Race has nothing to do with law
MY LETTER refers to John Ramasamy (Tribune, May 13). Such a pity he has to revert to the racist card to try to substantiate why he and his cohorts persist in breaking our city by-laws.
Besides breaking the fishing by-law, you can add a further four contraventions – littering, consuming alcohol in public, public nuisance and lighting fires on the beach – as common practices of some individuals.
Under conservation by-laws you can add poaching of undersized marine life and destruction of protected habitat.
The race card is an emotional one but has nothing to do with what is essentially breaking the law. Fishermen (Indian by majority) are well catered for with demarcated areas on both the north and south sides of emdloti.
Beach users (majority Indian) and residents (majority white) only wish those using emdloti’s facilities would respect the by-laws and have consideration for all users.
Ramasamy et al essentially want to fish in areas where families use the beach, making the beach unusable by virtue of littering (old bait/bait boxes/unwanted by-catch/nylon sometimes with hooks/food and drink receptacles) and dangerously casting hooks and sinkers among the beach users.
That the residents of emdloti are willing to advise fishermen of the law is John’s real complaint and as a result he deduces that the residents are racist.
Perhaps John and his followers did not learn from the city when they banned fishing on our piers for the same reasons.
Go there today and you will find wonderful promenades now used by all visitors to our beachfront, not just a few selfish individuals who took over the piers and turned them into a garbage heap and sewer.
Thank goodness someone in our city management ensured this by-law on fishing was enforced.
Those in charge are enforcing the by-laws as mandated by the city. These by-laws apply to residents and visitors alike.
Unfortunately, our metro police are not. They (Indian policemen) are siding with their fishing buddies (Indian) in undermining our beautiful environment and by-laws.
I enclose some photographs taken on Saturday, May 5 of “leftovers” on the beach the night before by fishermen in a non-fishing area and one can understand the resistance to fishermen who have no regard for our environment or laws.
My coloured children, who witnessed the mess and nearly stood on a hook left on the beach that day, and their Indian mother (my wife) send you a message, John: “We are the new South Africa, not blinded by colour, and live in your so-called ‘white area’. Have some respect for our beautiful beach and its laws and do not attempt to impose your prejudicial beliefs on law-abiding people in our neighbourhood.”