Sihlalo ohloniphekileyo, Mphathiswa, Sekela Mphathiswa, malungu ekomiti, Malungu eNdlu yoWiso-mthetho ngokupheleleyo, ndibulela umbutho we-ANC ngokundinika eli thuba lokuba ndichophele le komiti ibaluleke kangaka yoBugcisa neNkcubeko. Ndibulela kwakhona ukudityaniswa namalungu ale komiti athe kwiintlanganiso esizihleliyo abonisa ukuwuthanda umsebenzi wawo nothando lwawo kule komiti. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)
[Mrs X S TOM: Honourable Chairperson, Minister, Deputy Minister, committee members, and all the Members of the National Assembly, I thank the ANC for affording me this opportunity to chair this important committee on Arts and Culture. I'm also grateful for meeting the members of this committee who at the meetings that we held showed passion for their work and to this committee.]
Actually, all the members have shown passion in this committee.
Ndiyayibulela kakhulu loo nto. Olu xanduva sinikwe lona siza kulukhulela. Kwasekuqaleni, njengekomiti sizeka emzekweni kwinto ethethwe nguMphathiswa apha ngokuthi sivakalise uvelwano olunzulu ngokushiywa kwethu ngumbhali ophume izandla, uNadine Gordimer. Liqhawekazi eli. Asingombhali nje, liqhawekazi ebelithetha izinto ngohlobo ezilulo. Iincwadi zakhe zade zangcwatywa ngumbuso wocalu-calulo kuba bengafuni ukuba inyani yaziwe. Umsebenzi wakhe kufuneka ungangcwatywa koko waziwe zizizukulwana ngezizukulwana. [Kwaqhwatywa.]
Kananjalo, Sihlalo ohloniphekileyo, sithi kuNosipho Ntwanambi, esisuka kwinkonzo yesikhumbuzo sakhe, iqhawekazi negorhakazi, sithi umzamo omhle uwuzamile ugqatso ulufezile kusele nje ukuba athweswe isithsaba. Imisebenzi yakhe ayilolize. Abaseleyo mabathathe umkhonto baye phambili.
Ndiyafuna kwakhona, Sihlalo, ukuthi kumagcisa nabantu abenza izinto zobugcisa besebenzisa izandla, aba bantu abangabo abaceli-msebenzi koko ngabenzi bomsebenzi. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.)
[I applaud that a lot. We will achieve the responsibility that we have been mandated with. Right from the beginning, as the committee, we will follow suit on what the Minister has alluded to here that we send our deepest sympathy on the passing of the esteemed author, Nadine Gordimer. This is a heroine. She is not just an author, she is the heroine who was not shy to call a spade a spade. Her books were even banned by the apartheid government because they did not want the truth to be known. Her work should not be buried but must be made available so that it can be known from generation to generation. [Applause.]
Again, hon Speaker, to the late Nosipho Ntwanambi, whose memorial service we have just attended, the champion as well as a heroine, we say that you have ran your race to the finish, the only thing remaining, is to be awarded. Your labour was not in vain. Those left behind must take the sword and continue where you left off.
I would also like, Chairperson, to say to the artists and crafters using their hands, that they are not job seekers but are job creators.]
Crafters and artists are not seekers of jobs; they are creators of jobs.
Sibothulela umnqwazi ngomsebenzi abawenzayo sisithi mabangadinwa, mabangancami koko mabakhondoze kuba imisebenzi yabo ayilolize, iyabonakala. [We salute them for the job they are doing and saying they must not be weary, they must not give up instead they must continue because their work is not in vain, it is visible.]
On 10 November 2009, the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted a resolution to name 18 July as Nelson Mandela International Day, and inscribed it on a list of the world's important days to be observed annually.
The Nelson Mandela International Day recognises the long history of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela's leading role in support of Africa's struggle for liberation and Africa's unity and his outstanding contribution to the creation of a nonracial, nonsexist, democratic South Africa.
Tomorrow will be the first Nelson Mandela International Day without him. As the ANC, we call upon all South Africans and the world to reminisce over Mandela's legacy and work toward achieving the future that his actions and other liberation movements in South Africa and in other parts of the world have struggled to achieve.
I stand here today as a descendant of the heroes and heroines of the African continent who experienced the most painful events of our history, that of being conquered, dispossessed and enslaved.
