FOUNDATION FOR CHURCH LED RESTITUTION
Churches in Cape Town

From the moment of conquest on the same historical and economic processes that made some people rich made others poor. The exploitation and exclusion of the oppressed did not end in People are still being made poor and being made rich by an unjust social and economic order. It must focus on overcoming all forms of social injustice and ensuring that everyone can take a respected and dignified place in society. The language of service delivery is used by NGOs, academics and the government to depoliticise the claims of the oppressed for justice by limiting them to a very narrow technocratic processes. In a time when the state, with the support of other elites, is trying to criminalise poverty, and the struggle to overcome poverty, our job is to politicise poverty and the economic and social systems that continue to produce and to entrench poverty. Restitution must include decent health care and education for all. It must include safe and efficient public transport for all. It must include a genuine affirmation of the right to the cities for all who want to have an urban life. It must also include a deepening of democracy via a steady shift to more participatory modes of decision making including things like participatory budgeting, urban planning and so on. Real restitution must start and end with a commitment to the principle that every person counts the same. Real restitution is about real dignity for everyone. Different understandings of the meaning of reconciliation (Prof Julian Müller, Deputy Dean, Faculty of Theology, University of Pretoria) A peaceful future in South Africa is only possible through the healing of traumatic memories related to our racist past and the establishment of a more equal and just South African society. The Restitution Foundation believes this would be achieved through acts of restitution. Reconciliation Toolkit (reflections on the different components of the reconciliation process) The Restitution Foundation is a Cape Town based non-profit organisation that promotes socio-economic justice, healing and reconciliation through restitution. Vision: To model restitution that will bring justice and healing to the nation. It facilitates community-led restitution initiatives which enable societies to determine their own restitution responses to the psychological and socio-economic injustices of colonial and apartheid rule in South Africa. The Restitution Foundation is since July 2009 facilitating the development and implementation of a community-led restitution model in the Town of Worcester. This work led to the establishment of the Worcester Hope and Reconciliation Process (WHRP). The WHRP has the support of Worcester residents from all backgrounds and in 2013 the Executive Mayor of Worcester identified it as the town’s flagship project. The community-led restitution work in Worcester focuses on the development of processes in support of the community’s recovering from traumatic memories and socio-economic injustices associated with South Africa’s racist past. The Restitution Foundation uses the community-led restitution model in Worcester as a catalytic tool to mobilise other South African towns to develop their own community-led restitution interventions.