Communities wounded by violence can become places of healing. This is the opinion of 29-year-old Nyanga East resident Inga Mkoko, who survived three separate incidents of gun violence and found himself dreaming of a very different future for his community when he attended Saturday’s opening of the latest Uthando South Africa soccer ‘Pitch for Peace’ launch at Morgenson Primary School in Hanover Park. Inspired by what he witnessed, Inga dreams of a Pitch for Peace in his own community at Nyanga East. He added this could turn his own painful life experiences into “a celebration of peace and possibility”.
Communities wounded by violence can become places of healing, hope and transformation
His story encapsulates the powerful message behind the ‘Pitches for Peace’ initiative: that communities wounded by violence can become places of healing, hope and transformation. The sixth pitch to date was officially unveiled on Saturday 31 October.
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Uthando South Africa and its partners, including Aurum Africa, brought together schoolchildren, residents, community organisations, local artists and supporters for a free music and soccer festival at Morgenson Primary School. The event celebrated the power of sport, music, and environmental innovation. Also, the collective action to create positive change across the Cape Flats.
From gun violence survivor to champion of peace
For Mkoko, who has attended four of the six ‘Pitches for Peace’ opening events to date, the occasion was particularly personal. “As a survivor of three separate incidents of gun violence, attending the opening of the Morgenson Primary School ‘Pitches for Peace’ was a deeply emotional and inspiring experience for me. It reminded me that even communities wounded by violence can become places of healing, hope, and transformation”.
Nyanga amputee attends “Pitches for Peace” launch in Hanover Park
His aspiration reflects the growing ambition of the initiative: to establish a five-a-side soccer ‘Pitch for Peace’ at as many schools as possible on the Cape Flats, creating safe and positive spaces for children and young people. At the same time, bringing communities together around a shared vision for a better future.
Building more than soccer pitches
For Uthando South Africa Founding Director James Fernie, the initiative is about far more than providing children with somewhere to play soccer. “The same issues arise time and again: a lack of quality infrastructure and opportunities for young people and other affected communities on the Cape Flats, gender-based violence, gangsterism, hunger, hopelessness and unemployment. We believe that practical, innovative interventions, delivered through partnerships, can help address these challenges.
“Our vision is to see a five-a-side soccer pitch at every school on the Cape Flats. Each pitch is constructed using approximately 200 discarded tyres, with each tyre filled with building rubble. This is an opportunity to turn waste into something of lasting value for communities while giving children safe spaces in which to play, learn and develop.”
Fernie believes that the combination of sport, music and community participation is particularly powerful at a time when many Cape Flats communities are experiencing the devastating effects of violence.
“People on the Cape Flats are yearning for change and something different. These events bring people together, create opportunities for our young people and offer a message of hope. We want to see communities, businesses, government and civil society working together to build a different future.”
A growing movement for peace
With six pitches established to date, the initiative is building momentum towards an ambitious goal of a soccer ‘Pitch for Peace’ at many more schools on the Cape Flats. The project demonstrates how partnerships between community organisations, businesses, artists, schools and individuals can create tangible, positive change. For children who play on these pitches, the result is more than a sporting facility. It is a place to belong, develop confidence, build friendships and experience the possibilities that open up when communities work together. And for people like Inga Mkoko, the initiative represents something even more profound: the possibility of transforming personal trauma into a commitment to building safer, more hopeful communities.
His dream of bringing a Pitch for Peace to Nyanga East is a powerful reminder that the people most affected by violence can also become some of the strongest advocates for change.
