McKenzie thanks Scottish govt for repatriation of Khoi, San

Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie at the handover of instruments and refurbishments to Mitchells Plain music academy in Cape Town on October 15, 2024.

The remains of the Khoi and San descendants of the people of the Northern Cape have been received in Cape Town after a repatriation process from Scotland.

A formal homecoming ceremony was held at the Iziko Museum. They were transported to Scotland as part of race-based anthropological research by Glasgow University over a century ago.

Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Gayton McKenzie thanked the Scottish government for their support in the endeavor, having worked with a museum in that country to carry out the repatriation.

“We have been robbed of our blessings, because of disagreements. But what I have seen in Scotland gave me hope, that unity is possible and unity is here. This is not the time for Khoi and the San and the Nama and all the different formations to get involved in petty bickering. This is the time for restoration!”

We conclude the evening with the remains being laid at the Iziko Museum of South.

The National Department of Sport, Arts and Culture Minister Mr Gayton McKenzie, through the implementing agencies, Iziko Museums of South Africa and the South African Heritage Resources Agency… pic.twitter.com/Mcby9T88GT

— Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (@SportArtsCultur) October 16, 2025