FROM THE DESK OF THE PRESIDENT
Monday, 10 February 2020
Dear Fellow South African,
Tomorrow, the country will come together to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the release of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela from prison.
This was a moment of great joy across the length and breadth of the country. I remember vividly the large crowd that had gathered outside Victor Verster prison in Paarl, waiting patiently for several hours to see their hero walk free. And the many more residents of Cape Town who gathered on the Grand Parade to hear him speak.
The people celebrated with great enthusiasm not only because, after 27 years, a great leader of our people was among us again, but because his release was a defining moment in our onward march towards democracy.
It had been just over a week since then President FW de Klerk had announced the unbanning of the ANC, PAC and other organisations and the release of prisoners, but it was the image of Madiba walking through the gates of Victor Verster that confirmed to South Africa and the world that a new era had dawned.
Of the many things that he said has he stood on the balcony of the Cape Town City Hall that day, there is one statement that has remained with me all these years: “The need to unite the people of our country is as important a task now as it always has been.”
It was true then and it remains true three decades later.
Even after the release of Madiba and the unbanning of organisations, the transition to democracy was difficult. Thousands more people lost their lives in political violence, which was deliberately fueled to destabilise the negotiations process. There was initially very little agreement – and even less trust – between the parties on what the future of South Africa should look like. At several moments, the whole process risked being derailed by atrocities such as the Boipatong and Bisho massacres and the assassination of Chris Hani.
Yet, just four years after the release of Madiba, all South Africans went to the polls for the first time to elect a democratic government. I firmly believe that this was made possible only because of the unity of the people and their shared desire for peace and democracy.
Now we confront challenges of a completely different nature.
Our democracy is well entrenched. Our institutions are robust and durable. We are at peace, and over the past 25 years our people have experienced improvements in almost all areas of life.
Yet, there is so much further we need to travel. Inequality, especially as defined by race and gender, remains among the highest in the world. Unemployment is deepening and poverty is widespread. Violence, including the violence that men perpetrate against women, continues to ravage our communities.
In confronting these challenges, it is vital that we remain united.
Our history tells us that we can overcome even the most intractable of problems only when we work together. The release of Madiba, like the end of apartheid itself, was achieved through united and sustained action. It was achieved by putting aside differences to pursue a common goal.
As we mark this joyous anniversary, we share a common goal of an equal, just and prosperous South Africa, where all may experience an improving quality of life, and all may be able to realise their potential.
We all seek a growing, inclusive economy that creates jobs. We seek a capable developmental state that provides affordable services efficiently. We seek education, health, homes and safety for all.
I am certain that we can achieve all this for our country, but it will require much closer collaboration among all parts of society – government, unions, business, community structures, traditional leaders, students, faith-based organisations, academics and others.
It requires that every organisation and every individual brings whatever resources and capabilities they have to the table. It also requires trust and respect, and a willingness to accommodate views and positions of others. In some cases, it may require sacrifices and trade-offs in pursuit of the greater good of all.
Across the country, in many places, such partnerships are at work to solve common problems. From the social partners that meet every month at Nedlac to tackle unemployment and job losses to the Public-Private Growth Initiative, which is working on catalytic projects to boost growth, from the organisations that are working with government to tackle gender-based violence to the religious bodies that are working together to address social ills, various social compacts are in action.
The task we have now is to deepen those partnerships, to make sure they have greater impact and to ensure that they are more inclusive. These are the practical actions around which we should unite.
I conclude with some more words from Madiba, spoken from the balcony of the City Hall 30 years ago. He said: “Now is the time to intensify the struggle on all fronts. To relax our efforts now would be a mistake which generations to come will not be able to forgive.”
With best wishes,
President Cyril Ramaphosa
PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA ASSUMES THE CHAIRSHIP OF THE AFRICAN UNION
President Cyril Ramaphosa has today, Sunday 09 February 2020 assumed the Chairship for the African Union (AU) during the first day of the 33rd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
South Africa was elected in February 2019 as the incoming chair of the AU. The Union, then, agreed that the assumption of the rotational Chairship shall take place on the occasion of the 33rd Ordinary Session.
South Africa first chaired the African Union 18 years ago in 2002, at the seminal session of the official launch of the Union in Durban, South Africa.
President Ramaphosa takes over the Chairship of the AU from President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of the Arab Republic of Egypt.
Convened under the theme “Silencing the Guns: Creating Conducive Conditions for African’s Development”, South Africa’s 2020 Chairship of the AU coincides with its Chairship of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) and the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSGCC).
Delivering his acceptance statement of the AU Chairship, President Cyril Ramaphosa said he was immensely humbled by the great honour bestowed on South Africa saying “On behalf of the men and women of South Africa I graciously accept your collective decision that I should Chair the AU in 2020”.
