Musicians and technical production crew in the Cape Town entertainment industry formed part of a national protest campaign on Wednesday night to get their voices heard after suffering five months without income due to the Coronavirus lockdown.
The #LightSAred campaign saw various public and private properties lit up in red lights.
According to organisers of #LightSAred, 505 buildings across South Africa was lit up including Mother City monuments like the Castle of Goodhope, Table Mountain, Cape Town Stadium, the Big Wheel and other areas of the V&A Waterfront, as well as hotels, businesses, private homes and vehicles.
DJ Ready D says the campaign was successful: “The aim was to get government attention and necessary stakeholders to see how difficult it is for many people that work in the events and entertainment industry.
“Many have not received any relief in the last five months, there’s a huge risk of people losing their jobs, this industry has managed to contribute to the economy in tax etc.
“We need to come up with a creative solution in the interest of the public and people’s livelihoods.”
Premier Alan Winde has thrown his weight behind the campaign, saying the Western Cape is an internationally recognised events capital, which supports thousands of jobs.
“We believe that businesses that can open safely, should be allowed to do so in order to fight the equally serious, second pandemic of unemployment.”
Winde says he has requested a meeting with ministers Zweli Mkhize and Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma to discuss the impact of the lockdown “on key job-creating sectors”.