BELA protest march gets Freedom Park permission after plea to McKenzie
29 October 2024
The huge, planned BELA protest march on 5 November will indeed proceed to Freedom Park, Pretoria, on this day where representatives of various influential organisations will be able to hand over a memorandum to the Presidency and the Government of National Unity (GNU).
Permission to enter Freedom Park was granted after this national heritage site’s management initially refused an application for access.
Flip Buys, chairperson of the Solidarity Movement, then sent a letter to the Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, to ensure that the gates will indeed be opened for this peaceful protest march.
Minister McKenzie intervened and went on to request that access must be granted.
Therefore, as planned, protest marchers will gather at the Voortrekker Monument from 08:00 on Tuesday 5 November from where they will all march together to the nearby Freedom Park.
This protest march against the sections on language and admissions policy in the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act (BELA) is led and organised by the Solidarity Movement, Solidarity, AfriForum and the Support Centre for Schools (SCS).
Buys expressed his gratitude to the minister for his willingness to intervene.
“Political resistance against our fight against BELA is nothing new, and in the run-up to the BELA protest march we naturally expected it. Nonetheless, we are pleased that the minister has responded to our call to protest peacefully, as we are constitutionally entitled to do.
“After all, the route between the Voortrekker Monument and Freedom Park along which the protesters will march, is known as ‘Reconciliation Road’,” Buys said.
Planning for the march is going full steam ahead with thousands who have already registered for the protest march at www.belaprotes.co.za.
Several organisations, political parties, other pressure groups, as well as schools and parents of learners will also join the march against the legislation which takes away the power of school governing bodies to decide on a school’s language and admissions policy and transfers it to government officials.
According to Buys, the diverse groups interested in being involved in the march shows that resistance to the suppression of mother tongue education is significantly greater than the authorities realise.
"Of course we will continue to negotiate on this important matter. But it is also important for the government to see on whose behalf we are negotiating, and it is certainly not a small, isolated group of people,” Buys said.
Issued by Flip Buys, Chairperson: Solidarity, 29 October 2024
