The National Minister of Arts and Culture, Lulu Xingwana officially declared the National Arts Festival open on Wednesday 1 July
The National Minister of Arts and Culture, Lulu Xingwana officially declared the National Arts Festival open on Wednesday 1 July
, echoing South African Tourism’s motto of "Live, Work, Invest and Play…beyond 2010".
Xingwana said in her speech that the 35th annual National Arts Festival was “a milestone of great importance in the national history of arts and culture, and a gateway to the 2010 World Cup”.
Xingwana believes that the Festival should be a taste of what is yet to come, to show the world who we are as a nation prior to the Fifa World Cup in 2010. Bubele Mfenyana, HOD of Sports, Recreation, Arts and Culture, says: "The viewing of the Confederation Cup at Miki Jili stadium on Sunday serves as prior preparation to what is still to come in the following year”.
Xingwana positively emphasised that arts and culture can provide possibilities to build a socially cohesive and united nation which is ”non-racist and non-sexist”. She described this as being key to the Festival and the liberation struggle. "With arts and culture we continue to mobilise the people to fight poverty and to become a nation that fights crime”, she said.
Xingwana says the history of Grahamstown is of ”glorious battles of great warriors, frontier wars, loss of land, bloodshed, great heroes and heroines and great suffering”. She says the frontier wars of 150 years ago were an ”encounter that moulded the nation as arts and culture played a role to provide liberation”. The importance of arts and culture enables reconciliation and emphasises the importance of ubuntu.
“Arts and culture builds a sustainable, cohesive community and through our creativity we enable ourselves to work together towards a better community,” Xingwana said. She believes that this paves the way in preparation for 2010, and beyond.
