history, referring to the likes of the Gugulethu Seven statue, the Craddock Four, and the recently unveiled statue of Struggle icon Vusumzi Saul Mkhize.

“These statues are erected in the communities these heroes called home. They are with the people,” said Baduza.

Baduza said when and if SAHRA was to decide on new statues, it would be reflective of collective heritage.

On counter-protests by the likes of Afrikaans singers Steve Hofmeyer and Sunette Bridges, Baduza said it was not SAHRA’s place to comment on matters with political connotations.

“However, SAHRA’s job is to protect heritage and to ensure that any future signs and symbols are reflective of our democracy and are reconciliatory,” she said.

ANA

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