Cosatu mulls English, Afrikaans bits of anthem

by Natasha Marrian, 17 September 2012, 07:39
Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi. Picture:                     THE TIMES
THE Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) is set to debate whether the national anthem should remain in its current form or whether the English and Afrikaans sections should be removed, according to draft resolutions to come under discussion at the federation’s national congress starting today.
This would require a constitutional amendment as the anthem is enshrined in it.
The national anthem has been hailed for its embrace of different languages and cultures — and also for its reconciliatory tone, with its inclusion of Die Stem, the national anthem under apartheid.
A resolution sponsored, or suggested, by the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) notes the Afrikaans and English sections were included as a "compromise position" through the negotiated settlement, and the original Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrica had influenced African countries such as Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The draft resolutions would be discussed and decided upon during the congress.
The draft resolution reads that the county’s national anthem should revert to its "original form" and should "represent the suffering and the struggle that informs our future aspirations".
"... the combination with Die Stem is a direct opposite of what Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrica entails or what it means to be African ... the original form of the anthem was and is still part of our struggle", the resolution reads. "The current national anthem was a compromise out of the deliberations of Codesa, during the political negotiations which led to the new constitution."
It proposes that Cosatu resolve that the "original" anthem be sung — as composed by Enoch Sontonga — which excludes the English and Afrikaans sections.
Cosatu is allied to the ruling African National Congress (ANC) and would seek to bring about such a change if it was resolved upon, through its alliance structures.
The ANC and the alliance as a whole have said that the negotiated settlement has constrained progress in transforming the economy, for instance, but the issue of the national anthem has been raised for the first time by Popcru.
Popcru has also suggested that Cosatu resolve on completely scrapping the provincial tier of government. The three spheres of government also constituted a compromise during the negotiations and had now "served (their) purpose", the resolution reads.
"... the three spheres of government have bureaucratic tendencies and hamper service delivery … the three spheres of government have adverse cost implications."
Popcru wants Cosatu to resolve to scrap the provinces and replace them with "local administration offices to catalyse service delivery to the people".
The ANC in its policy conference also mulled the reconfiguring of the country’s provinces — an idea that the ruling alliance has been considering for a number of years. The conference recommended that a task team be set up to probe the viability of reorganising the provinces.
Cosatu is to discuss resolutions proposed by its affiliates at its congress. The resolutions would be adopted during the four-day event, which is expected to be addressed by President Jacob Zuma and South African Communist Party general secretary Blade Nzimande.

http://www.bdlive.co.za/national/2012/09/17/cosatu-mulls-english-afrikaans-bits-of-anthem