Fingo preschool appeals for help

Sixty-three children are squeezed in the tiny Luzuko Preschool building in Fingo Village.
The school is popular and has more than doubled its size since last year. But money is scarce. Some parents cannot pay their monthly school fees and the school receives almost no other support. Although the school has done a lot to raise its own funds, it still desperately needs help (See sidebar).
Earlier in the year, the municipality built two small flush toilets for the children. Pamela Sandi, the school’s supervisor, said the children were so excited to have proper flushing toilets that they sometimes went to the toilet, even when they didn’t need it, just to see them and sit on them.
The teachers, however, still use the bucket toilets, as they are afraid of breaking the little loos.
Sandi, who is trying desperately to take the school from strength to strength, cannot do it without the help of the community.
“My dream is for everyone to be excited to come to school, because of an incentive and a love of the school,” says Sandi.

Here is a list of things that the school needs:
• Donations for the school to buy T-shirts for a local nursery schools’ sports day on 20 May. Sandi has raised R1200 already, but still needs R1 800.
• Monthly donation of vegetables or other food to feed the children.
• The school needs mattresses for the children to rest on during the day. Winter is coming and the mat that the children have to lie on is cold and hard.
• A water tank has been donated to the school, but they do not have gutters for the rain water to run through and into the tank.
• At least one adult-size flush toilet is needed. More children-size toilets are also needed.
• Toys and educational toys.
• The ceiling inside the school is in a very bad condition. It has recently started to leak and the staff are worried that it will collapse and possibly injure the children.
Contact Pamela Sandi at 073 313 0847 if you can help the school in any way, or email Gabi Falanga at g08f0072@campus.ru.ac.za

Giving Makana's citizens a sporting chance

Just over a month ago a disgruntled woman walked into the Grocott’s Mail office wanting to speak to a journalist.
Rose Norkie, the manager of Sun City Nursery School, had been looking forward to their annual sports day, but when the school arrived at Lavender Valley Sports field, it was covered in litter and there were no toilets.
Norkie had booked and paid for the field through the caretaker of the Extension Six Indoor Sports Centre, Lindile Habana.
When she spoke to him, she specifically requested that lines should be painted on to the sports track and that portable toilets should be provided, as there are no ablution facilities at the venue.
“I feel that when you pay for the field, you must see to it that the place is clean and that there are toilets. I don’t think it should be necessary to ask for toilets. They should know that. When people gather, they need toilets!” said an exasperated Norkie.
Before the children could use the field, Norkie and a few others had to clean up the rubbish. They filled more than five black bin bags.
It has taken more than a month investigate this story. For three weeks I tried to get hold of Habana to hear his side of the story.
But, the phone line to the caretaker’s office has been faulty for three months.
Next step, the municipal spokesperson, Thandy Matebese.
Matebese was not sure why the field was dirty and toilets weren’t provided, and wanted to know why Norkie had not reported the issue to Kevin Bates of the Parks Department.
I was shocked when he asked why Norkie was so lazy that she could report the issue to Grocott’s and not walk across the road to lay a complaint at the municipality. How can a municipal official be so condescending and rude?
I wouldn’t want to report anything if that was the attitude that I knew I’d be faced with.
When I asked Norkie why she came to Grocott’s instead of the municipality, she said, “I haven’t got much faith in the municipality. I don’t think they take much notice of one.”

Published in Grocott's Mail on 13 May 2011.

