Government Notice No. 1017 of 2020

National Heritage Resources Act (25/1999) » Declaration of the historical portion of the Phoenix Settlement,...

Title	National Heritage Resources Act (25/1999) » Declaration of the historical portion of the Phoenix Settlement, Inanda, Ethekwini, KwaZulu-Natal as a National Heritage Site
Department	Sports, Arts & Culture
Gazette	National Gazettes, No. 43734 of 25 September, 2020, 2 page(s), 177Kb

22    No. 43734            GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 25 SEPTEMBER 2020

DEPARTMENT OF SPORTS, ARTS AND CULTURE
          NO. 1017                 DEPARTMENT OF SPORTS ARTS AND CULTURE                   25 SEPTEMBER 2020

SOUTH AFRICAN HERITAGE RESOURCES AGENCY

DECLARATION OF THE HISTORICAL PORTION OF THE PHOENIX SETTLEMENT,
                      INANDA, ETHEKWINI, KWAZULU-NATAL AS A NATIONAL HERITAGE SITE

By virtue of the powers vested in the South African Heritage Resources Agency, in terms of
               section 27  (5) of the National Heritage Resources Act (No. 25 of 1999) SAHRA  hereby
               declares  the  historical  portion of the Phoenix Settlement,  including the Sarvodaya  House,
               Kastur Bhuvan House, Printing Press Building, and Museum, on the remainder of Portion 498
               of the Farm Piezang Revier FT, Indanda; eThekwini, KwaZulu-Natal as a National Heritage
               Site.

Statement of Significance
               "The historical portion of the Phoenix Settlement is closely associated with Mahatma Gandhi's
               last decade in South Africa, his personal transformation (including race), his formulation of
               Satyagraha and his connection and understanding of liberation struggles in South Africa.

It is recognised that Gandhi was a product of the era in which he was raised, that his political
               concerns in South Africa focused primarily on the plight of British Indians, that he volunteered
               to serve the ambulance corps for the British as a demonstration of loyalty to the empire in two
               important anti-colonial events in South Africa and that, in the early years of his stay in South
               Africa, he used disparaging British colonial language in respect of Africans. However, it is also
               recognised that during the last decade of his stay in South Africa, Gandhi went through a
               personal transformation in his thinking regarding the colonial orientation of his youth. He posed
               many questions  to  himself as he  experienced increased victimization  by South African
               authorities. He  tended  to the wounded  Zulu while he served  in the ambulance corps and
               became interested in learning more about the racial discrimination endured by Africans and
               other  people of  colour.  His early  remarks about  Africans were replaced by comments of
               admiration, support and a clearly expressed vision of a future South Africa that would be free
               of race. Gandhi's period in South Africa and his work within the South African Indian Congress,
               their alliance with South African Native National Congress (ANC), and the African People's
               Organization, was a political, and philosophical learning curve.

The Phoenix Settlement, devoted to Gandhi's philosophy of Sarvodaya (The Welfare of All)
               and the principles of Satyagraha, has played an important spiritual and political role throughout
               its long history by promoting social justice,  peace,  and equality.  Gandhi established the
               settlement as an experimental communal farm, one guided by respect for all people, and as a
               challenge to colonial norms of segregation, languages and religions. He used a printing press
               and newspaper as a means to mobilize resistance and promote ethical and moral human
               development. He believed that communities like Phoenix advocating communal living would
               form a  sound basis for decolonisation  and  the struggle against  social  injustice. These
               principles continue to be honoured through the work that the Phoenix Settlement does both

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Government Notice No. 1017 of 2020

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