Cape Town — About 200 members of anti-nuclear movements on Monday toyi-toyed to the beat of bongo drums on Thibault Square in Cape Town ahead of a march to Parliament to protest against nuclear power, and specifically the proposed new pebble bed modular reactor on the Cape West Coast.

Spokeswoman for Earthlife Africa Liz McDaid said the proposed reactor was a waste of time and money.

She said the reactor was supposed to generate electricity but it was expensive and dangerous "because nuclear waste lasts thousands of years and is highly toxic to people."

"We think the money should rather be invested in safe, clean energy like wind or solar energy," McDaid said.

Other issues concerned the nuclear ships rounding the Cape coast carrying toxic waste, and safety and health issues around the Koeberg nuclear power station.

McDaid said the series of nuclear material shipments were part of a contract between Japan, Britain and France. These shipments were another instance in which Africa was being placed in jeopardy through the risk of nuclear contamination.

McDaid said the Environmental Justice Networking Forum (EJNF) which organised the march had called for a commission of enquiry into health and safety issues at Koeberg and at Vaalputs.

She said they believed that the death of a Koeberg worker from cancer earlier this year was related to his work at the station.

"We call for an investigation into the health and safety of all nuclear workers as laid down in the National Nuclear Act, as well as the Occupational Health and Safety Act," McDaid said.

Also marching was Greenpeace International member Mike Townsley, presently based in Amsterdam. He is here for the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) which is to take place in Johannesburg later this month.

Townsley said the "nuclear option" for Africa was not safe.

Townsley said the ships carrying nuclear waste, which would soon round the Cape, were a dangerous terrorist target.

"If they (the ships) go down on your coast they would destroy the tourist industry and the fishing industry."

The procession to Parliament got off to a colourful start when a travelling monk clad in green skirt joined in. Marchers held aloft a variety of posters proclaiming: "Stop nuclear Eskom reactors -- Earthlife Africa", "Nuclear waste and toxic equals environmental injustice", "Nuclear wastes our health and jobs", and "Kill Koeberg -- create alternatives."

A memorandum calling on Minerals and Energy Affairs Minister Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka to phase out nuclear power generation and a commitment to alternative clean safe sources of energy was to be handed over to the minister later on Monday.