President Ramaphosa said South Africa will utilise the Chairship of the African Union to mobilise the AU member states to pursue a number of development objectives and bolster the progress already underway as part of the African Decade of Action.
The President has committed to enhance the collective work to deepen the unity of our continent, advance inclusive economic growth and sustainable development.
He further highlighted key priorities of the term as supporting integration, economic development, trade and investment in the continent; driving the implementation of the Presidential Infrastructure Champion Initiative in support of the African Continental Free Trade Area; advancing gender equality, the empowerment of women and the combating of violence against women and girls; strengthening cooperation between the African Union and United Nations and; promoting peace and security and advancing efforts to silence the guns on the African continent and elsewhere.
President Ramaphosa reaffirmed the principle of finding African solutions to African problems as the fundamental approach to addressing all conflicts on the continent, working within the frameworks of the AU and UN.
He further called on the AU to continue to support the just struggles of oppressed people elsewhere in the world; reiterating unwavering support for the people of Palestine in the legitimate quest for an independent and sovereign state and the right of the people of Western Sahara to self-determination.
In calling for support in the realisation of these priorities, President Ramaphosa said “the African continent is on the ascent. It is indeed a regeneration moral and eternal, as described by the South African revolutionary Pixley ka Isaka Seme. If we pursue our objectives with diligence and determination, and mobilize our fellow African countries to support them, I am certain that ours can be a meaningful, effective and impactful Union Let us build the Africa we want. Let the Guns be Silenced. Let our swords be beaten to ploughshares, and our spears turned into pruning hooks. It is the actions we take from this day onwards that will determine our continent’s destiny”.
Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria
9 February 2020
PRESIDENT OUTLINES PILLARS OF SA'S AU CHAIRSHIP
Economic integration, women’s empowerment and good governance are the three main priorities for South Africa as it prepares to assume Chairship of the African Union (AU) this year.
President Cyril Ramaphosa highlighted the priorities at the African Heads of Mission Conference, taking place at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s offices in Pretoria, on Tuesday, 28 January 2020.
On 8 and 9 February 2020, Heads of State and Government will convene in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for the 33rd Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly where South Africa will assume Chairship.
South Africa previously held the AU Chairship in 2002, at the seminal session that officially launched the AU.
“At the top of our agenda as Chair must be the deepening of economic integration. This is a historic moment that we must seize.
“Together with our fellow African countries, we must implement the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) Agreement with purpose and determination,” said the President.
The AfCFTA brings together all 55 member states of the AU, covering a market of more than 1.2 billion people, and aims to accelerate intra-African trade and boost Africa’s trading position in the global market.
But for the AfCFTA to bear fruit, President Ramaphosa said infrastructure between African countries must be developed.
“We know that the AfCFTA will only become a reality if the infrastructure between African countries is developed. Infrastructure is at the core of Africa’s social, economic and political challenges.
“It is crucial for sustainable development and inclusive growth, and for diversification through industrialisation and value addition,” said the President.
As the Champion of the Presidential Infrastructure Champion Initiative under the New Partnership for Africa's Development, President Ramaphosa called on South Africa to act on the opportunity presented – in profiling infrastructure development in support of the AfCFTA.
Advancing women’s empowerment on the continent
Another pillar of South Africa’s agenda as AU Chair is the empowerment of women, with a specific emphasis on promoting financial and economic inclusion and combating gender-based violence.
“On women’s financial and economic inclusion, South Africa will work with the AU’s Women, Gender and Development Directorate, which is responsible for leading, guiding, defending and coordinating the AU's efforts on gender equality and development,” the President said.
To achieve this, the President said South Africa would work closely with the AU Leader on Gender and Development, President Nana Akufo-Addo of Ghana.
President Akufo-Addo launched the Gender and Development Initiative for Africa in 2017 as his flagship programme.
The United Nation’s (UN) 2009 World Survey on the Role of Women in Development notes that women’s equal access to financial and economic resources is critical for the achievement of gender equality and sustainable economic growth and development.
“In undertaking this work, we must look beyond ‘micro-finance solutions’ to financing that which will grow the businesses of women.
“The goal is to ensure that women and women-led businesses have access to and are able to use multiple financial services as tools to develop their financial autonomy and allow them to contribute to economic growth,” said the President.
Silencing the guns
As South Africa’s Chairship coincides with the AU’s aspiration of “Silencing of the Guns in 2020”, South Africa will champion good governance on the continent.
“Specific focus will need to be given to two intractable conflicts on the continent – in Libya and South Sudan – where South Africa is already actively involved in seeking solutions.
“In South Sudan, we are engaged both bilaterally and multilaterally, in particular as Chair of the High-Level Ad Hoc Committee on South Sudan, known as the C5,” said the President.
