Press Statement
Immediate Release
22 October 2021
CA1st’s Position On The River Club Development
The Two Rivers Urban Park (TRUP) on which the River Club is located, is an environmentally sensitive and culturally significant heritage site which is layered with a rich history dating back to the pre-colonial period. The history of the Indigenous Khoekhoe people is interwoven with the tangible and intangible cultural heritage of the TRUP landscape.
The Credible Alternative First Movement (CA1st) has a clear stance on the need to conserve and protect nature. We also understand the need to recognise, preserve and honour our heritage. We understand the importance of safeguarding our open spaces and natural environment. We are inspired by the tenacity of the Observatory community, the broader Cape Town community and civil society groupings in their fight to save the Liesbeek River and its ecosystems. We recognise the historical and environmental value of the River Club precinct and we understand the severe implications of the proposed Amazon development.
“The preamble of the National Heritage Resources Act (Act 25 of 1999) states that “our heritage is unique and precious and it cannot be renewed. It helps us to define our cultural identity and therefore lies at the heart of our spiritual well-being and has the power to build our nation. It has the potential to affirm our diverse cultures, and in so doing shape our national character. Our heritage celebrates our achievements and contributes to redressing past inequities. It educates, it deepens our understanding of society and encourages us to empathise with the experience of others. It facilitates healing and material and symbolic restitution and it promotes new and previously neglected research into our rich oral traditions and customs.”
The above preamble reaffirms the importance of the preservation of both our tangible and intangible cultural heritage as a key contributor to healing and uniting the nation. In addition to the pre-colonial heritage, it is also significant to the colonial history of the country, thus interlinking both colonial and pre-colonial history and heritage, worthy of preservation for the benefit of current and future generations.
The TRUP as a site of memory, holds particular significance to a section of the community whose history and heritage had previously been excluded, twisted, falsified and or marginalised and who has strong historical, cultural and spiritual association with the site. The site holds contemporary significance to the first nation people and their future generations as a site of memory associated with their history, cultural beliefs, traditions and the restoration of their dignity. It establishes a universal framework of minimum standards for the survival, dignity and well-being of the indigenous peoples of the world and it elaborates on existing human rights standards and fundamental freedoms as they apply to the specific situation of indigenous peoples.
“Any unnecessary and unwarranted development would lead to the re-victimisation of indigenous people and impose on their democratic right to dignity and spiritual well-being”, says Adv. Solomons.
“The Two Rivers Urban Park precinct is thus worthy of being protected from unnecessary and unwarranted development. I do not agree with the decision of the outgoing Mayor, Mr. Dan Plato to allow this development to proceed with so many voices and opinions against it. Should I occupy the seat of Mayor of Cape Town, I will NOT oppose the court case initiated by civil society and community groupings to have his decision set aside and if necessary with costs” says Adv. Rod Solomons, the Mayoral Candidate for the Credible Alternative 1st Movement (CA1st).
Issued by Zahra Ismail, Media Liaison Officer to CA1st
Contact: 0742916631