KwaZulu-Natal Acting Premier Senzo Mchunu has reminded the people of this province that it was the former President Nelson Mandela who had declared the 24th of September the Heritage Day. He was speaking today at Marburg Sports Stadium in Port Shepstone during the Heritage Day celebratios.
“The greatest gift we can give to Tata Madiba is commitment by all of us to the reclaiming, restoration and celebration of our living heritage. Heritage Day in South Africa is a day in which everyone is encouraged to celebrate their cultural traditions and to embrace and appreciate the great diversity of cultures, beliefs and tradition that make up this nation.
“What I wish to emphasize today on this seminal Heritage Day celebration is that, as South Africans of different ethnic and cultural backgrounds we need to acknowledge these differences while at the same time bearing in mind our common destiny as South Africans.”
“The term Rainbow Nation describes us as a tapestry of intermingling cultures that form a colourful single inseparable entity. Cultural differences and our different heritages should not necessarily form a barrier between the different races of South Africa. Instead, the rich cultural heritage that we all share across the cultural and racial divide should form the basis of a cohesive nation that realizes that as one nation, we stand a better chance of not only survival but prosperity in a rapidly changing global environment.”
In his address marking Heritage Day in 1996, former President Nelson Mandela said:
“When our first democratically elected government decided to make Heritage Day one of our national days, we did so because we knew that our rich and varied cultural heritage has a profound power to help our new nation.”
“The theme for this year’s Heritage Day celebrations is “Reclaiming, Restoring and celebrating our Living Heritage.” In this context it is important to note that South Africa has been engaged in the struggle for liberation since the first crop of European settlers landed at the Cape of Good Hope in the1600s.”
“The frontier wars of the Eastern Cape where the Xhosa nation was involved in defending their land and livestock against colonialist encroachment were part of the bigger struggle. So were the Anglo-Zulu wars such as the battle of Isandlwana and the eventual defeat of ISilo uCetshwayo in the battle of Ulundi on the 4th of July 1879, marking the beginning of the dismantling of the might of the Zulu nation.”
“The wars of great African kings such Moshoeshoe and Sekhukhuni also fall under the struggle, as they were defending their heritage, rights, livestock and land. When the first Indian indentured labourers landed in Durban harbour on 16 November 1860, they were to find an already entrenched colonial system that was bent on European supremacy. By the time Mohandas K Gandhi, a free man, arrived on 22 May 1893, the Natal colonialists were busy consolidating their economic and political hegemony and power through various laws that discriminated against the indigenous and, increasingly, the Asian immigrants, including Indians, Pakistanis and Chinese.”
“We take this opportunity to salute the great sons and daughters of our province, who over the history of colonial and apartheid oppression and repression stood firm in their resistance to all forms of inhumanity inflicted upon people of colour in our country. In line with the theme for this year’s celebrations we extend an invitation to all the people of this province to work with government to “reclaim, restore and celebrate our living Heritage.”
“We do this in honour of fallen men and women from all racial groups who stood together and sacrificed all what they had to fight for a non-racial society. These are the heroes and heroines who form part of our rich history and heritage. It is for these reasons that the KwaZulu-Natal government has initiated the Heroes’ Acre, which is an integral part of the KwaZulu–Natal Liberation Route Heritage Project. The main objective of this project is to promote and preserve our heritage.”
“Located in Pietermaritzburg, the Capital City, we want the Heroes’ Acre to be attached to the envisaged KwaZulu-Natal Heroes Monument. There are many political activists whose contribution towards the liberation of this country needs to be acknowledged and their stories told to the younger and future generations. These pathfinders of our democracy lay buried in ordinary cemeteries across the country and many of them have been forgotten.”
“Towards the end of last year in October, the Provincial Government hosted the Provincial Liberation Heritage Route Summit. This Summit discussed strategies on how we can mobilize the people of KwaZulu-Natal across all color lines to identify selected heroes who can be reburied in the Heroes Acre.”
“Such leaders include Moses Mabhida, Johnny Makhathini and many more others. Once identified, such Heroes and Heroines can be assembled symbolically to allow for their public commemoration as ‘founding fathers’ of the new order. Our view is that, as opposed to an ordinary cemetery, such a symbolic site would facilitate the staging, on special occasions, of public ritual acts of remembrance and ceremonies involving potentially large mass audiences.”
“The rationale behind the establishment of the envisaged Heroes Monument is to address the gaps, distortions and biases and provide new perspectives on the KwaZulu-Natal province’s heritage. We want this to be a broad presentation of the entire KwaZulu-Natal story which will challenge ‘traditional’ narratives through re-interpretation of previous heritage sites. Modeled on the Freedom Park in Pretoria, the Heroes’ Monument will be built on 33 hectare piece of land in the immediate northeast of the Imbali Township, near Pietermaritzburg.
“It will serve as a concrete house for the heritage materials to be sourced through research and documentation within the KwaZulu-Natal province. The Heroes Monument will have an interpretive centre which will be linked to important heritage / memorial sites in the province. The memorial sites in question are the following: The Mandela Capture Site, Sutherland Hall, Ingwavuma Caves, Isandlwana and Inanda Heritage Route.”
“On a broader scale, the KZN Liberation Route Heritage Project will seek, through high level research, documentation, conservation, protection and exhibition, to recognize the roles played by various individuals, groups, communities, organizations and events in shaping the present character of the Republic and the province. Plans are afoot to build a monument at Isandlwana to celebrate and acknowledge the sacrifices of our heroes who laid down their lives to defend the sovereignty of the Zulu Kingdom against the forces of British imperialism.”
“We thank all of you for setting aside time to be with us today as we reflect on our rich history. As we march into the future, we must ensure that we show tolerance and Ubuntu. It is these characteristics that make us the Rainbow Nation.”
Enquiries:
Ndabezinhle Sibiya
Cell: 082 375 4742
Muntu Lukhozi
Cell: 082 562 5965