South Africa is a member of the AU High-Level Committee on Libya.
“Our efforts will aim at affirming South Africa’s commitment to peace, security and stability on the continent and ending the humanitarian catastrophe and displacement of people in those countries,” said the President.
Since the Chairship also coincides with South Africa’s third tenure as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, South Africa will also promote cooperation between the three African members of the UN Security Council and the AU’s Peace and Security Council.
Source: SAnews.gov.za
WILLIAM KENTRIDGE-UN POEME QUI N’EST PAS LE NOTRE-LaM-05 FEVRIER-05 JUILLET 2020
Inauguration de l’Exposition le mardi 4 février 2020. William Kentridge est entouré de Monsieur Eric Charpentier, directeur général du Crédit Mutuel Nord Europe (et mécène officiel de l’exposition), Madame Hélène Moeneclaey, présidente du conseil d’administration du LaM et vice-présidente de la Métropole Européenne de Lille en charge de la Culture et des Grands événements culturels, Madame Moipone Seokolo, S.E. Tebogo Seokolo, Ambassadeur de l’Afrique du Sud en France et de Monsieur Sébastien Delot, directeur-conservateur du LaM.
Présentées par les plus grands musées internationaux comme la Tate Modern (Londres, 2012), le Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, 2013), le San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (2016) et le Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia (Madrid, 2017), les oeuvres de William Kentridge n’ont jamais bénéficié d’une grande rétrospective en France, ce à quoi remédie l’exposition William Kentridge, Un poème qui n’est pas le Nôtre, présentée jusqu’au 05 juillet 2020 au LaM de Villeneuve d’Ascq.
Conçue en étroite collaboration avec l’artiste et avec le Kunstmuseum de Bâle, cette grande rétrospective consacrée à William Kentridge investit la moitié de la surface du musée et présente des oeuvres inédites, jamais montrées en Europe (des tous premiers dessins à la dernière oeuvre en cours de réalisation).
Originaire d’Afrique du Sud, William Kentridge est reconnu à l’échelle internationale comme l’un des plus grands artistes de sa génération. Créateur parmi les plus prolifiques de ces vingt dernières années, il explore avec une grande aisance tous les médiums : dessin, gravure, sculpture, tapisserie, film d’animation, performance, installation vidéo, etc. Son intérêt pour le théâtre lui a permis d’établir des passerelles entre les arts plastiques, le cinéma et les arts du spectacle, faisant de lui un virtuose de la mise en scène et de l’image en mouvement. Son oeuvre foisonnante offre une vision tout à la fois poétique et critique de sujets parmi les plus délicats comme la décolonisation, l’Apartheid, les conflits politiques ou le rôle de l’Afrique dans la Première Guerre mondiale.
En octobre 2019, William Kentridge a reçu le Praemium Imperiale, l’un des prix les plus prestigieux dans le domaine des arts et de la culture, remis par la famille impériale du Japon.
JOHANNESBURG
Né à Johannesburg en 1955 dans une famille d’avocats intimement liée à la lutte contre l’Apartheid, William Kentridge étudie d’abord les sciences politiques avant de se tourner vers des études d’art. En 1981-1982, il s’installe à Paris où il s’inscrit aux cours de théâtre et de mime de l’École Jacques Lecoq. Après un passage comme assistant à la télévision, il revient en Afrique du Sud et se tourne vers le dessin et le film d’animation.
Depuis ses débuts, William Kentridge explore la condition humaine, en particulier les thématiques de la migration et du déplacement. Les décors de scène réalisés pour la pièce de théâtre Sophiatown (1986-89) ainsi qu’un film documentaire introduiront les visiteurs à son approche transdisciplinaire de la création. La pièce, fruit d’une collaboration avec la Junction Avenue Theatre Company, met en scène l’évacuation forcée et la démolition à la fin des années 1950 de Sophiatown, quartier noir de Johannesburg. Cet ensemble de dessins n’a jamais été exposé en Europe dans son intégralité.
FILMS D’ANIMATION ET DESSINS AU FUSAIN
En 1985, William Kentridge réalise Vetkoek /Fête Galante, l’un de ses premiers films d’animation. Il met au point une technique cinématographique qu’il appelle « animation du pauvre », composée de photographies de dessins au fusain et de collages. Il développera ensuite ce principe dans la série de films intitulée Drawings for Projection (depuis 1989). Enregistrés avec une caméra 35 mm, les épisodes animés mettent en scène deux personnages, Soho Eckstein et Felix Teitlebaum, qui sont des alter-ego de l’artiste.
