On May 17, 2014 the Provincial Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation will celebrate International Museum Day to enhance public awareness on the importance of museums within each of our communities.
World Museum Day has been observed around the world on May 18 since 1977. This year the theme for International Museum Day is “Museum collections make connections”. The theme aims at re-visit traditional methods of engagement adopted by museums in order to remain relevant to their stakeholders. Museums are constantly facing changes in the industry that force them to rethink their traditional mandate and find new ways to engage visitors in more accessible collections
Our Museums have a role to play in Heritage Education, Environmental Education and e-learning. We can achieve this by undertaking outreach and awareness projects where both adults and youth can be reached. Museums store memories and tell stories. International Museum day is an occasion for visitors to discover and rediscover individual and collective memories.
Free State Museum and Heritage Landscape
Since the inception of democracy and freedom 20 years ago the Free State Provincial Government has embarked on a programme to transform the Museum and Heritage landscape of this province.
The Basotho Cultural Village (BCV), the venue for this year’s International Museum day celebration, is an open air museum which depicts the history and culture of the Basotho people. Situated in the picturesque Golden Gates mountains, this museum offers spectacular insight into the history and culture of the Basotho. This museum has in the recent past seen an investment injection from government to upgrade its infrastructure in order to accommodate the many activities that take place there, including thousands of local and international tourists who visit this museum.
The department has also given attention to the infrastructure upgrades as well as content development of the following museums:
1) National Afrikaans Literature Museum (Naln): Naln is the literature museum housing Afrikaans literary works.
2) Sesotho Literary Museum(SLM): SLM is the literature museum housing Sesotho literary works.
3) Caledon River Museum – Smithfield: The Caledon River Museum is housed in the old principal’s house in Smithfield, the third oldest town in the Free State.
4) The Pioneer Museum in Winburg has been renovated to ensure it meets acceptable museological standards. R3.3 million has been spent on this project.
5) The Chris van Niekerk Museum in Boshof is also undergoing renovations
6) The Wesleyan Church, the birthplace of the African National Congress, has been completed and the Department has spent approximately R11 million on this project.
7) Mapikela house renovation has been successfully completed with more than R5 million spent.
8) The Caledonian Museum in Phillipolis is complete and the museum will depict the history of Khoi and the San and was completed to the cost of R4, 9 million.
9) The Military Museum in Bloemfontein has been transformed to ensure it accommodates various communities of the province. The history of liberation struggle armed wings like AZANLA, APLA and Umkhondo we Sizwe have been incorporated into the museum with dedicated exhibitions.
10) The Old Presidency in Bloemfontein is also used to accommodate the Visitor Information Centre which provides information on various attraction areas within the Mangaung Metro.
In response to government priority of transforming our heritage landscape, the department, through the Provincial Heritage Resources Authority, has assisted the South African Heritage Resources Agency to declare the following places of cultural significance as National Heritage Sites:
1) Thomas Mtobi Mapikela’s House and Grave: The grave of one the founders of the African National Congress (ANC)
2) Reverend Zaccarious Mahabane’s Grave: The grave of one of the earliest Presidents of the ANC
3) Wesleyan Church: The Wesleyan Church is the founding venue of the ANC and a historical landmark which was declared a heritage site at the time the ANC celebrated its centenary of existence.
“We are proud of the fact that in the last 20 years, intensified in the last five (5) years we have taken to heart the importance of museum and heritage services. The transformation that has taken place in the cultural content of our museums and the declaration of heritage sites has transformed the landscape of our Province. 117 140 people and 3 808 schools visited museum facilities in the past financial year. More can be done”, stated Mr Dan Kgothule, MEC for Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation.
From the 12-16 May 2014 the outreach team of Museum Services will be embarking on the build-up activities during which museum awareness workshops will be conducted in Bethlehem, Kestell, Harrismith, Clarens, Fouriesburg and Qwa- Qwa
Details of the event are as follows:
Date: 17 May 2014
Venue: Basotho Cultural Village
Time: 9h00
Your media house is invited to cover the event.
Media enquiries:
Tankiso Zola
Manager: Communication and IT
Cell: 082 940 2392
Tel: 051 – 4104742/4786/4719
E-mail: tankiso@sacr.fs.gov.za
General enquiries:
Kgotso Tlhapi
Deputy Manager: Museum Services
Cell: 083 770 9023
Tel: 051 41048330
E-mail: tlhapig@sacr.fs.gov.za
