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THE SUNDAY
JUNE 30 2013
Leader
Moshoeshoe Monare
HEN President Barack Obama returns home after his visit to South Africa and two other African states it is to be hoped that he will do so with a sense of accomplishment other than a tick next the box of things to do visit Africa. The ascension of the first AfricanAmerican to the Oval Office in 2009 raised hopes among many that the arrival of Obama would lead to an increased focus on the continent. Americans say: It is not over until the Fat Lady sings but with only about three years left in office, Obama has left it late to dispel the perception that Africa has been low on his administrations list of priorities. To be fair, these priorities have been many and pressing, not least of which was pulling the US from the brink of an economic depression and then clawing out of a prolonged recession. Then, after a scandal-free first term, Obama has been devoting time to tackling the crises that, in their various forms, afflict all US administrations. The latest of these electronic spying erupted just as Obama set off for his belated African safari. And the nations on the list for his short tour tell much of the desire for a quick, happy trip. Missing from the itinerary is the land of his birth, Kenya, where both the president and his deputy are wanted by the International Criminal Court. Also missing is the powerhouse of Nigeria, subject to recent US criticism over human rights abuses. On the menu are peaceful Senegal and Tanzania and South Africa. In his only other visit to Africa Obama spent less than a day in Ghana, so in comparison it could be said the American president is indeed devoting more time to what the Chinese, for one, have clearly marked as a place of economic opportunities. Indeed trade has been placed high on the stated agenda of Obamas trip, and it is there that he can leave a mark, even if it is to, in effect, further the policies of his predecessors Bill Clinton and George W Bush. Both pushed for increased trade, with Clinton introducing the African Growth and Opportunity Act, with its generous provisions for preferential trade agreements between qualifying African countries and the United States. Under its provision trade has soared, to the benefit of many Africans in many nations, including South Africa. It is up to the US Congress to renew it, but if Obama is to prove his commitment to this continent, then his championing its cause should help sway those who have thus far been disappointed in Americas first black president.
Ken Sibanda
during his promotion of Fourth Grader last year. Thereafter I tried to forge a relationship with the pre-eminent South African film-maker, but to no avail. I raised the subject of Mandela being played by a non-South African and directed by a non-South African as being offensive and marginally insensitive directly to Sanjeev, Singhs partner who is aware of my criticism of this endeavour. I also raised the issue of perhaps getting John Kani to direct. What comes out of this situation is that South African film-makers are not respected by other South African filmmakers; South Africans can only be subjects not creators of their own stories, and that South Africans are seen as arrogant to even suggest ownership of their cultural heritage. See the fiasco that surrounded the making of the story on Winnie Mandela where in the world do you make a movie about a famous person without their permission, even if a book was written about that person? A South African director would have portrayed Madibas life not in romantic terms but in terms of deep character understanding, context and
in unapologetic terms. I can imagine my Long Walk to Freedom opening with the show of splendour in a white suburb contrasted thereafter with Mandelas rural life and the harsh realities of a black South African in 1930s South Africa to put us in the furnace of apartheid right away for Mandela would not have had such a great life if it were not for the context of apartheid. This is not a court case Mandela vs South Africa, but a rich multi-layered story in which Madiba has given and received from many . South Africa has a promising film industry but we will never get ahead when the most prominent among us do not reach back and find talent. Something has to be noted on the point that was given concerning Madibas height South Africans are not that tall. The chap playing Nelson Mandela looks nothing like him. Is this a problem? I will answer that question with a question when period pieces are made, dont they have to look like the period? In this case the main ingredient/character are unlike the real thing. This is a slippery slope, and here we recall Paul Newman in Hombre where he played a blue-eyed Native American, and Ben Kingsley as Mahatma Gandhi in Gandhi. We should not legitimatise that non-whites can only be subjects and not creators because they are arrogant, inexperienced, and dont look the part. That is not a reason but merely an excuse for the underlining manner in which movies are made and the tradition of resentment against black filmmakers. In a show of duplicity , even Richard Burton looked like Churchill in Walk with Destiny (The Gathering Storm in the US); James Bond is perennially
played by a Briton personally I think Humphrey Bogart would have made a good Bond. Character in films is something invaluable; it is the essence and the life breath of the story . Even when the actor is finished acting, you tend to associate him with the character played. This to say that this would have been a great opportunity to introduce a talented South African to the world a chance that has been squandered. Film-making should be an all inclusive process, a fun process, not an adversarial and pretentious show of economic might, leaving the subjects angry and resentful at the final product. I can imagine that its hard on Singh, as well in terms of raising the money , but this is a project that wealthy South African industrialists (some of them Madibas friends) should have funded. If not this project, then which one will they fund? If we are to accept the paternalistic argument of the film-makers that South Africans are not ready , then help us invite us to see what ready looks like. This was our shining moment, to show the world what we could do and we were robbed of that moment. There are more films to come from South Africa, on Shaka Zulu; Christiaan Barnard (first heart surgeon); Mapungubwe (the lost city); Albert Luthuli; King Moshoeshoe; Gary Player and Robert Sobukwe even World War lls General Jan Smuts deserves a film but next time lets get it right. South Africa is a talented nation, lets not sell ourselves short. Sibanda is a South African-born American writer, film director and author of a collection of literary poems The Songs of Soweto: Poems From A Post Apartheid South Africa.
Issue No 907
EDITOR Moshoeshoe Monare 011 633 2180 moshoeshoe.monare@inl.co.za
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HEN Agang SA leader Mamphela Ramphele launched the party , she was accused of failing to announce prominent individuals who had joined the party as it prepares to contest next years general elections. All she said was many experienced parliamentarians and battle-hardened activists would join Agangs national and provincial leaders in the coming months. For me this evoked the age-old chicken-and-egg question: Are leaders born or are they made? Why would Agang depend on ready-made leaders from other parties? Why cant Agang SA and every political party , company or organisation, breed, groom or produce its own leaders? After all, countries, parties and even companies groom their own leaders. Where was US President Barack Obama 15 years ago? Where was British Prime Minister David Cameron six years ago? Where was Democratic Alliance leader Lindiwe Mazibuko a few years ago? Where was Adrian Gore (Group chief executive of Discovery Group) 20 years ago, or Sim Shabalala (Standard Bank joint chief executive) five years ago? When did you first hear about these leaders? The above political and business leaders and hundreds of others are evidence that some individuals are
Mandela HIStory
Accepting an honorary doctorate from the Sheikh Anta Diop University of Dakar, Senegal, Nelson Mandela says: Africa cannot be reborn while its institutions of government do not respect the entitlement of all citizens to all basic human rights. June 30, 1992