By Doreen Mokgolo
Members of the Khoisan community braved the storms on Saturday night to picket outside Nasrec in what has so far been a fruitless bid to get their voices heard by the president.
Neither President Cyril Ramaphosa nor anyone from the ANC leadership has acknowledged their protest. The group has vowed to continue picketing outside the facility until the end of the 55th ANC National Conference on Tuesday.
In 2019, the community walked over 200 km from the Eastern Cape to occupy the lawns of the Union Buildings in Tshwane to demonstrate their grievances.
They are demanding to be declared first citizens of South Africa, to be awarded a portion of land which they can occupy like other ethnic groups in the country and for their language khoekhoegowab to be added as one of South Africa’s official languages.
Chief Gaobb Derrick said they will not be deterred by the heavy rainfall to get answers and the accountability they demand from the ANC leadership.
He said that over the years they have increasingly felt that the ANC has no interest in the Khoisan community and their needs.
Members of the community set up camp over the weekend on the Union Buildings lawns.
Derrick said they have been waiting for years for the presidency to respond to their memorandum of grievances. They first reached out to Jacob Zuma when he was president before trying to get hold of Ramaphosa. Neither ever responded to their letters.
“We are hoping for a miracle but we know they are not going to come out of that meeting to address us,” he admitted.
Joseph Marvel, national president of the Khoisan Mass Movement, said like other citizens of this country they have equal rights but they are treated like second class citizens, with their grievances not given the attention they deserve.
“We are hoping that the incoming leadership that will be elected during this conference will prioritise addressing our grievances,” he said.
Pictured above: Joseph Marvel, Sam Davids and Gaobb Derrick
Picture source: Doreen Mokgolo