Une série plus récente de films expérimentaux, Drawing Lessons (commencée en 2009), présente William Kentridge dans son atelier. Des séquences courtes illustrent la façon dont il aborde, avec humour, la question essentielle du processus créateur. Il réhabilite ainsi de façon originale et ironique le lieu mythique de la création et les relations entre l’artiste et son modèle, se dédoublant et se prenant lui-même comme modèle.
SOURCES ET SATIRE POLITIQUE
Pour la première fois, l’exposition offre l’occasion de lier l’oeuvre de William Kentridge à l’histoire de l’art (constructivisme, dadaïsme, surréalisme, expressionnisme allemand, etc.).
Certaines des sources artistiques de William Kentridge seront présentées : le cinéma de Georges Méliès qui inspira 7 Fragments pour Georges Méliès, Un voyage dans la lune (2003) mais aussi le personnage grotesque d’Ubu inventé par Alfred Jarry que l’on retrouve dans Ubu tells the Truth (1997). L’installation O Sentimental Machine (2015) reconstitue, quant à elle, l’espace fermé d’une antichambre d’hôtel où séjourna Trotski lors de son exil en Turquie (1929-1933). L’oeuvre s’inspire de films d’archives de défilés bolchéviques, d’un discours inédit de Trotski, mêlés à une fiction humoristique sur sa secrétaire Evgenia Shelepina.
La dérision n’est jamais gratuite chez William Kentridge, elle s’appuie sur une profonde conscience de l’histoire et de ses meurtrissures que l’artiste aborde sous un angle qui les rend universelles et intemporelles.
SPECTACULAIRE, ACCESSIBLE ET AMBITIEUX
The Head and the Load figure parmi les oeuvres les plus spectaculaires de William Kentridge. Présentée pour la première fois en 2018 à la Tate Modern de Londres, elle a été réalisée dans le cadre du centenaire de la Première Guerre mondiale et revient sur le rôle peu connu joué par l’Afrique dans le conflit. Cette oeuvre théâtrale fait dialoguer de façon très spectaculaire chants africains et opéras européens pour raconter l’histoire des enjeux des puissances coloniales en Afrique. The Head & the Load offre une synthèse saisissante du travail de William Kentridge, à la fois impressionnant dans sa forme, ambitieux dans son propos et accessible au plus grand nombre. Plusieurs autres oeuvres emblématiques fournissent des informations supplémentaires sur les thèmes généraux de l’exposition, à savoir la migration, le déplacement et la procession, sujets essentiels pour l’oeuvre de William Kentridge, introduits par la vidéo Shadow Procession (1999), et développés plus tard dans Triumphs and Laments (2016).
Un autre thème fondamental est enfin abordé, celui du temps et de l’histoire. L’installation monumentale The Refusal of Time (La négation du temps, 2012) est un spectacle total mêlant musique, danse, chant et vidéo, réalisé en étroite collaboration avec le compositeur Philip Miller et l’historien des sciences Peter Galison. Tout en évoquant des souvenirs personnels d’enfance, William Kentridge livre ses interrogations sur la notion aléatoire du temps.
Commissariat
Marie-Laure Bernadac, Conservatrice générale honoraire du Patrimoine
Sébastien Delot, Directeur-conservateur du LaM
L’exposition William Kentridge. Un poème qui n’est pas le nôtre est organisée en collaboration avec le Kunstmuseum de Bâle (Suisse).
Elle bénéficie du soutien de la Fondation Crédit Mutuel Nord Europe, mécène officiel, et de Beobank.
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LaM
1, allée du Musée
59650 Villeneuve d’Asq
Tel : 03 20 19 68 28
Du mardi au dimanche, de 10h00 à 18h00
Fermeture exceptionnelle le 1er mai
NOVEL CORONAVIRUS (2019-nCoV), NO CAUSE FOR PANIC
South Africans are assured that measures are in place to detect, manage and contain any cases of Novel Coronavirus should it come to our shores. So far, there are not suspected cases reported. Port health professionals routinely conduct temperature screening for all international travelers. However, due to the current risk of importation of inadvertent cases of 2019-nCoV from Wuhan City – China, Port Health authorities have enhanced surveillance of all travelers from Asia, especially China. Fortunately, OR Tambo and Cape Town International Airports are the only Ports of entry with direct flights from Asia.
South Africa has developed and distributed clinical guidelines and case definitions to doctors and nurses in both the public and the private sectors. These include information on how to diagnosis and respond to a possible 2019-nCoV case.
Provinces have activated outbreak response teams and are on high alert to detect and manage inadvertent cases that may arrive in the country.
For medical/clinical related queries: Contact the NICD Hotline +27 82 883 9920 (for use by healthcare professionals only). Guidelines and other useful resources are available on the NICD website: www.nicd.ac.za
National Department of Health- Media Statement