EDITOR – Your story entitled, “Save Our Berea says Durban heritage needs to be preserved,” refers. Our organisation is a civic action group that has a simple philosophy and that is that we believe in the Constitution of South Africa and that all laws, national, provincial and local by-laws must be enforced.
The Berea is an ideal area to accommodate the diversity of all the different groups that make up our country and that community, and the area, cannot survive if we allow the laws to be broken at will. As an activist organisation we have not been shy to go to “war” to protect these ideals. But having said that we would always hope that the heavy hand of force would always be a last resort and that the path of compromise and the education of the community would be a first option.
That is why, after the protest meeting of residents over the illegal building at Overdale House, we were heartened that Cheryl Johnson of our organisation was able to meet representatives of the family that own the property, in a meeting brokered by Adv. “Pops” Aboobaker. The meeting was cordial, yet robust and it was clear that there was a certain ignorance of the legal implications, which should have been brought to the attention of the owners by the professional team.
The result of the meeting was that the owners would engage the authorities and the residents in finding an acceptable way forward and consult heritage experts on any future work. If everybody can keep to the spirit of this arrangement then this is a victory for compromise, community action, freedom of information and of a local community laying the groundwork for living side by side in the diverse cultures that make up the Berea.
Kevin Dunkley
Cheryl Johnson
Save Our Berea
