Hon Chairperson, as we celebrate Africa Day under the theme "Celebrating African cultural renaissance through dialogue", we remember that in 1994, former President Nelson Mandela used the theme of a single nation with many cultures for his inaugural celebrations to set us on a path of active reconciliation. Archbishop Tutu complemented former President Mandela's speech in proclaiming us as the "Rainbow Nation", where our colours and cultures contributed to the radiance of a culturally diverse but united South Africa. Dialogue, not accusations, they held, was the glue to keep us bonded. Indeed, the adoption of the motto "!ke e:/xarra//ke", translated as "diverse people unite", underlines how consciously we are resolved to create the big paradigm shift necessary for cementing the commonalities that unite us. Dialogue, only dialogue, prevents the ethnicisation of politics and promotes co-existence.
In 2005, African leaders further reinforced the need for dialogue as a condition for harmonious existence and prosperity by endorsing the Draft Charter for African Cultural Renaissance. They recognised that art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems, traditions and beliefs should provide the stimulus for respective peoples to learn from one another and to evolve to higher levels of development. Indeed, we grow by being acquainted with the more efficient ways of others.
During the colonial period, the depersonalisation of Africans, the falsification of their history, the disparagement of their values and the downgrading of their languages blunted African culture. Today African languages must be promoted both for the intrinsic values they hold, as well as for being a basis for a more successful dialogue.
Cultural diversity and unity must exist in equilibrium. For too long Africa has been wounded and made to bleed from the outside as well as from within. During his term of office, President Mbeki made a seminal address on the theme "I am an African". This speech set the parameters for establishing the identity of an African. An African woman academic, Dr Bennet, encapsulated the point even more succinctly when she stated, "An African is not one who is born in Africa, but one in whom Africa is born." Mbeki and Bennet elevated the debate beyond the point of divisive and pointless contention. In so doing, they also intrinsically located the argument of who an African is inside the humanistic conception of ubuntu, namely "Umuntu umuntu ngabantu". [I am what I am because of who we all are.] Indeed, we are what we are as a result of who we all are. Our lives are interdependent, and dialogue is the lubricant of our existence without friction.
Wayne Visser echoes the same consciousness in beginning his poem with:
I am an African Not because I was born there But because my heart beats with Africa's.
Cope agrees that the cultural renaissance must emancipate people. This requires a continent-wide mobilisation to promote dialogue between people, states and civilisations. Africa is torn by needless conflicts and wars arising from an intolerance of cultural diversities and identities, religious tensions and lack of appreciation for cultural diversity. Former victims of colonisation continue to victimise others among themselves. The slaughter of over 300 000 people in Darfur and the displacement of 2 million people of its people is a cruel example of this. Without continual dialogue, we will say, "I did not see. I did not know," as was the case in Rwanda, and as was the case in South Africa during apartheid. In this context, Cope fully supports ... Thank you [Time expired.] [Applause.]