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Remarks by Minister Dlamini Zuma in Howard University, Washington
DC, 11 January 2006 President Swygert, Board of Trustees of Howard University,
The dear student who spoke so movingly to us, Deans of the University, Faculty,
Ambassadors and members of the diplomatic Corps, distinguished guests, and all
the friends and family of Howard University who are here. South Africa's
relationship with Howard University is one with a long and proud history of collaborative
efforts to end the injustice that deprived our people of their dignity and disaffected
their human spirit. The support that academics, students and the wider university
community gave to South Africa is immeasurable and will be remembered for generations
to come both in the United States and South Africa. As South Africans, we
cannot forget that many of our greatest leaders were educated in the United States,
and were all imbued with the spirit of Pan Africanism which binds us together
today. Leaders of the ANC like Pixley ka Izaka Seme, John Langalibalele Dube and
Charlotte Maxeke amongst others, had first hand experience of what it meant to
be black in America. Thus WEB Du Bois wrote, "The problem of the 20th century
is the problem of the colour line". In choosing to assist Howard University,
we are directed by Du Bois and his belief that it was the "talented tenth'
who would presage a common liberation for all. When Hurricane Katrina came
ashore on the dreadful September day, few could have imagined the sheer devastation
and destruction it would inflict on the lives of countless thousands in Louisiana,
Mississippi and Alabama. We followed with great sadness as the scope of
the sobering tragedy unfolded, and we learnt again that it was always the poorest
of the poor- those who need most, and have least- who are inevitably burdened
with the burnt of the suffering. We could not help but share the pain, which no
human being should ever be asked to endure. In the courage and devotion
of the family at Howard, and in the fortitude and resilience of the survivors,
we are reminded of the legacy of the greats like Sojourner Truth, Frederick Douglas,
the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., and Rosa Parks amongst others. Howard University
has done, as it should have done, and extended its generosity to the people of
New Orleans. Like Howard University, we wanted to embrace our young brothers and
sisters by lending a humble hand. Our hearts have gone out to those who were particularly
vulnerable and marginalised during this trying period on your history; and we
wanted to contribute in the best possible way to help alleviate the suffering.
This gift is a small token of the spirit that joins all of all together,
and it is in this spirit of understanding and through embracing that notion that
'I am my brother's keeper", that we decided to make this contribution. When
President Mbeki awarded Plaque of Appreciation to Howard University in honour
of all the Anti-Apartheid movement in the United States, he wrote: "this
plaque is a memorial to the triumph of human spirit over oppression…and it
is right and fitting that it should be dedicated at Howard University." Eversince
the first South African Student admitted at Howard in the early 1890's, to the
dedication of the plaque by President Mbeki, you have weathered the storm with
us. You have helped us rebuild and rejuvenate our spirit. While tempest,
uproar, wind and the gale will continue to rage, nothing will shake the foundation
of the human spirit, and nothing will break the strong ties that the people of
South Africa have with Howard University. You are a microcosm of the Diaspora,
which stretches across the United States and beyond to the Caribbean and Latin
and South America. We are confident that this esteemed institution, including
the contingent from New Orleans, will always renew and rebuild the spirit of resilience
that charecterises the best of human kind. As you make even greater progress
in the future, I am sure that Howard University will continue to produce excellent
and insightful graduates who will help to lead us into a better future and a New
World. As we have heard about the President of the University who is himself a
graduate of this instituion. I believe that part of our striving is precisely
for a system of global political, economic and social governance that is more
inclusive than the status quo. A system where material resources are not out of
reach depending on place of origin or location or gender on the colour of one's
skin, but accessible to all who strive to improve their lives. We stand
at a new time of renewal and rebuilding, and I thought it pertinent to borrow
an extract from the celebrated novelist and poet, an African son, Ben Okri: "There
no such thing as a powerless people. There are only those who have not seen and
have not used their power and will. It would seem a miraculous feat, but it is
possible for the unvalued ones to help create a beautiful new era in human history.
New vision should come from those who suffer most and who love life the most….Nature
and history are not just about the survival of the fittest, but also about the
survival of the wisest, the most adaptive, and the most aware."
We
have been blessed with the brightest, the most adaptive, and the most aware. This
is why we are here today as survivors of the apartheid, colonialism and slavery,
We are powerful because although we were raised on the legacy of oppression and
struggle, we still forgive but never forget where we come from. As President Thabo
Mbeki said: "We cannot win a grandiose war on poverty.
But after the tragedy comes opportunity. This is the post-Katrina moment. Let's
not squander it."
Thank you. Issued by Nomfanelo
Kota on 0824593787 Department of Foreign Affairs
c/o SA Embassy in
Washington DC
United States of America 11 January 2006
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