The day the slaves did it their own way

TWEEDE Nuwe Jaar has been celebrated for more than a century and pays homage to the history of slaves in the Cape.

Every year on January 2, the streets of Cape Town come alive with glitter, bright colours and the beating of the ghoema drum.

The event is a spirited cultural music and dance celebration that started in the mid-19th century when New Year was celebrated by the Dutch and considered to be the biggest annual feast.

Slaves would get a day off on January 2 and were allowed to celebrate in their own manner.

“They would dress up as minstrels and dance rhythmically to the sounds of banjos, guitars, ghoema drums, whistles, trombones and tubas.”

Director of the Kaapse Klopse Karnival Association (KKKA) Muneeb Gambeno said the Cape Town Street Parade has deep historical significance as it was “a day on which enslaved ancestors found freedom for themselves”.

Gambeno said the day also symbolises a lot to “people on the Cape Flats who can find their freedom from communities which struggle with gangsterism and drugs”.

Other events that are traditionally associated with the Klopse over the festive season include competitions for the Christmas choirs, the Cape Malay choirs and the Cape minstrel choirs.

It has deep significance as ‘a day on which enslaved ancestors found freedom for themselves’

Muneeb Gambeno

KKKA director