March 7 2016 is a date that forever will be burned into the memory of all those who loved and cared for Franziska Blöchliger – the 16-year-old who was raped and murdered in Tokai Forest.
Five years later, on Saturday 7 March residents again gathered to remember and celebrate her life.
Some tied colourful ribbons to the Ribbon Gate at Tokai Forest while others placed painted rocks with meaningful messages on the ground.
All took a moment to reflect on the horrific crime that robbed a family of their daughter and a young woman of her life.
A message on Parkscape’s Facebook page, posted on International Women’s Day (Sunday 8 March), read: “Yesterday we remembered the scourge of gender-based violence (GBV) – and we thank all those women and men who joined us. Today we stand united and committed to standing up for the human rights of women everywhere.”
Since the Kalk Bay girl’s murder in 2016, Parkscape has hosted a remembrance event annually on 7 March.
Nicky Schmidt, the founder of the registered community-focused environmental NPO, says it was Franziska’s murder that motivated her to found the organisation with the aim of ensuring safe community spaces with an environmental focus.
Referring to the memorial site, Schmidt says it is a sensitive one.
“It marks the grim reality of gender-based violence – and it shows how it can happen anywhere and at any time.
“It is important that we remember every fallen angel, every site, so that we do not forget. That we, collectively, bring the horror of gender-based violence constantly to the forefront for all those who perpetrate these crimes and all those who would turn a blind eye and try to pretend it never happened,” she says.
With prescribed burns set to take place in Lower Tokai during March and April, steps have been taken to preserve the memorial site which falls within one of these designated blocks.
Schmidt says SANParks (South African National Parks) has indicated their willingness to protect and preserve the site during the controlled burn.
Earlier this month, contractors of SANParks and Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) cleared around the memorial site, incorporating it into the fire break.
“We have engaged not only with our section ranger on this, but also SANParks’ fire chief, and we would like to extend our thanks and gratitude to them for respecting the community’s wishes that the site be preserved,” she says.
