28 No.30987 GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 25 APRIL 2008
No. 460 25 April 2008
DEPARTMENT OF ARTS AND CULTURE
SOUTH AFRICAN HERITAGE RESOURCES AGENCY
DECLARATION OF THE BURIAL SITE OF SARAH BARTMANN AS A
NATIONAL HERITAGE SITE
By virtue of the powers vested in the South African Heritage Resources Agency in terms
of section 27(7) of the National Heritage Resources Act, 25 of 1999, SAHRA hereby
declares the burial site of Sarah Bartmann situated on erf 3164, Hankey, Kouga
Municipality, Eastern Cape Province as a National Heritage Site.
SIGNIFICANCE
The site has spiritual, cultural, social, and historical significance.
The treatment of Sarah Bartmann during her life and after her death speaks of suffering,
dispossession, sadness and loss of dignity, culture, community, language and life. It is a
symptom of the inhumanity of people.
The return and burial of Sarah Bartmann's remains in the region of her birth and
Motherland has brought closure to her life and restored dignity to her, her ancestors and
living descendants. The site should serve as a symbol to all South Africans and the world
to strive towards recognizing past injustices to Khoi-San people, to women and
vulnerable communities and to work towards building a nation that shows respect to
human life, human rights and human dignity.
