V&A book launch called off
PIETER-LOUIS Myburgh’s book launch cancellation was for the safety of Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront tenants, staff and customers, the centre’s spokesperson Donald Kau has said.
Kau described as “unfortunate” Myburgh’s allegations that its decision to cancel the launch of his book, Gangster State, was not supporting freedom of speech.
The book about ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule, which has received criticism and threats from the ANC Youth League and Congress of SA Students, was to be launched at the Waterfront’s Exclusive Books yesterday evening, but the centre said it had to cancel the event due to security concerns. It was understood that the launch was later moved to Cape Talk Radio building in Green Point.
Following the cancellation, Myburgh turned to social media to attack Exclusive Books and the Waterfront. On his Twitter account, he appealed for support from friends of democracy and free speech. “@VaAWaterfront and @ExclusiveBooks now want to cancel tonight’s #GangsterState launch because they’re scared of a few rascals. Are we going to allow this to happen?”
He also sent another text message to his Whatsapp friends saying V&A Waterfront’s “willingness to defend free speech is not quite in line with its appetite for profits from shoppers.
“A small band of critics of my book who can’t express their views in a civil manner has managed to spook a large corporate entity into submission. This is a sad day for SA, and V&A really needs to be held to account for this,” he apparently said.
But Kau insisted Myburgh was disingenuous in his allegations.
Kau said the cancellation followed a risk assessment and a concern that violent disruption of the book’s launch at Sandton City Mall in Johannesburg earlier this week was going to be repeated at the Waterfront.
“We would expect Exclusive Books and his publisher to have a conversation with him.
“I understand how he is aggrieved but it would be unfair to make it a tenant and freedom of expression issue because that is not what it is. It was about the safety of people who would attend the launch. We have staff here, we have tenants, we have people who are walking through and if people were to be injured here, I don’t think the public would forgive us,” said Kau
Exclusive Books chief executive Grattan Kirk said the launch was cancelled after police raised concerns about a service delivery march near Waterfront last night.
He said the protest had nothing to do with the launch.
Attempts to reach Myburgh were unsuccessful.
A sad day for SA, and V&A need to be held to account for this. Pieter-Louis Myburgh Gangster State author