Remarks
Premier of KwaZulu Natal Hon. Sihle Zikalala during the Celebration of Heritage Day held in KwaDukuza
24September 2019
Hlanga Lomhlabathi!
SEPTEMBER IS DESIGNATED AS HERITAGE MONTH
Every year since the dawn of democracy 25 years ago, we have marked September as an occasion to celebrate our common heritage across race, class and place of origin.
Heritage Month is an important tool that we use as government and the people of KwaZulu Natal as part of nation-building, Moral Regeneration and Social Cohesion.
During Heritage Month we roll out a government, nation-wide programme that seeks specifically to celebrate the totality of our cultural heritage.
Cultural heritage can be defined as physical artefacts and intangible attributes of a group or society which are inherited from past generations, maintained in the present, and bestowed for the benefit of future generations.
There is tangible heritage, which are the buildings and historic places, monuments and artefacts that we have decided should be preserved for the future. Tangible heritage may include objects that are significant to the archaeology, architecture, science or technology of our specific culture.
Intangible heritage includes the way we respect each other, we bring up our children into society, religious beliefs and Moral Values etc.
Heritage is thus our link with the past, and our link to the future. It is said that a nation that does not value its past, does not have future.
We have events such as this one, Heritage Day 24 September, each year during which we in KwaZulu Natal also remember King Shaka, the founding Father of AmaZulu.
Heritage Day 24September is a national day, during which government reminds us of the need to celebrate our history, culture and heritage.
It is the duty and responsibility of our government to remind us of this historic responsibility to take care of heritage in order to preserve it for future generations.
Addressing Heritage Day in 1997 which was held on Robben Island, the founding Father of our democracy, Tata Nelson Mandela emphasized the importance of heritage in post-apartheid South Africa.
Madiba said and I quote:
“This day must entrench the conditions in which one can participate in building our collective democratic future, speak one's own language, have pride in one's culture and one's heritage.
“In seeking to ground our heritage in these ideals, we are striking out in a new direction…. Most people had little or no say in the depiction of their history in textbooks, libraries, or research institutions. The demeaning portrayal of black people in particular - that is African, Indian and Coloured people - is painful to recall”.
Speaking on 05May this year to mark International African Heritage Day, the Director-General of UNESCO Audrey Azoulay, said African heritage in particular, is severely under represented.
According to UNESCO, Africa is under represented on the World Heritage List at 12% world-wide. It is said that about 40% of African heritage properties are on the World Heritage List in Danger, meaning they are being destroyed through war, neglect and deliberate acts of destruction.
I quote:
"The Ngorongoro Declaration on African World Heritage, a driver for Sustainable Development adopted in 2016, reminds us of the urgent need to build capacity for heritage management and conservation in Africa".
HERITAGE MONTH SOUTH AFRICA 2019
Accordingly, the year 2019 has been declared by the United Nations General Assembly as the year to celebrate indigenous languages. This is in order to raise awareness of the languages, to benefit the people who speak these languages, but also for others to appreciate the important contributions these languages make to our world’s rich cultural heritage.
For reason of history, today languages of trade, commerce, science and technology are languages of nations that have colonised others like English, French, Spanish and German. These have also become dominant languages, spoken increasingly by more and more people in the world.
But outside of Europe, most of these are spoken as second languages. In the process languages of thousands of other communities of the colonised countries have been relegated to second class status, and not enjoyed the same esteem with languages of the colonial countries.
In spite of this reality, we are fully aware that indigenous languages all over the world have survived, albeit under threat. They have continued to be spoken by communities in Africa and throughout the world.
According to the United Nations languages of indigenous people are under attack.
- The UN estimates that one indigenous language dies every two weeks;
- The UN also suggests a frightening estimation that 90% of all languages will disappear within 100 years;
- This raises huge concerns for the future of indigenous cultures, as language is a critical component of indigenous culture, health, and longevity.
Radio and Indigenous language publications have been used with some success to promote our languages. Radio is one of the most important means of preserving languages.
According to the latest radio listenership figures, the biggest radio station in Africa is Ukhozi FM which now reaches a weekly audience of 7.7 million people! This is one of the largest audiences in the entire world!
The survey further shows another record-breaking performance by the Afrikaans language station Radio Sonder Grense (RSG) which now records 1.3 million in its weekly audience.
IsiZulu publications such as Ilanga, Isolezwe, Bayede, Bona and others are important means of sustaining and promoting the languages of especially the Zulu-speaking majority in this province. SABC remains an important institution which promotes through Radio, indigenous languages.
In the long run, our indigenous languages such as Isizulu, Isixhosa etc, should be developed into languages of commerce and business. It is found that once languages are used as a tool of trade, they develop use in Science, Engineering and Technology.
In this way, these languages can be used to bring into the mainstream, the majority who are IsiZulu Language speakers. Our universities and the Pan South African Language Board must play an even bigger role in the developing and promoting science and technology vocabulary in languages such as IsiZulu.
