Black tourists in South Africa’s Clifton beach allegedly ordered to leave beach by the private guards hired by local residents. The clearing left the black population agitated and they showed their displeasure by demonstrating.
The demonstrators say that the black tourists who went to the beach were segregated and treated unfairly. But the firm denies closing the beach, saying they only exist to protect the residents around the beach from crime.
The agitation was born out of the fact that during the apartheid period beaches and public areas were off limits to blacks. The chief executive of the private security outfit has denied that they closed the beach at all.
The Mayor of Cape Town, Mr. Dan Plato, said that the security outfit “had no jurisdiction to ask anyone to leave the beach. He further added that “no private organization will be allowed to limit access to public spaces in Cape Town”. The mayor also added that the guards requested leave of all people of all races and was not specific to black people.
But Bongani Mkongi, Police Deputy Minister, swore to handle the issue firmly saying that “the beach is a property of the state hence, the need for security companies is nonexistent”.
The instigator of the social media protest #ReclaimClifton, also organized the sacrifice of a sheep to purify the beach of racial discrimination. This act also brought its own objection from animal rights activists.
See also: