Ladies and gentlemen of the media,
Today marks the official start of South Africa’s Heritage Month and the Gauteng Provincial Government joins the rest of our country in observing this important landmark.
The focus of this year’s celebrations is: Celebrating the heroes and heroines of the liberation struggle. This is a call to South Africans to celebrate not only what has brought us this far but also to celebrate the individuals who played a part in ensuring the liberation of this country.
The success of their mission is now our collective achievement as South Africans and as such their role will and should forever be engraved in the history of this country.
The year 2011 happens to be a major historical milestone regarding events related to South Africa’s liberation struggle and the transition to democracy. These include the 35th anniversary of the Youth Day, the 50th anniversary of the treason trial verdict/acquittal, and the 50th anniversary of the launch of the armed struggle and Umkhonto WeSizwe by, the African National Congress.
The year also marks the 50th anniversary of the South African Republic, the 50th anniversary of the resignation of the last British Governor-General of South Africa and the 50th anniversary of the Rand as South Africa’s currency. All these events are of great historic significance and heritage value to the country and its people
The celebration of our struggle heroes and heroines as part of our heritage is necessary to keep the record of our achievements for current and future generations.
We will therefore use the events for the month to start the acknowledgement and recognition of the sacrifices of various individuals. The celebration of our heritage should give us confidence and restore hope in what we can achieve for our country when we are committed to the course.
As Gauteng province we’ll be looking at embracing the theme of this year’s heritage month by concentrating on the following aspects relevant to our own situation:
- Historical figures who participated in the struggle for the liberation of South Africa who were based in Gauteng.
- Those from Gauteng Province who died in different armed conflicts in and outside Gauteng as part of the struggle for liberation.
- Individuals from Gauteng who opposed apartheid or were part of specific events associated with opposing apartheid.
We believe that it is important to sustain the positive memory and mobilise all the sectors of our society in the celebration of this important period in the history of our country. It is also important that we continue with this momentum and commit ourselves as a nation and a people to intensify our efforts towards social cohesion. Together we can do more to make this country a better place.
Here are some of the major programmes that will be taking place during the month of September:
Pale Ya Rona Carnival (2nd to the 4th of September 2011)
The seventh annual Pale ya Rona Carnival will take place over three days from 2 – 4 September 2011 at Mofolo Park, Soweto, which has now become the permanent home for the carnival. The event will celebrate Gauteng’s diverse cultures and showcase the artistic talent of its people.
On Friday 2 September 2011 the large carnival costumes will be launched in Mofolo Park accompanied by a traditional dance festival in partnership with the African Cultural Heritage Trust. The 2nd day will be characterised by a Children’s Carnival in partnership with GDE. The main Carnival will be on the last day which is the 4th of September. Traditional groups from across Gauteng will participate in the festival, together with dancers from North West, Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. Also participating are troupes from SADC countries including Swaziland, Botswana and Lesotho.
The aim of this programme is mainly to provide a medium for mass participation in the arts and to introduce young people to a variety of artistic and cultural activities. It operates as a breeding ground for skills development in creative industries, providing individuals with creative opportunities to which they might not otherwise have been exposed.
Heritage Day – 24 September 2011
This year’s Heritage Day celebrations will be held in partnership with the West Rand District Municipality and Mogale Local Municipality. The day will be characterised by exhibitions on our heroes and heroines of our Liberation Struggle. We also intend getting some of these heroes and heroines to also be part of the formal programme. Maropeng will also be open for free to everyone coming there.
The Liberation Struggle Heritage Route poster campaign (throughout the month)
The intention and purpose of the poster campaign is to popularise the concept of the Liberation Heritage Route project, and a call for communities to participate in the identification of heritage sites associated with the liberation struggle. The poster campaign will be part of the Gauteng Chapter of the National Liberation Heritage Route launched earlier in the year.
Part of the work we will undertake is the appointment of a committee made up of civil society stakeholders. The committee will undertake a consultative process with communities that will see the identification of monuments and other landmarks that depict and tell the story of our liberation. Some of the landmarks will form part of our submission to UNESCO for them to be declared World Heritage sites.
Launch of the Oral History Programme: (15 September 2011)
This project focuses on an oral history study of people who died during the violence in Thokoza whose names appear on the memorial stone. The intention is to give both the tragedy and the memorial a human face and an identity. This will be done by taking the names of those who died from the memorial and do a quick research on their personal histories including where they come from, their family lines, where they went to school and how they got involved in the struggle. The project will assist in developing a usable body of knowledge on the Gauteng version episodes of the struggle, especially during the days of violence. The recordings will be compiled into a booklet to be distributed at community libraries. In addition, this will form part of our political history collection in libraries.
Oral History conference: (29 – 30 September 2011)
The department will be organising an oral history conference in collaboration with the National Archives and Library services of South Africa who ran a similar project over a long period of time. The conference will focus on the role of oral history and its ability to bring balance in the public and shared memory of the province and the country. It will also help in discussing issues of gaps in the areas of research in history and ways of addressing this.
Identification of heritage sites: (throughout the month)
The department will continue with its programme on heritage sites identification and protection especially in the previously disadvantaged areas throughout the province. The project will be carried out in partnership with municipalities across the province. The project is aimed at yielding at least 60 heritage sites identified for protection after the September month.
Geographical Names Awareness Campaign (throughout the month)
The purpose of this project is to continue the community awareness campaign of the work of the Gauteng Geographical Names Committee which is aimed at educating communities in processes of geographical name change and the need thereof. The areas to be covered during this financial year are Sedibeng, Tshwane, Metsweding, and Ekurhuleni. We will endeavour to conduct the process in a transparent and inclusive manner, ensure that all communities and institutions affected are involved.
Night of the Legend (end of September)
This is a project where recognition and awards will be given to achievers from different social entities in Gauteng. This will include sports men and women, artists, community leaders, social and political personalities. The intention of the project is to grant recognition to such personalities as a way of acknowledging their role in society.
For media inquiries contact:
Nomazwe Ntlokwana
Tel: 011 355 2578
Cell: 083 507 8068
E-mail: nomazwe.ntlokwana@gauteng.gov.za
