Chairperson, hon members, on the 24th September of each year, we consciously remember what each of the cultural groups in our country contributed to the rich tapestry that makes up South African life. It is appropriate that Heritage Day comes at the beginning of the spring season. Africans at home and the Diaspora, irrespective of their colour or their social background, must rise to the call of cultural renewal and celebrate our crafts.
As Eric Arthur Blair puts it, he who controls the past controls the future; he who controls the future controls the present.
Cope acknowledges that 24 September signifies the call for South Africans to reinvent themselves and take very seriously their cultural lessons and values. This House is a microcosm of the diverse and rich cultural heritage, yet how much do we know about each other's culture?
In Europe, September is also time to remember heritage because without the knowledge of heritage, we cannot know ourselves. This year, Sweden celebrated European Heritage Day on 13 September by focusing on the theme, namely, "Sweden-Finland, a shared history". Therefore, as Cope, we recommend that we always remember in our celebration of heritage and crafts in this country to acknowledge that the majority of people do not actually take this day very seriously.
But this is not so with the Zulu people. The day of 24 September was celebrated for a very long time as King Shaka Day, and that will happen again this year. It is right and proper that we should dip into history to understand how we became who we are and learn to know who we want to be.
Heritage is priceless, and crafts are also priceless. Heritage cannot be treated in a frivolous manner. Heritage walks with a person and such a person gives and begets respect. The greatest blemish that our country suffers from comes from the rampage of criminality that is prevalent everywhere. Criminals generally have no awareness of culture, history or heritage. Our schools are becoming notorious for violent behaviour. An unawareness of heritage spawns such violent behaviour and criminality.
People who experience no connectedness with iconic figures of the past, music, dance or literature will obviously have no moral compass. Even if what happened in the past was not glorious, it serves to teach and to inform.
Civilisation occurs when we select the positives from the negatives. When people act together for the good on the basis of the good that they inherited, they stimulate arts, culture, music, craft, literature and dance.
For four days in September, people in the UK are offered open doors to castles, churches, houses and other buildings of great architectural value. They pay nothing and are welcome to explore places and buildings that would normally be closed to them. [Interjections.] Thank you very much, Chairperson. [Time expired.]
UMntwana M M M ZULU: Mhlonishwa, Mphathisihlalo, mhlonishwa Phini LikaNgqongqoshe Wezobuciko Namasiko, amalungu aleNdlu ahloniphekile, ngithi thina njengabantu baseNingizimu Afrika singeze sakuphika ukuthi siyizizwe ngezizwe ezinamasiko azo ehlukene.
Esibuye siziqhenye ngakho njengabantu balelizwe ukuthi zivumeleke zonke lezi zizwe nezizwana ezikhona ukuba zenze leyo mikhutshana yazo. Njengelungu elihloniphekile likhulume ngokuthi thina laphaya KwaZulu siyaye sikhumbule Inkosi uShaka. Inkosi uShaka siyaye siyikhumbule njengombumbi nomqambi wesizwe samaZulu lapho kutholakala khona abantu abayizigidi eziyishumi nanye kuleli lizwe laseNingizimu Afrika.
Esingakuphiki ukuthi siyingxenye yezwe laseNingizimu Afrika lilonke kodwa njengezigidi eziyishumi nanye zabantu siyakwazi ukuthi umuntu owahlanganisa isizwe esingangaleso sikwazi ukuthi simkhumbule ngemikhuba yakhe ayenza ukulwela ukuhlanganiswa kwabantu.
Ngithi-ke Mhlonishwa Ngqongqoshe kwizinselele ezibhekene nathi sonke akusho ukuthi uwedwa njengoNgqongqoshe. Sonke njengezakhamuzi zaleli lizwe kufuneka sikukhuthaze ukuthi sibekezelelane uma esinye isizwe sizigqaja ngamasiko aso ngoba iNingizimu Afrika inezizwe ezinhlobonhlobo futhi ngeke sakuphika lokho. Uma singakuphika lokho singabe sikhuluma ilumbo lokuqhatha abantu.
Ngithi ke ngiyamhalalisela uhulumeni ngoba lolu suku usalwenza lwabasemthethweni. Kufuneka futhi uhulumeni ezilimini zomdabu zase-Afrika sikufake ukuthi bakithi ingane uma ingakwazi ukukhuluma ulimi lwayo lwebele isiZulu, isiXhosa noma isiSotho njengolimi lokuqala kuyihlazo esizweni. Ngiyabonga Mphathisihlalo. (Translation of isiZulu paragraphs follows.)
[Prince M M M ZULU: Hon Chairperson, hon Deputy Minister of Arts and Culture, hon Members of this House, we as South Africans cannot deny that we are one of the countries with different racial groups who have their own cultures.
What we are very proud of as the people of this country is that all these racial groups are allowed to practise their customs. As the hon member has said, in KwaZulu-Natal we commemorate Shaka's Day. We commemorate him as the person who unified and founded the Zulu nation, which count for an estimated 11 million of the population of South Africa.
We cannot deny that we are part of South Africa, but as 11 million people we are able to commemorate a person who founded such a big nation by remembering the battles he fought in, in order to unify these tribes.
Hon Minister, I am therefore saying that you are not facing these challenges alone; we are also faced with them. As the citizens of this country we have to encourage tolerance when one racial group shows pride in its culture because we cannot deny that South Africa has diverse racial groups. If we deny that we would be lying to ourselves and that can cause people to fight.
I salute the government for making this day official. The government also needs to emphasise that with regard to African languages, if a child cannot speak his or her mother tongue which can be isiZulu, isiXhosa or Sesotho as a first language, that is a disgrace to the nation. Thank you, Chairperson.]