In the recent one-hour live radio 702 interview, during the Aubrey Masango Show, I located this book that we are launching today, the Culture and Liberation Struggle in South Africa: From Colonialism to Post-Apartheid, within the Ghanaian Akan-Twi philosophical phrase or word, SANKOFA; which means ‘Go back and retrieve/fetch’, figuratively and literally. This sentiment is echoed by the lyrics of Ziggy Marley, the son of the legendary Bob Marley, when he asks rhetorically: Tomorrow people, where is your past? Tomorrow people, how long will you last…?
As the inventor of this book project, I felt that more than 25 years after the 1994 political breakthrough against Apartheid and colonial vestiges, we need, as cultural workers/practitioners/activists to look back where we had been then in the battle trenches against political domination and culturicide-genocide, with the view to assess the extent to which our ideals then of a new South Africa – or Culture in Another South Africa – have been achieved or not, and why not?
This exercise is not a nostalgic trip down memory lane or navel-gazing of our politico-cultural innocence or naiveté. It is rather, as put it in the introduction of the book, an attempt to “rekindle the spirit of emancipatory cultural renaissance through the reconstruction of the role of culture in the national struggle by giving platform to the actual voices, sounds and images from the ‘trenches’ that inspired the general public and political activists into a formidable collective force that eventually collapsed the Apartheid system”. This we do by again quoting from the same text, “link the biography with history and future cultural vista for South Africa and export.”
This intent is even more relevant and urgent now as we are living in a period when the nation has recently witnessed, almost helplessly, artists forced to leave the comfort of their homes and staged a 60 days (two months) sit-in at the National Arts Council (NAC) offices to seek an audience from a government that their forebearers have risked their limbs, lives and sanity to put it in place. The drama has even become gorier and more bizarre whereby the human dignity of the same protesting cultural activists is literally stripped when the state law enforcement agencies tore off the body the blouse of the leader of the group, the opera singer Sibongile Mngoma, to further humiliate the peaceful efforts instead of giving a loving ear and helping hand. Thus the call for the spirit referred to can’t be even louder now more than ever!
The earlier reference to 25 years of post-apartheid independence is not an arithmetic calculation error. This simply denotes the correct timing of the conceptualisation of the project. In another radio interview with Brenda Sisane of Kaya FM, I mentioned that the book was conceptualised more than 20 years ago – thirty-three (33) years exactly from 1988 – when I was an Honours degree student at the University of Cape Town (UCT).
At that time, I had been conducting a research on the history of a newspaper called The Guardian, which often changed names to the New Age, Clarion and so forth in efforts to survive an avalanche of the brutality of state censorship and banning orders. What I found fascinating about this publication, among others, is that it provided a platform for cultural activists to use their creative writing, in the short story genre, as early as the late 1930s, to challenge the status quo. This very historic fact is buttressed by Gaongalelwe Tiro, one of the reviewer of this book, when he writes: “Lebogang Nawa, in the chapter ‘People’s Literature’, marshals and presents evidence that the Cape Town-based The Guardian newspaper published brief fictional prose by Black writers from as early as the late 1930s.” This finding dispels the long-held myths in English literature studies in South Africa that the Drum is the cradle of short story writing in the country; hence the period is sometimes called the “Drum Era”.
Another poignant discovery in the research is the revelation that Harry Gwala, who is today more known as a fiery politician, was actually a short story writer before he rose to political fame that earned him the moniker of “The Lion of the (KwaZulu-Natal) Midlands”. Jabulani Mkhize corroborates this discovery through the chapter in this book, “The Other Side of Harry Thembeyakhe Gwala ‘Objective Partisanship and Proletariat Humanism’ in The Legendary Political Activist’s Short Story’”.
This factor dispels the narrative by one book reviewer that the publication seems to sound as if it is trying to mimic its counterpart book published about six months earlier ago by the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (MISTRA); thus critiquing it for what is it not about! In fact, herein lies a bizarre anecdote of cross-pollination or collision of ideas. The first step towards the second phase of the book, the compilation, commenced in the late 2018 through the application for funding from the NAC. This was followed by the approval, the appointment of the editorial team and widely circulated call for submissions through social media. Meantime, on 10 April 2020, I shared a platform with Prof Mongane Wally Serote at the Arts and National Development Imbizo hosted by MISTRA in collaboration with the National Institute for Humanities and Social Sciences (NIHSS). The theme of the seminar was: “Rethinking the Positioning of the Arts in South Africa”. Prior to that, around Jan 2020, Prof Serote had already been appointed as one of this book’s consulting editors and contributor, as well as the contributor to the other publication referred to earlier. Even more coincidental is that one member of this book’s editorial team resigned at the commencement of the project, but was retained on the editorial team of the other publication. It has since come to my notice that, apart from Ngaka Serote, there were other authors who subsequently contributed to both publications – let alone that I was appointed as a blind reviewer to the so-called rival publication.
This coincidence is not meant to cast any aspersions but really to declare that this book was constructed without any pride and/or prejudice and should be treated as such.
Today, I now publicly present to the South African nation some of the authors of the book to share with you their experiences in the project characterised by fair peer-reviewing, open and fair editorial [choices or decisions] despite some production challenges that nearly sabotaged its birth and comprised its quality. I am happy to announce that these we have overcome, even though the wounds still pester and the pain felt.
In conclusion, it is out of humility and not arrogance when I wrote, perhaps just as a wish or prophesy, that “the book is destined to be the most seminal of all times on the subject… The ripple effect for further research and other initiatives in the academia and arts sector cannot be underestimated. It is speculated that dissertations, educational textbooks and artistic productions will sprout from this source”. And, if comments by cultural commentators is anything to go by, then it means the future is upon us. Aryan Kaganoff remarks in two separate Facebook posts about the project: “This book is extraordinary… It will be a set book on SA culture for decades to come” and “It’s a magnificent book, great curation.”