As early as the 15th century, the indigenous people of Southern Africa were viciously attacked, subjugated and forced to forgo their identity as Africans. New colonial identities were imposed upon them, which carried foreign cultures and languages. Their artistic, religious and cultural expressions were labelled inferior, barbaric and heathen. The indigenous people were coerced to adopt Eurocentric ways of expression at the expense of their African identities.
Once they became slaves of their new colonial masters, they had to speak, study and read in foreign languages. Years of linguistic oppression and deprivation culminated in the 1976 youth uprisings in which the youth vehemently rejected linguistic oppression and demanded to be taught in their own languages.
Eyona nto ibuhlungu yeyokuba xa ungakwazi ukuthetha isiNgesi okanye xa ungasithethi wonke umntu ukubona njengeqaba. Wonke umntu ke ngoku uyoyika ukuba liqaba. Sifuna ukuba ngamakhumsha sonke. Loo nto yenza ukuba kulahleke iilwimi zethu. Ulwimi lwakho yinkcubeko yakho, inkcubeko yakho, nguwe. (Translation of the isiXhosa paragraph follows.)
[What hurts most is that when you cannot speak English or you do not speak English everyone assumes that you are illiterate. Everyone now is scared of being illiterate. We all want to speak English. That makes our languages to be instinct. Your language is your culture, your culture is what defines "you".]
If you lose your culture, you lose yourself. [Applause.]
The colonial administration believed in the divide-and-rule principle. They divided the population into two groups. Some were tagged according to their race, while others were tagged according to their tribe. When the colonialists administered an individual, he or she was either a member of a tribe or a member of a race.
For many decades, the ANC opposed this classification of people and believed that people belonged in one category, namely the category of the human race. Since the ANC came to power in 1994, it has been working tirelessly to repeal discriminatory legislation from the Statute Book.
It is clear that colonialists knew that culture is an important element in building society. Amlcar Cabral, Africa's celebrated intellectual and a liberation fighter, reminds us that it is not easy for a foreigner to impose his domination on a people, but, once foreign domination is imposed, it can be maintained only by the permanent and organised repression of the cultural life of the people concerned, because as long as some of these people can have a cultural life, foreign domination cannot be sure of its perpetuation.
Before 1994, the ANC published its Ready to Govern document. Through this document, the ANC stated that a flourishing cultural life is vital to the wellbeing of South Africa. The ANC committed itself to striving to facilitate and celebrate cultural production that captured the diversity, complexity and vibrancy of all South Africans. The rights of all South Africans to practise their religion, uphold their cultures and speak their languages also featured prominently in this document. The ANC is mindful of the fact that through arts and culture, a sense of national identity and pride can be cultivated. Arts and culture was perceived to be a potentially unifying force in a country divided along ethnic and cultural lines by the apartheid system. The ANC therefore advocated the creation of a single national department to promote arts and culture in a democratic South Africa.
The document emphasised that the then old national anthem and flag, being symbols of apartheid, should be replaced by symbols of national unity. The monopoly over public symbols and names, including monuments, should give way to a more diverse range, representative of our diverse population.
When you come to names, there are a lot of people who today ask, "What's in a name?" "Why should we bother about names?" There is a lot in a name. There are emotions in a name. There are aspirations in a name. So, there is a lot in name. Just ask yourself why your parents gave you the name you have. Why, for instance, is someone named "Xoliswa"? There are emotions involved. There are aspirations involved. So, there is a lot in a name.
After 1994 watershed elections, the ANC government established a single national Arts and Culture department, which included Science and Technology until 2004. Through this department, the ANC government ensured that arts and culture is used as an agent of nation-building and social cohesion. That is why you find within the department a lot of entities. As a committee, we have found that the department needs to come closer to those entities, because the entities are the organs of people's power and they should be run properly.
The committee is prepared to work with you, hon Minister and Deputy Minister, because we know that our mandate is not only about oversight, but is also about working together and giving you indications of where we, as a committee, see problems. The work that is being done in this department is mandated to bring about human dignity, equality and human advancement. There is no other department that can do this better than the Department of Arts and Culture, because we believe that it is here where a lot of government priorities can be achieved. Thank you very much. [Applause.]