Durban’s apartheid monuments under discussion
Local communities have been urged to report any vandalism of municipal statues and monuments.
eTHEKWINI Municipality has urged local communities to report any vandalism of municipal statues and warned that any persons caught defacing statues will be prosecuted for malicious damage to municipal property.
The city has warned that acts of vandalism which occur in local communities cannot be addressed by the city and police alone, but required vigilance from communities. It urged people not to look away when acts of vandalism took place but to report vandalism of statues to Senior Manager: Architectural Maintenance Mr. José V. Gomes on 031 311 7124/2510 or email:jose.gomes@durban.gov.za
In a media release, eThekwini said it had, over the past 20 years, built an entirely new collection of 22 monuments and memorials which reflected both the diversity and unity of a democratic society.
This process included the renaming of streets and public buildings in honour of struggle heroes, renovation and upgrading of sites linked to the liberation from apartheid and the creation of statues of distinguished South Africans from many walks of life. These include figures such as Dr Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, Dr John Langalibalele Dube, Moses Mabhida, as well as Griffiths and Victoria Mxenge.
In addition to these steps, the Heritage Department of eThekwini Municipality has, since 2013, been engaged with stakeholders to collect information on sites within the City that are related to the liberation struggle.
These sites will be included in the National Liberation Heritage Route of eThekwini Municipality. Each site will be commemorated with a prominent official marker and map, with a website for further information on this project. The eThekwini Municipality Liberation Heritage Route will be unveiled to the public later this year.
Existing policy regarding the removal or relocation of statues and memorials has been emphasised by the Minister of Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa. Consistent with the law set out in the South African National Heritage Resources Act, as well as the KwaZulu-Natal Heritage Act, if any group or community wishes to nominate a statue for removal, it is necessary to undertake a 30-day public consultation process. This process is guided by the relevant statutory body, namely Amafa / Heritage KwaZulu-Natal, and includes notifications of presentations to the authorities and invitations of comments from affected and interested parties.
Although no submissions of this nature have yet been received by the Heritage Department of eThekwini Municipality, dialogue on this and other related matters is encouraged. A public discussion on the role of colonial and apartheid era monuments is due to take place before the end of April 2015. The event will be held at KwaMuhle Museum and calls for participation will be issued shortly.