Ladies and gentlemen, I now proudly present to the nation their asset for connoisseur and archiving. To this end, I thank all those who have contributed to its realisation. The referees for its funding application, Stoffel Mahlabe and Prof Ndwamato George Mugovhani; the NAC which partially sponsored the project; the Consulting Editors; the contributors; book reviewers; the buying readers; the cultural organisation to which I belong and serve as its founding Secretary-General, the National Writers Association of South Africa (NWASA); the Vusi Mahlasela Music Development Foundation (VMMDF); and last but not least, the South African State Theatre (SAST) as the host of today’s grand event.
By the way, I have noticed at the beginning of today’s programme that we have rightfully observed a moment of silence for the departed sages Miriam Makeba and Kenneth Kaunda (KK) whose images grace the cover of the book. KK transitioned on 17 June 2021; two days after the book had reached my hands from the printers. Programme Directors, if you allow me, shall we accord the same honour to Charlotte Mannya Maxeke, Prof Mzilikazi Khumalo, Vuyisile Mini, Geoff Mphakati and many other immortal legends whose inspiring spirits the book summons?
Ke a leboga.
PULA!
The following are “welcome remarks by Dr Sibongiseni Mkhize, Chief Executive Officer of the South African State Theatre, at the launch of the book: Culture and Liberation Struggle in South Africa: From Colonialism to Post-Apartheid, edited by Dr Lebogang Lance Nawa
Thank you very much programme director for introducing me. I have never taken time to ponder about the significance of the contribution we make as writers to change the lives of our people for the better, albeit faced with enormous challenges and dwindling resources. The life of a writer is a lifelong endeavour, driven by the singular goal, which is to use the power of storytelling and imagination to give our people the capacity and aspiration to critically examine various aspects of their lives. Writers practice their craft without expecting rewards, the greatest benefit being the appreciation and the increase in the wealth of knowledge of those who read their written works.
My task this afternoon is to introduce this auspicious event, locate it within this theatre’s vision and to also welcome you all to the South African State Theatre. I would like to welcome you and to acknowledge all the distinguished guests who have graced this occasion. I acknowledge the contributors present today, the editor of the anthology Dr Lebogang Lance Nawa, the discussants, and programme directors Tebogo Ditinti and Ras Advocate Sipho Mantula. Before I forget, it is important that I convey my gratitude to the SAST’s_ _artistic and technical teams for organising this event.
It is imperative that I state from the onset that the launch of the book titled Culture and Liberation Struggle in South Africa: From Colonialism to Post-apartheid, is an integral part of the theatre’s strategic direction, vision, artistic philosophy, and institutional identity. In October 2016, the SAST deliberately chose to position itself as a pan-African theatre, with the tagline “A theatre of Africa”, with our vision being “A prestigious theatre of choice for a distinctive Pan-African experience”. This transformation agenda will encompass a multi-pronged approach to turn this theatre into a dynamic and inclusive space for artistic expression through its artistic programme and spatial re-imagination. By launching this seminal contribution to the culture and liberation discourse, the SAST is cementing its position and unapologetically re-affirming its position as the artistic home of African intellectual thought.
This book launch takes place at a time when the arts and culture sector is facing its darkest moment. COVID-19 has dealt a terrible blow to a sector that was already taking the brunt of economic austerity and structural marginalisation. We have witnessed disturbing scenes of artists staging sit-ins and protesting inside and outside of the offices of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture as well as at its associated entities. Dr Nawa will be reflecting on the real or imagined paradigmatic shifts, the existential crisis and a sense of dystopia caused by the pandemic, as well as the prevailing dichotomies, inconsistencies, and incongruences as part of his speech.
The book is one of the most relevant and thought-provoking texts to have emerged out of the democratic South African. While the title focusses on culture and liberation, the Introduction by the editor as well as contributions by various authors, remind us of the turbulent journey which has been travelled and the adversities that still confront us in ‘post-apartheid’ South Africa.
The readers are challenged to critically engage with questions of state and culture, the narrative of liberation, the arts as a site of contestation, contradictions inherent in the arts and culture, as well as continuities and discontinuities regarding the past and the present.
This anthology is not only capturing the voices of the arts community but creating an archive, a vital resource which sets the scene for more robust and dynamic debates on a wide range of subjects. This important historical volume demonstrates the significance of the multiplicity of, and often contending perspectives and voices in the writing or documentation of history, and the mapping of the way forward into the future. By reading this anthology, we will be placing ourselves in a better position to engage with the current socio-economic and political challenges, including the devastating Covid-19 pandemic.
I would like to conclude by once again thanking Dr Nawa, who, in addition to being an accomplished artist and an author, is a member of the Council of this theatre. We thank him and the contributors for allowing us to host this launch of a book which succinctly and delicately captures key aspect of our artistic heritage in all its richness and diversity. I hope that the readers of the book acquire a deeper appreciation of the complexity of our past, and how it has shaped our present and our future.
As the book shows us, the past and the present are complex places inhabited by what Benedict Anderson refers to as an “imagined community”, while another scholar of history and heritage, David Lowenthal prefers to say, “The past is a foreign country”. Indeed, when one looks at the present challenges, it is difficult to relate it to the past which was full of promises for the arts and culture sector. We must constantly ask ourselves whether our artistic activities are still in line with the continental and diasporic aspirations as articulated in the African Union’s Agenda 2063 in relation to the role of arts, culture and heritage in the realisation of a peaceful, just and prosperous Africa.
Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf and the SAST Council and staff I wish to take this opportunity to once again welcome you to the South African State Theatre and I look forward to a fruitful, robust and meaningful conversation about the state of the arts.
Thank you.