Taking us home

Terri-Lee Adendorff puts her hand on her hip, gives a seductive smile and sings, “I’ll take you home. Ah, ah, Ooo, I’ll take you home!” When the song is finished she says, “We’ll take you all home,” and is met by shrieks and clapping from the audience packed in on Slipstream's dance floor.
On Friday night, two-piece band, Life of Riley, launched their debut album, The Golden Age of Us. Lead vocalist and song writer Adendorff and guitarist and composer, Nich Mulgrew commanded the audience’s attention from the start with their short, catchy folk pop tunes. They looked the part – preppy-looking Mulgrew with his school boy pants and almost-but-not-quite emo side-brushed fringe. Adendorff wearing a sexy, flowing top, kitten heels, long, sleek black hair and sophisticated rectangular D&G spectacles.
The band started off in Grahamstown in 2008, when Adendorff and Mulgrew were in first year. As the band progressed, their fan base grew and in 2010 they won Grahamstown’s Acoustic Battle of the Bands. Despite Mulgrew living in Cape Town this year to do honours, the band have managed to keep together. They played at Splashy Fen music festival last weekend and have finished recording and packaging their album this year. Although the distance has made things tricky, the band will continue.
During the show, Adendorff’s distinct voice ranged from high and lively, to soothing, raunchy, low and sweet. Mulgrew kept his head down as he strummed away at the guitar. The pair kept the audience on their toes as they moved between cheeky, sing-and-clap-along tunes to an angry song and then to a slower, sad song.
“This is a sad song, so weep if you must,” said Adendorff.
“With joy,” Nick chips in.
The band members’ sense of humour peppered throughout the show keeps the audience laughing. After performing a cover of Florence and the Machine song “Kiss with a Fist”, an audience member says, “They were flipping good hey!” The comments overheard after the show were all in the same vein.
The band is selling CD’s for R60 including postage. To get one, email Mulgrew on nichmulgrew@gmail.com.

Published in Grocott's Mail on 3 May 2011.

Silent protest photos

All photos by photographer, Caeri Dunnell. To see more of her work visit Caesium Photography.

The 1 in 9 protest participants pose for a group photo in front of Rhodes University's clock tower. More than 1550 people took part in the protest, making it the largest 1 in 9 protest that has ever taken place in South Africa and the biggest protest that has ever occured at Rhodes.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Most of the protesters had their mouths taped in solidarity with women who are raped or sexually abused. Only 1 in 9 rapes get reported in South Africa and only in 4% of the reported cases does the perpetrator get prosecuted.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

1 in 9 protest participants march in silence from the Great Hall, where they were taped up to the Rhodes University clock tower for a group photo. Silence speaks louder than words.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Rhodes University's Dean of Students, Dr Vivian de Klerk, supported the protest.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

I'm in the middle flanked by my best friends Lisa and Caeri (the photographer).
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Protestors marching to the clock tower.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Silent protestors could get their mouths retaped during the day.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Silent protestors were not allowed to remove their tape during the day to eat or speak. Here a protestor writes notes to her friend.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Silent in solitude.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

The 1  in 9 protestors took part in a die-in in the Rhodes University library quad. This symbolised the women who have been silenced and even murdered through sexual abuse.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

The die-in - A chance to reflect on why we were taking part in the protest.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Die-in.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Lisa Bluett making a point about what rape does to women.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Men could participate in the protest too, but did not have their mouths taped.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Here you can see the T-shirts that the silent protestors wore on the day.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

The protestors march to the Cathedral to be untaped.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Protestors marching to the Cathedral.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Entering the Cathedral.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

Here I am hungry and emotionally drained, but relieved to finally be untaped. After we were untaped, we marched from the Cathedral back to the Great Hall for a concert.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell.

All photos by photographer, Caeri Dunnell. To see more of her work visit Caesium Photography.

I am angry



My mouth was taped for the 1 in 9 silent protest, in solidarity with those who have been silenced by rape and sexual abuse.
Photo by Caeri Dunnell

