Radio 702 Wild Coast mining debate
Radio 702 featured a phone in discussion on the Wild Coast dune mining controversy on 12 June 2007 in their morning show with Redi Dereko. The chair of Xolco, Nomangesi Malunga spoke for the mining proposal, and Sinegugu Zukulu for Sustaining the Wild Coast.
Thanks to Russell Clemens you can listen to the broadcast in MP3 format here.
http://cybernetics-society.wikispaces.com/space/showimage/SA-wildcoast.mp3
http://cybernetics-society.wikispaces.com/message/view/Small+Teams+Space/648093
Posted on June 12th, 2007
Filed under: Newspaper and Media
Hi,
I am very dissapointed by the quality, and level of depth, of the debate (from both sides). No wonder MRC sees the area as an easy target, if this is the quality of the thought processes! May I humbly suggest that in future, someone representing an alternative development scenario (as opposed to environmental) prepare a background facts dossier to refer to, as different issues manifest themselves through the course of discussions. To suggest, for example, that no information has been collated re the alternative land use options for the area, and specifically tourism is very dissapointing.
May I also suggest that the alternative development scenario perpective not be allowed to be pigeon-holed by interviewers as the environmentalist viewpoint, with all its negative connotations. The debate, in my opinion, is about the most sustainable land use development option for the region, not about anti-development (and hence anti-people as translated by pro-mining proponents).
The XolCo representative was literally ‘ripe for the picking’ due to her ignorance and naivete. I think that a wonderful opportunity to counter the myths being perpetuated about mining has been lost. A pity!