Thousands of Miles from Cape Town Republic
‘I am not staying here much longer. If the election results were different, there might have been some point. But with the present government of noble niggers, all sorts of racialist laws might be passed; and life for minority communities could become tricky….I would prefer a hundred times to be ruled from London, as in the old days, than to be ruled by the present people.’
The above quotation is from a letter that V.S. Naipaul wrote to his late wife Pat upon a home visit to Trinidad as that country was in the throes of decolonizing. It is quoted in his AUTHORIZED biography, The World is What it Is that I am currently reading. What, you wonder, does the quotation above have to do with Cape Town and why the hell did I refer to that South African city as a republic?
To be blatantly honest because I think V.S.Naipaul, ingenious writer that he is, is also very much a sad human being. He is a clear indication that art and the artist can be truly separated. So too with Cape Town . A beautiful town full of many ingenious people who, fourteen years later, still need to find a way to become part of South Africa . In fact, I know many paler people who have moved to Cape Town because they feel about the rest of the country the way that Naipaul felt about Trinidad although they will not be as candid as that but will use indicators such as crime rate is high (while moving to the murder capital of South Africa).When I talk of Cape Town’s people, I of course am referring to the white people.
Don’t get me wrong, Cape Town also has those other people referred to confusingly on official papers as Coloureds and Africans (are white South Africans not Africans? And the Coloureds?) but one rarely sees the two groups unless one visits their ghettoes in the Cape Flats , Langa, Gugs, or Nyanga. In fact, I think if the country were to do a survey they would find, just as many whites move to cape Town from elsewhere, similarly many non-whites move out as fast too because Cape Town is still afraid to deal with colour. Every time I am in a restaurant in Camps Bay in Cape Town and I spot a black face (not a waiter), I am pretty certain that the person is probably a business tourist from my country ( South Africa ) or somewhere else in the world. Rarely is that person a Cape Tonian – so many years after the rest of the country agreed on reconciliation and integration.
And then of course the cost of living is so high that even if the ‘African and the Coloured’ wanted to rise above being working class by scraping and saving they still could not. One cannot buy a house in the ‘burbs of Cape Town unless they have a trust fund, a salary of at least five figures a month or, they are British or German expatriates coming with their pounds and euros. One of my friends who just surrendered out of Cape Town for Johannesburg told me an interesting anecdote. On asking for a raise from his last employer because, ‘I am barely making it. Rent in Rondebosch, school fees for my two children, and petrol for my car plus the rising cost of living, please, can you consider giving me a raise?’, was met with a resounding ‘no’. And not a polite, ‘the company is not doing well but when things looks up we’ll revisit your problem’ type of no but a rather funny if sad no. His lady boss apparently said ‘no’, but then proceeded, ‘if it’s really tough Stephen, why don’t you consider moving to Langa?’
Tragic, No?
I am not saying this rant out of the blues. I know many of my colleagues who feel the same way but it hit me how the separation of Cape Town from the rest of the country is problematic when I was having a conversation with one of South Africa’s elder statesmen of literature and he highlighted how he goes to Cape Town only when he is absolutely required to do so with work. It was disturbing.
Now, there are many a wonderful people in Cape Town who may not be consciously separating themselves from their darker fellow citizens but – if you are running a company and are paying your employee an amount that cannot get them out of the ghetto (there are those who decide to stay in Langa by choice but most people are not given that choice) then you too are complicit in Cape Town’s apartheid.
I am part a group of writers who is taking part in MobFest’s a Novel Idea…the cellphone short story competition. I am of course honoured to be part of the inaugural group taking part in something this innovative but I was amused to note that the Cape Town editor sent through an email to all participants stating, ‘in order to be more representative and to appeal to a wider audience, we have invited an Afrikaans writer.’ I wondered whether any Zulu, Xhosa, sePedi or Shangaan writers had been invited. But then again, she is in the Republic of Cape Town and in that country, I suppose Afrikaans constitutes a multiplicity of voices.
