Reclassification of The Lie of 1652

2020

In 2020, Tafelberg Uitgewers publishes Patric Mellet’s book ‘The Lie of 1652’, in which he claims, among other things, that a functional shipping service already existed at Tafel Bay before the arrival of Jan van Riebeeck.

Dan Sleigh’s commentary on the book, “Read at your own risk”, is posted by Media24 on 31 October: https://www.netwerk24.com/Stemme/Menings/lees-op-eie-risiko-20201030

Mellet responded to this: https://www.netwerk24.com/Stemme/Menings/1652-skryver-stel-sy-saak-20201106

Here is also a video recording where he touches, among other things, on the criticism of his book: https://fb.me/e/1SCzVFZi9

An employee of Tafelberg, Melanie Steyn, also wrote to the newspaper: https://www.netwerk24.com/Stemme/MyStem/oorweeg-ten-minste-nuwe-information-20201110

Numerous members of the public provided input, mostly in support of Dan Sleigh’s arguments. A few are listed here:

As a final word, Dan Sleigh made a request to Tafelberg to reclassify the book as fiction: https://www.netwerk24.com/Stemme/MyStem/herklassifiseer-boek-ter-wille-van-waarheid-20201118

However, certain commentators, such as Heindrich Wyngaard and Cas Wepener, praised Mellet for his “alternative” approach:

The Foundation is currently in discussions with the publisher to have the book classified as “fiction”.

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Note on 2022-03-22: The Foundation sent a letter regarding the matter to Tafelberg Publishers. Here is the content:

Die Uitgewersbestuurder
NB Uitgewers
Heerengracht 40
Kaapstad

Dear Ms. Stoffer

I am approaching you on behalf of the VOC Foundation, a public conservation group, founded in 1995, with the aim of Education, Conservation and Cultural Tourism regarding the VOC (1602-1795) on an international level. The Foundation’s constitution and activities can be seen on our website http://www.voc-kaap.org.

The Foundation hereby expresses its concern about the manner in which Tafelberg Publishers published Mr PT Mellet’s manuscript The Lie of 1652 as non-fiction (ie virtually) in 2020 and advertises as such on the book’s back cover. Historians subsequently pointed out in the press that chapter two of the book in particular contains several historical errors and blatant fabrications. These experts asked Tafelberg Publishers to reclassify the text as Fiction. Their questions to Mr Mellet to explain some of his allegations were not answered.

The Foundation VOC now repeats the request to the Publisher, and points out a number of reasons for it:

False information is spread under your respected publishing name as facts among the uninformed.
The book causes confusion and worsens the prevailing ignorance about Cape history.
Archival research and historiography about the VOC is an international industry. That this publication is distributed as non-fiction by a leading publisher makes South African researchers, historians and students as such internationally suspicious.
The subject of History and the genre of History are both made suspect and degraded by the false information.
The book’s content and the advertisement on the back reinforce the possibility for politicization and the spread of skewed information when teaching History as a subject.
The status and future of professional historians is being undermined. Consider, for example, the credibility of a trained historian as a witness in a court case, as well as the outcome of the case, when an untrained witness from mr. Mellet’s book, sanctioned and distributed by Tafelberg Publishers, quote.
The quality of VOC tourism will be degraded by uninformed tour guides who mr. Quoting Mellet.
The educational value of VOC museum exhibits will be degraded by the same misinformation.

Our Foundation recognizes Mr Mellet’s right to his own opinion, but not to his own set of fictitious allegations which are presented to the uninformed as facts. This kind of attempt to manipulate public thought, and blind the public to reason, truth and reality amounts to politicized populism and is unacceptable.

To summarize: due to the author’s liberal use of erroneous information and repeated fabrications, avoidance of archival sources, lack of objectivity, and the absence of essential source references, we request Tableberg Publishers to no longer market this book as Non-Fiction .

Yours

JL Hattingh (Prof.)

Chairman: Foundation VOC