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Road march and Tweede Nuwe Jaar events to go ahead

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Following a legal wrangle between the City of Cape Town and minstrel groups, the city has announced that it has approved event permits for the annual road march event to be held on 30 December 2016 and the Tweede Nuwe Jaar event on 2 January 2017. The court on Friday dismissed an urgent application by the former organisers, the Cape Town Minstrel Association, to be awarded the tender to host the event this year.  The Kaapse Klopse Karnivaal Association (KKKA) was granted the hosting rights for the 2017 edition of this event.

In a statement, the City said the KKKA is working with the Cape Minstrel District Board and the Cape Town Minstrel Carnival Association to ensure the participation of their troupes in the event.

“The KKKA has committed to organising an inclusive 2017 edition of the Tweede Nuwe Jaar minstrel parade in order to showcase all stakeholders, for the benefit of the entire minstrel community and Cape Town at large,” said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Tourism, Events and Economic Development, Councillor Eddie Andrews.

Cultural events are approved or rejected based on the guidelines in the City’s Events Policy and the Events By-law. This includes, among others, the event date, proposed venue, the impact on the surrounding area, community and environment, and the competing demands on available City services during the festive holiday period.

The road march (nagtroepe) event will take place on the evening of Friday 30 December 2016, as per the approved permit granted to the Cape Malay Choir Board (CMCB). The event will take place from 19:00 – 04:00 and will run from Rose Street in the Bo-Kaap to the Grand Parade in the Cape Town CBD. The CMCB has been allocated R760 000 in terms of financial support for this event.

The Tweede Nuwe Jaar event will take place from 10:00 – 23:30 on Monday 2 January 2017. They KKKA will therefore act as the event organiser and as such have formulated an event plan which has been approved by the City.

“The funding allocation of R1,8 million and the event permit have been issued to this organisation and they are responsible for engaging with all of the troupes and boards to ensure mass participation in the event,” said Andrews.

When considering the event applications, the date is also a deciding factor. The City favoured 2 January 2017 for the Tweede Nuwe Jaar celebration which is a public holiday. The City said the date considered will ensure that essential its services, including Traffic Services, Metro Police and Law Enforcement, are available in numbers to assist the event organiser.

“Our role is to provide support to the associations to produce a minstrels event that attracts a large number of spectators. The City is a proud supporter of our minstrels heritage and all of the associated marches and events.

“We hope that all minstrel organisations will work together to ensure the success of this important cultural highlight for the benefit of all residents and visitors who so look forward to the minstrel events each year,” said Andrews.

Temporary road closures will be in place to accommodate the two events. Details are available here: http://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Centre%20Assets/Minstrel%20road%20closures.pdf


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