I am not totally pessimistic about Cape Town . May be we can find a way, under the next government, to colonise them so that the rest of the country can finally say, ‘Welcome to South Africa , Cape Town ’.
Wow, is Cape Town really so racially segregated? When I lived there it did not feel that way, but then I went to the university which was a mix of everyone under the sun, I guess, not representative of Cape Town as a whole.
I am sad to hear that things are so segregated. I do wish I could move back to Cape Town, but for the outdoor life only, I miss the easy access to mountains and sea.
I am from Durban, and I did always find the Cape Town society quite impenetrable and slightly snobbish, and I am white!
I really hope things will change and soon!
[...] doing so I came across Zukiswa Wanner’s article suggesting that Cape Town, run by Capetonians [who she labels as only white], is a deeply [...]
We as Cape Tonians think that Cape Town being officially declared a Republic is not a bad idea…But,however I still feel that some South Africans are still not that much comfortable as they should be with their race.
I am a South African living in Boston, USA and I can truly say that I miss Cape Town dearly. Not because of the weather or mountain but the people who makes Cape Town a home. And whoever commented on Coloreds being snobbish you are being ridiculous!!! I was born and raised in Mitchell’s Plain. I worked and studied really hard to achieve my goals and I don’t certainly want to be addressed as a snob.
Viva Republic of Cape Town Viva!!!
This article saddens me, never have i read such a destructive and ignorant depiction of our city. I live in the City Bowl, or CBD, a cultural melting pot, a myriad of different races, nationalities, languages and religions.
On a typical day i walk past more africans than white people, just like any other city in the world it just depends on knowing where to look to see the true heart of the city. Below is a quote from a recent survey done by Heart radio station, a survey conducted with a multi-racial group of Capetonians:
” They determined that Capetonians – regardless of race, religion or income group – think that they live in the best city in the world and they define themselves by their city and view themselves as Capetonians before they see themselves, as black, white or coloured. “For Capetonians it is more important to be connected to their city, which is where their sense of identity comes from – more so than their country and their racial group”
Perhaps our “Seperation from the rest of the country” stems from the fact that we have moved on from the tragedies of the past, and no longer wish to associate ourselves with the perpetuation of those tragedies that (as this article proves) are still very evident in other places.
Please investigate more thoroughly next time before you write such an ill-informed article. And when given the choice, perhaps you’ll concentrate on reinforcing our hopefulness and faith in our country rather than tearing it down with bitter, tired old stereotypes that simply no longer apply here.
Lofty literary references and isolated anecdotes do not equal good writing, all they do is support an outsider’s ignorant opinion.
I live in Durban and am seriously considering moving to Cape Town and the reasons are this:
1) Our crime rate in Durban is horrific and I believe it to be far higher than Cape Town.
2) Our business is not growing, actually many of our clients are relocating to JHB and CT looking for better opportunities.
3) The ANC led council has pushed up our municipal rates to 0.09, the highest in SA, we can no longer afford to live in Durban. I am amazed at how cheap CT municipal rates are!
4) The ANC led city is more concerned with their new stadium and street name changes than anything else. I get lost every time I have to look for a new client, wasting valuable working time. The city manager has changed most names on main routes and we no longer know where we are as they have removed old street names!!!!!
5) Durban is filthy, we have lost our blue flag status and in typical ANC style, the city manager says that blue flag status is an apartheid concept!!!!
All in all I would rather be with like minded business people who are not let by ignorant communist ideals, so CT here we come.
Check out the Cape Party’s facebook group- they are trying to make the Western Cape Independent.
Viva Cape Independence! We do NOT need to be part of SA anymore, for too long has the Cape been milked. Die Kaap vir die Kaapenaars! The message is out and it wont stop untill everyone in the 4 corners of the Cape have heard it, Secede to succeed!
Forget ‘welcome to South Africa’, say goodbye to Azania. The Cape must break away from SA, it has nothing to do with race and everything to do with common sense. Break away from corruption and the imature politics of the north. Go for it western Cape indepoendence!