 The Silent Protest hadn’t even begun yet when I saw a res friend sitting on the Great Hall floor donning a ‘Rape Survivor’ T-shirt. She was crying and her friends sat with their arms around her. I had no idea.
Two weeks ago I spent a day with my mouth taped shut as part of the 1 in 9 silent protest. By the time the morning was over, I had seen classmates, res friends, acquaintances, a friend’s mother and many strangers all bravely wearing the same "Rape Survivor" T-shirt.
Seeing friends wearing that shirt made me angry. Very, very angry. The statistics became a reality – rape was something that could happen to me.
Our taped mouths, misinterpreted by many, symbolised the millions of women who have not told anyone that they’ve been raped, or, have told someone only to be horribly let down by a system which fails to prosecute rapists. This makes me angry.
At lunch time, all the protesters lay down in the library quad for an hour-and-a-half-long "die-in". Upon asking my long-term boyfriend to say hi to me at the die-in and to walk into town with me, his SMS reply was: “I’m not gonna come meet you, I’m really sorry but I would just feel really uncomfortable…”
I was furious! Uncomfortable with what? My silence? After being together for a year and a half did he really feel that talking to each other ALL the time was necessary? Did he think I was going to be sombre in light of the protest and wouldn’t be fun to be around?
This made me angry.
When I eventually brought myself to talk to my boyfriend, the reality of his discomfort was quite different. Contrary to what I thought, he was not uncomfortable with me, but after reading the message on the protesters T-shirts, he felt that the protest was against men and was not comfortable with the thought of being surrounded by more than a thousand male-bashing protesters.
He also felt that the T-shirts implied that all men are rapists and wanted to know why no emphasis was placed on men who get raped.
Yes, we were bashing men – bashing the men who think it is their right to rape women. Women were angry and still are.
I am angry that a man can tell a woman wearing a rape survivor T-shirt that “it would have been better if your mouth was taped shut”.
I am angry that I live in a country where gender equality is part of the constitution, but violence against women is largely the norm.
I am angry that our justice system is just-a-system. I am angry that our leaders are not taking this problem seriously and that some are unprosecuted perpetrators.
I am angry that according to statistics, by the time I am 50 years old I will have been raped at least once.
I am angry that one day my daughter will probably be raped. And so will yours. I am angry at a comment made about my taped mouth, “Dis nou hoe ‘n vrou moet lyk” (That is how a woman should look).
I am angry at the stories I heard during the day: a young woman raped by her uncle when she was between the age of four and six; a 15-year-old girl raped by her cousin, in her room, her safe space; a woman who’d watched her father rape her mother; a young girl trying to deal with the secret of her best friend’s rape; a woman who was too ashamed to wear the ‘Rape Survivor’ T-shirt.
We were waging war on patriarchy. And yet, my boyfriend is a man who will not violate women and we desperately need the support of men to fight sexual violence. So instead of excluding men, why don’t we allow them to be taped up for the day?
Taped women are meant to symbolise raped women. But, if men were taped they might be able to identify with the powerlessness and vulnerability that women experience.
Many students, mainly non-participants, do not realise the significance and symbolism involved in the silent protest. I think that the campaign fails to properly inform the wider Grahamstown community about why exactly it is done and it does not use the opportunity to interrogate other gender issues.
Even though I felt that I hadn’t been supported by my boyfriend, in hindsight, I know that is not strictly true.
I was touched by the support I received from some unlikely places - Facebook messages, SMSes and phone calls from friends I have not seen or spoken to in years, thanking me for what I was doing on behalf of women and applauding my braveness.
I did not sign up for the protest to get a pat on my back, but it felt good to know that my actions were having far-reaching effects.
I am still angry, but I was also empowered by the protest. I was part of the biggest 1 in 9 protest to date. I stood up and fought the war on women’s bodies. I still am fighting it.
I was part of an event where rape survivors were able to open up and confide their horrific ordeals, surrounded by empathy and love, allowing the healing process to start for them.
It was a highly emotional day and an experience that participants – myself included – are unlikely to ever forget. It has changed me and it will hopefully contribute to change in our country.
I want to stop being angry.

Published in Grocott's Mail on 29 April 2011.

Meri Kenaz brings her heart to Grahamstown

Photo by Gabi Falanga

Meri Kenaz’s performance is a whole-body experience. As she sings, her hips sway gently from side to side, her eyes close and she lifts her chin slightly as she delicately plucks out a tune on her guitar. Her music envelops the small, cosy group in the Rhodes Student Union on Monday night. 
For a person with such a small body, Kenaz has a surprisingly deep and powerful voice. Her music is difficult to place in any one genre - a mixture of acoustic soul, South African folk, with an undertone of blues.
Her guitar work is intricate and, to add even more interest to her performance, she sings a song in Afrikaans and does some beautiful, warbling whistling in another.
Kenaz is down to earth and radiates wholesomeness. With her pretty blonde dreadlocks, natural beauty, and open, honest face, she connects with her audience in a very intimate way. She does not seem to be put off by lack of numbers, and throws herself into her performance, just as she would no doubt do if it were a much larger crowd.
Kenaz has been writing music from a young age. She played a song about young love, written when she was 14. Her stop in Grahamstown is part of her Meri Kenaz Splashy Fen Tour, but she will be back in Grahamstown for the National Arts Festival in July.
Kenaz has just finished recording her latest album, Deeper, with Peace of Eden Studios. True to Kenaz’s style, her CD is not in the usual CD box, but wrapped in a piece of fabric, with pages of beautiful drawings inside.

