Peaceful protesters gathered outside of Stellenbosch town hall on 28 October, following the handing over of a memorandum by the Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC) to the Stellenbosch municipality.
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“The march was attended by around 50 people and was peaceful,” said Stuart Grobbelaar, communications officer of the Stellenbosch municipality. PHOTO: Kesia Abrahams
According to Sisipho Mpeto, chairperson of the PAC Western Province, the protest in Stellenbosch was part of the larger PAC positive action campaign that was unfolding throughout the country.
The PAC allegedly sent the Stellenbosch municipality a memorandum two months ago and have now returned to submit a second memorandum, said Mpeto.
“The municipality is unaware of any memorandum being handed over to us by the PAC two months ago,” said Stuart Grobbelaar, communications officer of the Stellenbosch municipality.
The Stellenbosch municipality has requested that the convenors of the PAC provide them with the alleged first memorandum, he said.
According to Stuart Grobbelaar, communications officer of the Stellenbosch municipality, the memorandum that was handed over by the PAC forms part of the party’s national positive action campaign. EMBEDDED LINK: Facebook/Pan Africanist Congress of Azania
The campaign is about reparation, explained Zethu Mdudo, a member of the National Executive Council (NEC) of the PAC.
“When we talk about land, we talk about mineral resources, gold, mines, fisheries, seas – control of the economy,” said Mdudo.
The campaign, however, speaks to various national issues and does not include any clear service delivery concerns, explained Grobbelaar.
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As part of the positive action campaign, the PAC was demanding answers to the memorandum they sent the Stellenbosch municipality two months ago. PHOTO: Kesia Abrahams
The campaign was initially intended to be launched in March however, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and the national lockdown, the launch had to be postponed until October, said Mdudo.
“This campaign was launched on the 21st of March but due to Covid-19, it didn’t manage to launch on that day,” said Mdudo.
As a result, different provinces are launching the campaign on different days, with the Western Province launching on 28 October, she said.
According to Kuni Sonwabile, member of the PAC Kayamandi branch, the protesters marched from Stellenbosch Town Hall to Remgro Limited, the company of Johann Rupert.
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The protesters walked from Stellenbosch town hall to Remgro Limited, the company of Johann Rupert. MAP: Google Earth
“The protest was peaceful and under control,” explained Captain Natalie Martin, Stellenbosch police spokesperson, “no violence or disruptions took place.”
According to Mdudo, that freedom that we are exposed to under the current democracy in South Africa, is not the freedom that the PAC wants.
“We are inviting all Africans to join this campaign, as this campaign is going to deliver us South Africans the freedom that we want and the freedom that we deserve,” she said.
The campaign was initially intended to be launched in March however, as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and national lockdown, the launch had to be postponed, said Zethu Mdudo, member of National Executive Council (NEC) of PAC. AUDIO: Zethu Mdudo