On 30 March 2004, the US delegation traveled back to Durban and spent the day relaxing and shopping. That evening they flew to Cape Town.
31 March 2004
Our first stop in beautiful Cape Town was the Table View community and the Caltex oil refinery. Andy Birkinshaw (left) of the Tableview Residents Association took us on a tour of the community surrounding the Caltex refinery. The US delegation was shocked by the large, powerful flare at the refinery and the strong smell of oil in the air.
After visiting the refinery the delegation went to a air monitor administered by the city of Cape Town. Andy Birkinshaw explain how the air monitor was in the wrong place, because the prevailing wind does not blow in the direction of the monitor.
The delegation then got a tour of a landfill waste site and a medical waste incinerator near the Table View community of Cape Town. This landfill, run by Enviroserve, accepts some hazardous waste and municipal waste. Among the trucks and trash, worker search for recycleable materials. The managers assured the delegation that these workers have regular medical check-ups and have not faced any adverse effects from this work. The US delegation was shocked to learn that these workers are not paid by the company and aren't even supplied with protective clothing.
Craig Mitchell (2nd from the left) and Esme Gumbault (3rd from left) were the Enviroserve managers who gave us a tour of this facility.
Next to the landfill there is a medical waste incinerator. Incineration of medical waste is a known to release very harmful chemicals calles dioxins. groundWork, working with the Global Anti-Incinerator Alliance (GAIA), has been campaigning to stop the building and use of this dirty technology in South Africa.
In addition to seeing the dirty industries in Cape Town, the US delegation had some time to take in some of the beautiful scenery of Cape Town, including a Table Mountain and Camp's Bay.
1 June 2004
On 1 June 2004, the US delegation took sometime to learn more about the history of South Africa by touring Robben Island, including the prison where freedom fighters like Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Ahmed Kathrada, and many others were held during apartheid. Above is the front gate and watch tower of the prison with Table Mountain in the background.
One of the stops on the tour of the island was the Lime Quary where political prisoner were forced to work. Upon a reunion of former political prisoners in 1996, each prisoner picked up a rock and built this monument to their struggle.
This is the cell where former President Nelson Mandela was held most of his time on Robben Island.
2 June 2004
On the morning of the US delegation's last day in South Africa, the staff of Contact Trust briefed the delegation on the parliamentary process and how people are involved in this democartic process. Contact Trust works "to increase the knowledge and capacity of ordinary people to influence government policy and legislation." This session helped the US delegation better understand how democracy works in South Africa.
After Lunch, the delegation visited the District Six Museum, a space dedicated to the memory of a racial mixed and vibrant community which was destroyed by the apartheid regime, forcible removing 60, 000 people from 1962 to 1982, and razing the community to the ground. After 1994, people began the process of reclaiming the land they were forced off of so many years ago and some will soon be moving into new homes in District Six.
(Top L-R Ardiel Soeker groundWork, Khalida Smalls ACE, Delma Bennett MEAN, Hilton Kelley CIDA Inc., Bottom L-R Ravi Dixit groundWork USA, Jesus Torres CBE, Teresa Almaguer PODER)
That afternoon the US delegation along with groundWork's Air Quality project coordinator, Ardiel Soeker and groundWork USA's coordinator, Ravi Dixit, sat together for the last time and reflected on the trip on the beach in Cape Town. That evening the US delegation boarded a flight for the US, bringing their experiences back with them to their organizations and communities.