the unveiling of the memorial, Malay Camp, Civic Centre, Kimberley
18 September 2006
* Programme Director
* MECs
* Honourable Mayors and councillors
* The Malay Camp Heritage Association
* The community of Malay Camp
* Distinguished guests
* Ladies and gentlemen
With freedom and democracy came restoration of the right to land, and with
it, the opportunity to address the effects of centuries of dispossession and
forced removals.
It is therefore a matter of great pride for me, to be here to celebrate with
you the unveiling of this memorial. At last we can as a nation and as the past
people of Malay Camp, stand on our ancestral land and say to our ancestors,
"your sacrifices were not in vain". The time has come for us to correct the
wrongs of the past that colonial invasion brought to our communities.
Our approach as government is not a simplistic and unproductive one. We seek
solutions that are generally acceptable to all; our approach is to eliminate
suspicions, mistrust and anger that have characterised land disputes over the
years.
Many people have described Malay Camp as a slum area which has been
dismantled and replaced with something better. Our people of all races were
forcefully removed from this area and this changed the course of history
forever. Homes and a mosque were dismantled bringing unbearable pain and
discomfort to many of our people.
The descendants of those who lived here are spread all over the country.
The Malay Camp suburb dates back to the early days of Kimberley and the
cosmopolitan population of the area made it a unique place. Clearance of the
Malay Camp began in the 1940s and construction of the new civic centre
commenced in the following decade.
This is the time that we dare claim that our country is prosperous and truly
free and will be when all our people live in genuine brotherhood, enjoying
equal rights and opportunities to the extent that we have fully provided in the
basic needs of every citizen as it is described in our constitution.
The process of restoring and undoing the wrongs of the past was not an easy
one as it involved a process that was new to us and that had to start from
scratch with no infrastructure or pure guidelines with limited resources to
rectify the wrongs of the past and to give back to the people that which was
taken away from them over a long period of time.
Ownership and possession of land is an emotive issue and therefore it should
be dealt with accordingly. It is for this reason that we should position
ourselves to manage the process and see to it that we do not repeat the
mistakes of the past.
Land ownership has always been a source of conflict in our country. Our
history is littered with conquests, dispossessions, forced removals and
politically motivated, racially skewed distribution of land resources. All
these have left us with complex and difficult legacies to unravel to address
and undo.
It has now become increasingly imperative that land reform does not only
address the legacies of the past, but also leveraged as a foundation and a
catalyst for economic growth and development that results in increased income
levels, job opportunities, productive land use and well planned human
settlements.
I believe that this event offers us a rare opportunity to showcase the
progress that we have made with the empowerment of our people through the
various programs. Claiming the right to our land is a central part of the
freedom charter and also the area that truly reflects the empowerment of the
people.
We should always remember the contribution and the sacrifices of the
community of Malay Camp in liberating this country.
Today's generations therefore have every reason to celebrate this milestone
as a product of your sacrifices and your determination to ensure the liberation
of our people whatever the cost to them.
It was because of your steadfastness in the face of an unrelenting tyranny
and merciless repression that we are here this afternoon.
I therefore salute you as people of substance and thank you most sincerely
for giving yourselves to the nation as patriots of democracy and freedom.
We are also pleased that you continue to associate yourselves with
progressive and developmental programmes aimed at improving the lives of our
people.
All too often, the coming together of people to form nations, ethnic or
ideological groups is followed by fragmentation, as one group ranges itself
against the other for some or other reason. We are therefore appreciative of
the fact that the Malay Camp community stood side by side, being a mixture of
different racial groups living together in harmony.
Through this event we are also celebrating our freedom.
Our constitution has become a cornerstone of the New Patriotism. It is the
framework of undoing the legacy of our divided past and improving the quality
of life of all our people.
I am certain that you will agree with me that our strength as a nation lies
in the room it gives for each and everyone of us to express our language,
culture and religion.
Across the country, researchers are working to undo the distorted accounts
of our history forced on us by apartheid. The epic resistance of proud
communities defending their land, independence and dignity is being told for
all to hear.
We should now challenge the way our history has been documented. The actual
experiences of those nameless, faceless masses who are its' subjects and its
shapers are silent and unsung.
We must continue to record the experiences of the Malay Camp communities who
suffered one of the most extreme forms of human rights abuse through forced
removals. They may have been ordinary people to most historians, with little
impact on the course of history, but to us as a nation these so-called ordinary
people are our heroes and heroines.
The details of their lives are worth relating and cannot simply be cut out
from the larger history of our country.
As the Provincial Government of the Northern Cape, we believe that it's of
paramount importance to us to record the experiences of our people as we trace
the trajectories of lives that were irrevocably altered by the events that
surrounded them.
Even though we can mention by name some of the sons and daughters of the
soil, such as Solomon Plaatje, Isaiah Bud-M'Bhele and others whose roots are in
Malay Camp, none has been a major actor on the stage of history, yet each
demonstrates the inspirational force of individual will, thus contributing to
humanity's ongoing struggle to achieve social and political change.
Let us use this opportunity to give recognition to the Malay Camp community
by saying; you must be encouraged by the fact that, never again will our people
allow human rights violation to destroy our cultural heritage again.
We now live in an era of comfort and peace where all our people can freely
explore the world of ideas. What came out of the Malay Camp forced removals is
a peculiar African sense of human survival which depended largely on mutual
compassion and collective unity.
This enabled our people who were moved from this area to share strong
political beliefs thus contributing to the establishment of a close-knit
community.
Ladies and gentlemen, this observation should make us appreciate our
hard-earned freedom. Your history should give you're a sense of determination,
a firm adherence to democratic principles and an unflinching and an unwavering
sense of personal and community commitment.
As we celebrate Heritage Month, Let us revive the spirit of nationhood and
co-operation amongst our people in the interest of community development. Let
us condemn human rights abuse cases and racial discrimination amongst our
people.
Our freedom should translate into the equal participation of our people in
the economic opportunities and sharing of mineral resources of our country as
guaranteed by the freedom charter.
Let us ensure that these freedoms that we fought and sacrificed so hard for
are enjoyed by all our people. There needs to be an active striving for social
justice and equality.
As government, we have sharpened our programme of action and we have set
ourselves concrete targets for this year and beyond to which you will hold us
accountable.
All signs point to us being on track. But however good our policies are,
nothing will come out of them without the active participation of each and
everyone of you. Our freedom will become a living reality and a force for
transformation only when communities become involved, calling their
representatives to account, voicing their needs and their ideas.
As our new nation matures the challenges we face are shifting, let us roll
up our sleeves and build on what has been achieved for the sake of all our
people.
Let us together revive our African moral code and values of courage and
generosity of our people, of the power, strength and self confidence that are
born of involvement in work on behalf of one's own suffering people, of the
independence of people, the practice of ubuntu as a fundamental perspective
that must guide us as we strive to reconstruct and develop our society.
I thank you.
Ke a leboga.
Enkosi.
Baie dankie.
Issued by: Northern Cape Provincial Government
18 September 2006
