Wineries are a question of land ownership. In places like Napa Valley and Sonoma, the ownership is clear (enough). At some point in the past it came under the ownership of someone with a deed, who sold it someone else, who owns it today. We (mostly) no longer talk about how land ended up in the hands of the Americans who eventually flipped it in the first place.
Not so in South Africa. The very recent history of apartheid renders the question of land ownership - Is it valid? Is it fair? Should it change? - very acute. The Stellenbosch wine region is actively dealing with such issues.
One of the things that complicates the question of ownership is the fact that a non-trivial amount of this land is actually public - right before the end of apartheid, the government gave a number of white farmers 50 year leases for public lands in exchange for their investment in water infrastructure.
Adding to the turmoil, the area in question is where most of the leaders of apartheid were originally from, making this symbolically loaded. Stellenbosch is often called “the cradle of apartheid.” Yikes.
Right next to the wineries there is a poor, black, overcrowded neighborhood called Kayamandi, separated by barbed wire and electrified fences. Some of the people who live there have started to squat on a farm owned by Stefan Smit, building thousands of metal shacks, resisting arrest, and refusing to leave.
What are the obligations of tourists who want to take advantage of the South African wine world? Should they make a point to learn this history? Should it change how they explore the region? I’m a big believer in understanding the context of the place you’re visiting, but it’s not totally clear that the answer here to not go. It’s important to see how this case shakes out and what happens as these leases start to end in the 2040s. How will South Africa continue to grabble with the inequality that besieged it for so long, and how does that extend to land rights?
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/09/world/africa/stellenbosch-south-africa.html
Great article Modupe. Some MBA2s visited Zimbabwe and South Africa during the Winter Break this year, including Cape Town. We did not visit Stellenbosch but did visit Constantia Vineyards.
ReplyDeleteDuring our time in Zimbabwe, we learnt about how they implemented Land Reform. When we were in South Africa, it was frequently in the news on TV. Land reform is clearly a very complex issue rooted in questions of ownership. The answer seemingly depends on what span of time you refer to and whose perspective you're asking. Although I was exposed to some of the different answers, I don't think I fully appreciate the history and nuances of the issue.
At Constantia, we went on a wine tour, which was largely focused on the wine making process, the famous historical figures who drank the wine, and the history of the properties' development. It did not cover anything about the local culture and land issues. I'm not sure if Constantia has similarities to Stellenbosch, but I definitely agree that tourists should make a point to learn the history and issues of the places they visit. Famous tourist attractions and sites including wine regions also have an obligation to make resources available for this, if relevant.