Sibongile Mashaba
Sibongile Mashaba
Vegetable farmer Vincent Sequeira, who flattened 1000 graves to make way for a carrot plantation, has agreed to erect new tombstones.
Sequeira flattened the graves on his Greenway farm in Randfontein on the West Rand in March without the consent of the families.
Yesterday he told Sowetan that he was willing to re-erect the tombstones that were destroyed when he flattened the graveyard. He was waiting for the affected families to come forward.
The families dropped charges against the farmer after they spoke to Sequeira through ward councillor Thembi Matuwane.
The families said they were satisfied with the explanation Sequeira gave them and had therefore withdrawn the charges.
They had visited the farm for their yearly grave-cleansing ritual on Good Friday.
But when they returned five days later, the two grave sites had been flattened. Only a few tombstones were left intact.
"I'm willing to spend money to make peace with the affected families," said Sequeira.
Peace in farm graves saga
Sibongile Mashaba
Sibongile Mashaba
Vegetable farmer Vincent Sequeira, who flattened 1000 graves to make way for a carrot plantation, has agreed to erect new tombstones.
Sequeira flattened the graves on his Greenway farm in Randfontein on the West Rand in March without the consent of the families.
Yesterday he told Sowetan that he was willing to re-erect the tombstones that were destroyed when he flattened the graveyard. He was waiting for the affected families to come forward.
The families dropped charges against the farmer after they spoke to Sequeira through ward councillor Thembi Matuwane.
The families said they were satisfied with the explanation Sequeira gave them and had therefore withdrawn the charges.
They had visited the farm for their yearly grave-cleansing ritual on Good Friday.
But when they returned five days later, the two grave sites had been flattened. Only a few tombstones were left intact.
"I'm willing to spend money to make peace with the affected families," said Sequeira.