Bulelwa Payi – 23 Jan 2022 AMAZON’S withdrawal from the controversial River Club development could “rob” Cape town of a R7.4 billion cash injection for its “ailing” economy, while Khoisan people argued their heritage was not up for sale. These were among a myriad arguments presented before Western Cape High Court deputy judge president Patricia…
Concrete cannot be our future
22 JAN 2022 — On Friday 21st, the court heard the last arguments in our urgent interdict application to stop the River Club re-development. The judge was much more interventive with the legal representatives for the City and the First Nations Collective (FNC). In particular, she asked probing questions about who constitutes the world of…
Amazon – the LLPT’s ‘partner’?
20 JAN 2022 — Today was the second day of the court hearings for our Interdict seeking to halt the ongoing construction at the River Club. It was filled with presentation by Counsel for the developers, LLPT, and by counsel for the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning who awarded the Environmental Authorisation, over-riding…
First day of the court case seeking an interdict
19 JAN 2022 — Today was our first day in court. After a long delay, it was a relief to get to court. Our legal team was led by Advocate Alan Dodson because the advocate originally scheduled to represent us for the November dates, Tembeka Ngcukaitobi, was unavailable for January. We needed to get into…
We are not optimistic; rather, we are prisoners of hope
18 JAN 2022 — Today our petition blasted through the 67 000 mark and is continuing to rise as we prepare for our days in court, starting tomorrow, 19th January. Jeff Bezos is not the only person experiencing rocket power. The difference is our petition is rocketing upward because it is driven by people power,…
Khoi fight for Cape heritage rites
Mark Steenbok – 20 Jan 2022 Indigenous groups in Cape Town opposed to what they call a violent assault on their heritage say there was no meaningful public participation in the plans to build Amazon’s Africa headquarters. The US company is forging ahead with construction on the banks of the Liesbeek River in the city…
Pourquoi le nouveau QG africain d’Amazon fait polémique
Omar Lucien Koffi La construction du nouveau siège social africain d’Amazon en Afrique du Sud a été arrêté. Des représentants de deux groupes ethniques ont porté plainte. Selon les Khoi et les San, le QG empiète sur un territoire sacré. Les représentants des descendants des premiers habitants d’Afrique du Sud, les Khoi et les San,…
Liesbeek development: “This is a case of global importance”
The Goringhaicona Khoi Khoi Indigenous Traditional Council (GKKITC) and the Observatory Civic Association (OCA) sought an interdict against the proposed Liesbeek development. This is what is currently happening with the case. From January 19-21, the campaign’s interdict was heard in the Cape Town high court. The interdict seeks to stop the development of 150 000…
Amazon may quit African HQ deal if blocked, Cape Town court hears
AFP – 20 Jan 2022 Johannesburg – Online retail giant Amazon could pull out of a deal to create its Africa headquarters in Cape Town, if a legal challenge by indigenous activists is allowed to proceed, a Cape Town court heard Thursday. Construction is already under way for Amazon’s R4 billion ($262 million, 231-million-euro) African…
Heritage land dispute over Amazon’s new Africa HQ goes to court
Tim Cocks – 19 Jan 2022 Groups representing the descendants of SA’s earliest inhabitants, the Khoi and San, went to court on Wednesday to try to halt construction of Amazon’s new 70,000-square metre Africa headquarters on land they regard as sacred. The culturally-intertwined San and Khoi were the first inhabitants of SA. The former lived…