Vandalisim of Historical Sites

[Skinny]

  I am so totally pissed off. On the way to Rosh Pinah, just before Daberas there are two archeology sites. One has bushman graves about four or five and one with dinosaur bones.  Both very well fences and both with big signs, saying historical sites keep out.

Well on my way and keeping to the said 89.9km per hour, I promise I notice that the side facing the road on the bushman garve site the fencing is down and there seems to be a wooden pallet hanging on a fence pole. This looks strange and out of place and I report it to the MIB at the gate. They are my mates at the gate because they alweays warn me about the long queues bless them and I take them the newspapers on a Monday so it is quid pro quo but I digress. They report it to the relevant people.

Tusday nothing changed, so I report it to my dearly beloved, who is recovering well thank (G-D) and is back at work, and he sends an email to the manager at Daberas. Who responds very quickly to say he didn't notice his mind was else where (shame his wife is after all 9 and half months pregnant) and after walking around the site it had been vandalised! He will put in an incident report and fix the fence immediately. Now i pose the following questions.
1. How come I was the only one who noticed it, where are the rest of the MIB?
2.Where are the environmentalists who travel that road every bloody day and why didn't they see it?
3. WHo had the time to do it after all there is supposed to be gate to gate times?
4. There are artifacts in those graves shell necklaces, pottery bowls etc, have they gone?
5. Does any body else care?
6. It is bad enough with the coins and the ship wreck but now even our poor little bush men can't sleep in piece.
THIS REALLY SUCKS, THIS IS DESTROYING OUR HERITAGE AND CULTURE

ARE THERE ANY IDEAS OUT THERE???????

[Delia]

Skinny, i agree, makes my blood pressure shoot into another dimension seeing that the criminal element thinks nothing of going so far as to even destroy history................had a case of feeling/seeing it myself recently..........i went to the SA Museum here in Cape Town last week while still on leave to see the International Wildlife Photography Exhibition - was awesome and while i was there, decided to take a walk through the whole museum........haven't been to one since i was kid.......really enjoyed it.  I got to the wildlife display of the stuffed animals and was gob-smacked as they say in the classics when i came to the rhinos - one was without a horn - i could clearly see it had been vandalised - there's a notice from the museum management next to the display saying that thieves broke into the museum recently and sawed off the horn - i couldn't believe what i was reading - i had to read it again to make sure my eyes weren't deceiving me while thinking "is there nothing that these bastards won't steal - is there nothing they won't stop at - they not only kill these beautiful animals in the wild but will also break into a museum to get at a horn"..........unbelievable!!!!!!! Not even the dead are safe anymore..............

[SandyB]

THE  USUAL  QUESTION  WHERE  IS   SECURITY ??  THE  MUSEUM IN  CT ..  I  REMEMBER THE STORY OF THE RHINO HORN  .. AND THE BREAK IN ..  HOW  THE    ....K  DOES IT HAPPEN ??  SIMPLE  ... THE SECURITY FIRM SHOULD BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE  FOR THE LOSS ..  BUT NO  EVERYTHING  IS  SOFT  TOUCH THESE DAYS   AFTER ALL WE  STILL  HAVE SO MANY  PREVIOUSLY DISADVATAGED WHO HAVE NOT  LEARN SIMPLE  RESPECT ..  FOR  OTHERS  PROPERTY  .. NEVER  MIND THEIR OWN ... ??

UUUUUGH !!!  WORLD WAR  11 ... AND THE  NEWSPAPERS WONT  PUBLISH MY  ONE  LETTER ON THE  BLUE  LIGHT BULLIES .. DONT MIND I'M STILL SUBMITTING  EACH DAY  .. AND NOW  SHORTENED AND  SMSING   IT ..

[Skinny]

My apologies for the appalling spelling, fingers are not as quick as the brain and can't find spell check (please Mr,Moderator please) But just got off the phone to Wicus Burger, Manager at Daberas who thanked me for my keen eye site. The fencing has been vandalised and the gate to the site ripped out of the ground. Tyre tracks abound. He cannot see that any of the 5 graves have been disturbed thank goodness and the fencing and signs will be re-erected by today. More un necessary expence due to some people who have no regard for other people's property or history. He has given me a direct phone number where I can call to report any other "funny" things without  having to wait. I had a good laugh cause my MIB at the gate told me when they phoned environmental depatment they where told "what grave sites?" "What historical sites?"........ I say no more. I will make a quick illegal stop on the way home tonight, take a photo and drop it off at their offices tomorrow with the GPS co-ordinates and say HERE ARE GRAVE SITES!!!!!! Do you want a guided tour. Am going to get into big S..t for this one but I don't care some one has to do some thing ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. 

[Bertie Horak]

  Skinny!

It's really sad.  People just don't care about things like that.  Great that you do.  Sites like that intrigues me and fills me with wonder and respect for people who walked the earth and were million times more part of that same earth than we'll ever be.
Did you take the picture?  Would it be possible for you to put it on the site?  Would love to see it.

[Dalene Steenkamp (Coetzee)]

I am going to use the word out of my 16yr old daughter's mouth  -  she was also referring to a vandalism incident that happened at their school and made the following remark about the guilty parties (and she was furious at the time, for no teacher stood up or did something  -  I will not elaborate on that):

hulle is f***en dommer as die klippe waarmee hulle gooi !

In this case I want to say  -  the vandals are dummer than the bloody soil they walk on and so are the MIB's who were supposed to see what was going on!

Good for you Skinny  -  hope you let it out good at them!~

[SandyB]

Which  remind me again as I read ... resend the  SMS  message in the hope somebody takes notice ...

[Bertie Horak]

@ Sandy - Hope they get so fed-up of your attempt to wake them up that they actually do contact you!  Probably the only option you have, other than chaining yourself to their front door with a blue light on your head!
@ Dalene - Goeie een!

[Malcolm Bertoni]

I was lucky enough to actually visit the Bushmen sites at Dabaras as I knew someone that had worked there. That was way back in 1982.  Don want to think what is happening now.  We need to understand that this is the age no-one seems to care too much about anything.

Malcolm

[Michael Alexander]

Skinny, I had a word to ol' Tryge , he was not amused, think he is planning to pop out there.....

[Skinny]

 
Thank you to all for your support. I did send a thank you note to Wicus and his guys for the quick responce for mending the fencing and the gate. I also wished him good luck and hope that every thing comes out alright for him and Anje when they leave for CT to have their new baby today.

Wicus put in an incident report but whether or not the culprits are caught is another story, and right now Namdeb has more important things todo like starting up production and fighting like hell to keep the mine going, but lets keep our eyes open and its up to us "little" people to protect the historical things etc.

Oh and Mike I have the paint, brushes and an overall for the disabled parking. WHEN CAN WE GET PAINTING. IT IS CALLED PROTECT OUR NATURAL RESOURCES!!!!!!  202

[Clive Symes]

Skinny,
I remember when Dieter Noli located those and other sites, I trust someone has informed him as he may have a better idea as to what was actually there.