INDIGENOUS BOOKS IN SOUTH AFRICA
For many reasons aspiring and global African writers, with the exception of Ngugi wa Thiongó and Masizi Kunene lack the motivation to write in indigenous African languages. Prof Masizi Kunene wrote exclusively in IsiZulu with his books later translated in to many languages including German, Japanese, Italian, Russian among others.
Non-recognition makes writing in African languages less attractive for many. Yet there is a ray of light. In South Africa commercial publishers are increasingly committed to publishing in indigenous languages.
This is because of government policies that promote multilingualism as the South African Constitution provides for 11 official languages. In particular the Department of Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation promotes multilingualism through the Pan South African Language Board and the National Language Services.
This clearly offers an economic incentive for publishing in indigenous languages.
We agree with esteemed author and commentator Professor Zakes Mda when he decries the state of indigenous literature in South Africa as book chains like CNA and Exclusive Books do not readily stock the latest indigenous language novels.
The reason often given by the publishers is that no one buys them. On one hand the readers say they don’t buy them because they are not in stock. Either way, this results in the marginalisation of indigenous languages in South Africa.
FOCUS ON INDIGENOUS LITERATURE BY DAC
In this regard, the DAC has recognised that a culture of reading and writing needs to be established. At the same time the book industry needs to be both sustainable so that it can also support all South African languages.
We know this is possible. Globally, indigenous languages have never been proven to hold back growth and development.
China publishes in Chinese. Germans, Russians and Japanese use indigenous languages. These are among the top performing economies in the world.
In this regard, through the South African Book Development Council, the DAC has initiated a number of strategic interventions to create publishing opportunities for aspiring writers.
Some of these include the establishment of the National Book Week and the annual South African Literary Awards. There is further support for national literary events through the Mzansi Golden Economy.
The national Department of Arts and Culture (DAC) further supports activities of book clubs including the Funda Mzantsi together with National Library of South Africa. Other DAC-supported initiatives include the Abantu Book Festival (Soweto), the Open Book Fair (Cape Town), the Time of the Writer (Durban) and the SA Children’s Book Fair(East London).
PROMOTING INDIGENOUS LANGUAGE CLASSICS.
During Heritage Month 2019 government will partner with the National Library of South Africa to put up an exhibition on South African literary classics such as Inkinsela Yase Mgungundlovu (The Rich Man of Pietermaritzburg), Mibya ya nyekanyeka (“The baby’s sling is loose), Elewani (TshiVenda “Remember / Remebrance”), Naga ga di eteelane (which talks about people who look down upon us) and many more.
These classics attained their status because they were prescribed literature in schools.
Appropriately, during the SOPA speech in June this year, the Premier spoke about the significant roles played by writers Prof. Masizi Kunene and Professor Sibusiso Nyembezi.
We announced that the Office of the Premier, in partnership with our Department of Arts and Culture, the Department of Education, as well as Tourism KZN would roll out a programme on Literary Tourism in honour of Nyembezi and Kunene. Prof Nyembezi would have turned 100 years old this year, while Prof Kunene would have reached 100 years in 2020.
It is hoped that this will promote literature as a custodian of South African cultural heritage and celebrate South African writers and their work.
It will also expose learners, the youth, the community and aspirant writers to rich South African literary heritage and advance the profile of South African literature. Importantly this approach will enhance social cohesion and nation- building through literature.
LAUNCHING HERITAGE MONTH 2019
Launching Heritage Month 2019 the Minister of Arts Culture, Sports and Recreation Hon. Nathi Mthethwa on the 02nd September also launched the theme for this year.
In line with the United Nations theme, our national theme is “Celebrating South Africa’s literary classics in the year of indigenous languages”.
The national event for the 2019 National Heritage Day will take place in Upington in the Northern Cape today, on 24 September 2019.
The theme is taken from the UN “International Year of Indigenous Languages”.
The Siyanda District where the national event is being held, is home to a sizable number of the Khoi, San and Nama people. We are told that their languages and dialects are virtually extinct as a result of colonial genocide.
HERITAGE MONTH 2019 PROGRAMMES IN KWAZULU NATAL
As provincial government we have announced a provincial programme to mark Heritage Month in KwaZulu Natal in line with the national theme.
Heritage Month affords us an opportunity to right the wrongs of the past and to build a new nation from the ashes of our painful history.
It is an opportunity to build bridges across communities, and to build a new KwaZulu Natal and a new South Africa that accommodates and values all of us.
UMKHOSI WELEMBE
One of these important events is Umkhosi weLembe.
We regard this event as a prayer for the nation during which we commemorate the death of the founder and unifier of our nation, His Majesty King Shaka.
The occasion today is but one of many events that His Majesty leads which are supported by government and which serve to preserve and promote the culture and heritage of our people.
We wish to take the opportunity to express our sincere thanks to His Majesty for leading KwaZulu Natal in the revival and preservation of our culture, and for serving as the custodian of our heritage and history.
We value your role as a unifier of our people irrespective of political or religious affiliation.
Hlanga Lomhlabathi!
Thank You!
End.