UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 1 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 ____ PROCEEDINGS OF MINI-PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E 249 ____ Members of the mini-plenary session met in Committee Room E249 at 14:00. The House Chairperson Mr C T Frolick took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayer or meditation. APPROPRIATION BILL Debate on Vote No 37 – Arts and Culture: The MINISTER OF ARTS AND CULTURE: House Chairperson, hon members, Chairpersons and Chief Executives of Public Entities, distinguished guests, members of the media, ladies and gentlemen, I want to extend my warmest greetings to all of you present; it gives me great joy to appear before Parliament to present our budget vote and also to interact with you the representatives of our people. UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 2 The centenary of Madiba and Ma Sisulu is celebrated this year under the theme: Be the legacy. Had President Nelson Mandela and Ma Sisulu lived they would have turned 100 years old this year. This year also marks the 40th anniversary of the untimely passing of that patriot and a combatant for African Liberation, Prof Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe. These patriots of our country were deeply influenced by the inscription found at the entrance of Solomon Mahlangu Freedom College in Mazimbu, Tanzania which reads thus: Ours was not for personal glory, nor distinction, but for a noble cause of our time - the liberation of the people of South Africa and the entire humanity. These giants of our country lived because they had surrendered their very beings to the people. They lived because their very beings embodied love, an idea, a hope, an aspiration, a vision of collective destination. Talking about our giants and legends, we want to congratulate the Ladysmith Black Mambazo for their 5th Grammy Award. This group, under Prof Joseph Shabalala has held the South African flag high across the globe. He has multiplied the South African heritage to UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 3 all of humanity and has imparted his indigenous knowledge to younger generations. This is our identity, our culture, our heritage and we are not mimicking anyone about it, but the world is learning from us. They are still abroad as we speak, but here they are represented by the group Manager, Mr Xolani Majozi. [Applause.] We have started a process with the black Mambazo to support them in what they call Ladysmith Black Mambazo Mobile Academy. And this academy is going to ensure that the legacy of ubab’uShabalala lives long after he is gone. The road to our democracy in South Africa is drenched in blood and punctuated by centuries of racial and economic subjugation, discrimination and oppression, with many ordinary South Africans, especially the youth, making the ultimate sacrifice in the quest for freedom and democracy. Today, South Africa is a thriving and bourgeoning constitutional democracy as a result of the immense sacrifices made. Our freedom was never free or given to us as a free gift. Others perished as a result. UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 4 It is important also to note and acknowledge the glaring reality that South Africa’s freedom would remain hollow for majority of the population, predominantly blacks and Africans if they remain on the fringes of the economy. Radical socio-economic transformation is a vehicle that will lead South Africa into a type of society envisioned in the NDP. South Africa was conquered by force and ruled by force for hundreds of years before 1994. However, this does not justify any form of brutality, hence the focus on nation-building and social cohesion. In confronting the pernicious ideology of racism, the department has focused on the following pillars: To ensure education of our people against racism and most importantly, the centrality of building a nonracial society; assert mobilisation of all in our country against racism and its manifestation; regulating unwanted behaviour which is racism in our society which we are doing as government together with other departments led by justice department to ensure that this ideology is criminalised in South Africa. The South African reality is that society remains fragmented and this is accentuated by incidences of feminicides killings of people UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 5 with albinism, emerging practices of cannibalism, abuse of drugs by the youth and many other social ills. In this regard, the Social Cohesion Advocates are active in pursuing cases against perpetrators of killings of people with albinism. This is in addition to the work they do in promoting constitutional values, shaping public opinion on major media platforms. The Moral Regeneration Movement has been re-invigorated and additional board members have been appointed. This new epoch of the MRM seeks to re-energise RDP of the Soul, as espoused by the father of our democratic country, President Mandela. Dealing with damaged moral fibre of our society is being given attention through programmatic work of the MRM in partnership with the DAC. The Charter of Positive Values is central to the work of MRM. Accordingly, the DAC supported MRM programme of ethical leadership in partnership with SALGA. Our support extended to MRM programmes across ideological divide, especially on the Code of Election Ethics. The 2012 Social Cohesion Summit in Kliptown was a milestone of its kind in bringing leaders from all backgrounds together and adopts a declaration. The follow up summit of 2015 in Port Elizabeth gave UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 6 impetus to the declaration because of its practical approach to engaging society in the discourse of social cohesion. In this context, conversations on this important area were extended to communities, meaning beyond academic spaces. In the past three years there have been over 100 conversations across the nine provinces of the country. The department developed themes for conversations and it became apparent that people are generally interested in discussing issues that affect them on daily basis. For example, people were concerned about issues and levels of unemployment, service delivery, crime, etc. Some of the dialogues focused on the topical issue of racism and xenophobia and the likes. The national symbols of the country should remain central in the promotion of patriotism. In this regard, the department has printed the Passport of Patriotism booklet to educate our people about national identity. The continuous distribution of the booklet is about speeding up the programme to heighten awareness and consciousness. The passport is widely distributed at national events and also constitutes an important part of Life Orientation curriculum in UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 7 schools. This education also includes protocols on handling of national flags. In addition, the national flag has been hoisted in more than 80% of our schools in the country. Our National Days are an ideal lever for government to promote Nation-building and social cohesion. Therefore, the commemorations of these days should reflect our quest to build a united, nonracial, nonsexist, democratic and prosperous South Africa. The department has noted the concern that these commemorations have become an African affair; hence efforts are made to ensure inclusivity. This year, the Human Rights Day has seen participation of diverse political formations, community organisations and people of other races. This is work in progress. The themes of the National Days have integrated the centenary of President Nelson Mandela and Mama Albertina Sisulu. Most importantly, the department has adopted an approach that ensures that activities for national days are extended for the full month. Cultural diplomacy is also another important part of our work in the department because global influences are realities for our country. There is abounding evidence that global integration is not limited to economic issues, but it is also social and cultural. UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 8 Therefore, the cultural season’s programmes are critical to ensure people to people exchanges, relations and showing our cultural products. Since 2012, the success of this initiative has been punctuated by a shift of focus from European countries to the BRICS countries and the African continent. The department has been able to undertake the Cultural Seasons programme to China and Russia and later this year Brazil Season will be the beneficiary. India will be the focus of the seasons towards the end of the financial year. On the continent the Cultural Seasons have been exchanges with other countries on the continent like Western Sahara where we have a joint programme in the film industry. Algeria and Gabon have hosted a successful seasons as well. The next countries scheduled for the seasons are Angola, Kenya and Ghana. Africa Month links directly to and aims to support and strengthen Africa day declared by OAU on 25 May 1963.It also provides an opportunity to reflect on the philosophies and values of the founding fathers and pioneers of the Continent, including Kwame Nkrumah, Leopold Sedar Senghor, and many other others. It focuses on Africanness, African unity, African identity and pride. During the past three years, the programme for Africa month has been extensive in sharing of perspectives about the continent through UNREVISED HANSARD MINI PLENARY SESSION – COMMITTEE ROOM E249 THURSDAY, 10 MAY 2018 PAGE: 9 hosting of colloquia at institutions of higher learning, in communities like villages and townships; showcasing the kaleidoscope of cultural activities of the continent in various communities.