SA creatives to march for 70% venue capacity
All cultural and creative industry practitioners have been invited to join marches to the Union Buildings in Pretoria and the National Assembly in Cape Town on 16 September.
The marches form part of a plea to South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, under the banner #VulaPresident, to allow the cultural and creative industry to reopen with at least 70% capacity.
The assembly points for the marches will be at Church Square in Pretoria at 9am and in front of Parliament in Cape Town at 10am. All artists around the country are encouraged to wear their artistic attire. Marchers have been asked to observe COVID-19 protocols.
This is not the first time entertainment industry professionals have banded together under the same banner. Last week, a small group of artists rallied outside the Union Buildings to deliver a memorandum. The group’s primary demand was that events should be allowed to take place, as other places of entertainment have been allowed to open for business.
“All the pubs, all the taverns where people go to have fun, those places are open. But we are not allowed to host events. So they might as well open up for us,” radio presenter and organiser Percy Sleash said.
The group also wanted clarity about how the COVID-19 relief grants had been allocated across the country. The Department of Sports, Arts and Culture has just concluded its second round of applications for the grants, with more than R65m ($3.9m) disbursed in the initial round.
The memorandum, which was accepted by an official at the Union Buildings, said the entertainment industry had been sidelined during the reopening of the economy. “It is open and to make things worse, there is no social distancing in a taxi. But when it comes to the entertainment industry, it is not open,” it said.
On 2 September, a number of industry professionals blocked the N3 highway in Durban under the same banner. Popular SA entertainers DJ Merlon, Mshunqisi Dladla and Zodwa Wabantu were among those spotted in the crowd. But the rally was soon dispersed by police who used stun grenades and rubber bullets. A number of the protesters were arrested.
Musicians such as Black Coffee took to Twitter following the violent dispersal, slamming the government for the mistreatment of creatives. “What has our industry done to receive such vile treatment, we need your intervention Mr President,” the popular DJ wrote.
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