Proposal to recognise Table Mountain as a ‘living’ entity with inherent rights

In a recent Cape Talk interview, Wild Law directors Cormac Cullinan and Mphatheleni Makaulule, along with human rights lawyer Pooven Moodley, discussed the movement to legally recognise Table Mountain as a living entity with rights under law. The conversation centred around the article "Towards the Recognition of Table Mountain as a Living Entity in Law and Beyond."

Building on the ideas explored in the article, the discussion contrasted Western legal systems, which often view nature as property, with Indigenous worldviews that regard natural features as living beings deserving respect. Cullinan explained that the proposed alternative approach would establish human responsibilities to maintain respectful relationships with Table Mountain through restorative justice.

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Mphatheleni underscored the mountain’s spiritual significance as a sacred space that nurtures wellbeing and must be protected for future generations, while Moodley highlighted its potential to transform from an apartheid-era symbol of division into a site of healing and unity, describing it as an energetic nexus linked to sacred places around the world.

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This initiative represents part of a broader global movement shifting from viewing nature as exploitable resource toward recognising inherent rights and establishing respectful coexistence within the natural world.

Find the full interview here.