Published in Grocott's Mail on 21 April 2011.

Wind farm geology debate: Stuck between a rock and a hard place

The recent authorisation by the National Department of Environmental Affairs of the proposal to build a wind farm on the outskirts of Grahamstown has added fuel to a number of debates. One of these is whether or not the geology in the area is stable enough to support these enormous structures.
A geo-technical survey has yet to be done, before construction begins. meanwhile, the debate rages on.
The underlying geology in Grahamstown consists of quartzite, shale and clays of the Cape Supergroup. According to Dr Nick Stavrakis, who specialises in applied geology, the possible presence of clay in the underlying geology could lead to the wind turbines being unstable.
When clay is placed under pressure, especially directed pressure, “the clay liquefies... and starts to flow. There’s no support once it starts to liquefy and basically you have collapse. So wherever the stress is in that foundation, there’ll be movement,” he says.
Stavrakis is not opposed to green power; however, he believes that there are better locations for the eight proposed turbines than the Waainek Road, namely, the flat peneplain area near the substation. This area, according to Stavrakis, has a thick, hard silcrete crust and is fairly barren, making it unsuitable for agriculture.
He also says, “I believe it’s owned by the community. It’s the closest point to an Eskom substation, so you wouldn’t have power losses along the way.”
Palaeontologist, Dr Billy de Klerk, points out that clay deposits, covered by a layer of silcrete, occur mostly on the flat areas above Grahamstown. Underlying the high ground is the Witteberg group of rocks, which consists predominantly of quartzites.
“The high ground here is ideal... they [the Witteberg rocks] are as hard as hell and they’re on the high ground where you want your turbines to be in the first place. The higher your turbine, the more air flow it’s going to pick up,” says de Klerk.
“I think that Grahamstown has actually sited their turbines correctly on the high ground, and that minimises the amount of clay material below any turbine's position. The high ground is resilient, that’s why it’s high, so any of the softer weathered material has been washed away already.”
Stavrakis says, however, that the Witteberg quartzites are structurally disturbed by faults and therefore have weaknesses. He says that, in addition, interbedded with the quartzite are thick layers of soft clay-filled shale.
Even though hard rock would be more suited to the placement of wind turbines, de Klerk, who has done consulting for other wind farm proposals, believes this is not necessarily always the case.
“The foundations have to be 20 by 20 metres, and about five metres down. Then they sink cables into boreholes in various directions, which are then anchored in that concrete block,” he says.
Both Stavrakis and de Klerk point out that a comprehensive geo-technical survey of the area needs to be done before there is certainty about the suitability of the geology to support the turbines.
“It’s complex, because we don’t really know the underlying geology in great detail and apparently no geological or geo-technical study has been done,” says Stavrakis.
De Klerk says, “They haven’t completed their geo-technical survey, so they may not go and put them exactly at those points because of the considerations of what the substrate is going to be. Is it shale or is it quartzite? If it’s shale, they would think twice about the positioning. If it’s quartzite it’s competent and not a problem.”

 

A wide band of soft carbonaceous shale (the dark layer above Stavrakis' head in picture) interbedded in quartzites of Witteberg Group. This structurally-weak zone is on the approximate stratigraphic horizon as the proposed Waainek Wind Farm area and specifically the beds underlying the three turbines closest to the Umaria Umama Monastery. A layer such as this would be hugely problematic for the placement of a heavy wind turbine.
Photo by Kerry Holmes



Faulting with clearly-visible subsidence in Witteberg Group rocks in road cutting to the south of Grahamstown. The main fault traces are shown with broken white lines on the photograph. According to Stavrakis, such a position would constitute an unsuitable site for a large wind turbine.
Photo by Kodak Express

Well-known palaeontologist, Dr Billy de Klerk, feels the proposed location for the wind farm is probably suitable, as it is on resilient, high ground.
Photo by Mike Davies-Coleman

Published in Grocott's Mail on 15 April 2011.