By Marlan Padayachee Media & Communications, South Africa
Presentation Paper By The Deputy Mayor, Councillor Loganathan Naidoo, Chairperson Of The Economic And Development Committee, Ethekwini Municiaplity At The Anc Progressive Busines Forum Trade Delegation To Chennai India/ South Africa –India Trade Seminar On The Topic South Africa – Open For Busiuness 13-17 November 2010.
Date: Tuesday 16 November 2010
Time: 10H20,
Venue: Park Sherat0n Hotel Chennai.
Thank You, Director Of Programme.
· Good Morning, Ladies And Gentlemen; Honoured Guests;
· Vannakam;
· Namaste;
· Namaskarumu;
· Sawubona;
· Assalamu Alaikum;
· Sanibonani;
· Goeie More;
· The Honourable Ms Shobana Kamineni, Past President Of The Confederation Of India Industry (Sr) And Executive Director Of Apollo Hospitals Group;
· His Excellency, The Honourable Reverend Harris Majeka, South African High Commissioner To India; And Consular Staff From The South African Missions In India;
· The Honourable Mr Daryl Swanepoel, Co-Convenor Of The African National Congress Progressive Business Forum Of South Africa;
· Mr Rajeev Ranjan, The Ias Principal Secretary, Industries Department, Government Of Tamil Nadu.
· Mr Sujith Haridas, Regional Director, Confederation Of India Industry, Southern Region;
· Members Of The South African Business Delegation;
· Members Of The Indian Business Delegation;
· All Government And Municipal Officials;
· Members Of The Media;
· All Protocols Observed;
Ladies And Gentlemen, Today, The 16TH Day Of November 2010 Is An Important Day In The Longstanding Relations Between The People Of India And The People Of South Africa.
Exactly, One Hundred And Fifty Years Ago, To This Hour, India Gave Birth To One Of The First And Most Formidable Indian Communities Outside What Many Of My Indian Compatriots And Comrades Would Call The Motherland, Thai Nadu, As We Say In Tamil Or Telugu.
Today, Back In My Beloved Country Of Birth, South Africa, More Than 1, 3 Million Indians Will Start Celebrating And Commemorating One Of The Greatest Events Of A Poignant Human Drama Throughout The Cities And Towns Where South Africans Of Indian Origin Reside And Work Cheek By Jowl To Realize The African Dream For All Our Citizens Of More Than 45-Million.
It Is Therefore Appropriate That I Thank Our Host For Your Gracious Welcome And Hospitality Of What Will Clearly Map Out As The Real Indian Experience On Southern Shores Of India Where The First Batch Of 340 Indentured Labourers Were Shipped To The City Of Durban On 16TH November 1860.
Sugar Farming Was Successfully Launched In Our Region In 1855 When Our Sugar Farmers Got Wind Of How The Indian Indentured Labour System Was Giving New Economic Life To The Sugar Industry In Mauritius And Madagascar Sugar Plantations.
Sugar Farming Was Successfully Launched In This Region In 1855 When Our Sugar Farmers Got Wind Of How The Indian Indentured Labour System Was Giving New Economic Life To The Sugar Industry In Mauritius And Madagascar Sugar Plantations.
The Burgeoning Barons Of This Industry Then Lobbied The Government Of Natal To Introduce Indentured Indian Labourers To Work On Their Sugar Plantations.
During Britain’s Colonial Rule, Indians Were Perceived As Suitable Workers For This Job As They Were Already Used To This System In The Indian Ocean Islands, And They Sought After As Skilful Agriculturists And Gardeners.
Buoyed By An Indomitable Spirit Of Survival And Enterprise, They Ventured Into The Darkness, Only To Turn Their Poor Plight Of Indentured Labour Into One Of Lightness That Will Forever Link India To South Africa During The Turbulent Period Of Colonial-Apartheid History That Culminating In Gandhijee Returning To India As A Peace Guru And Mandela Becoming Our New Nation’s First Black President.
It Therefore Gives Me An Incredible Sense Of Pride, Pleasure, Patriotism And Humility To Share With You That This Is Certainly A God-Given Privilege To Be Visiting The Seaport Of Chennai Where The Ss Truro Departed Into The Darkness Of The Indian Ocean To Bring Home Our Forebears Who Would Make Mother India So Proud And This Symbolic Umbilical Cord Will Forever Remain Between Chennai And Durban As We Navigate This Trading Protocol To Take India And South Africa Into The Heart Of The African 21ST Century.
Mr Chairperson, Distinguished Guests, Ladies And Gentlemen.
As The Deputy Mayor Of The Ethekwini Municipality And The City Of Durban, And Also In My Capacity As Chairperson Of Durban’s Economic And Development Committee, I Believe I Won’t Be Out Of Order If I Extend A Collective Bouquet Of Gratitude To Our Distinguished Hosts.
From The Moment Emirates Flight Ek 544 Touched Down On The Runway In Chennai, We Have Been Treated With Exceptional Warmth And Friendship, And This Global Goodwill Is Only Unique To Incredible India.
If The Spirit (If Not High Spirits) And Vigour Was Anything To Go By At Sunday Night’s Welcome And Networking Dinner At Taj Coromandel Hotel Is Anything To Go By As A Social-Business Gauge Or Barometer, Then Our Delegation Must Brace Itself For A Trade Mission That Will Forever Be Etched In Their Minds As One Of The Most Interesting And Fascination Business Experiences.
On Behalf Of Our Delegation, I Say ‘Thank You’ In The Language Of The British Colonialists Who Shipped Us To South Africa, ‘Naandri’ In Tamil And ‘Ngiyabonga’ In The Indigenous Isizulu Language Of The Kingdom Of The Kwazulu, Where The City Of Durban Is Strategically Positioned On The Indian Ocean Rim As The Gateway Into Africa.
On Behalf Of The Ethekwini Municipality And The People Of The City Of Durban, I Extend Warm Greetings, Goodwill And Good Wishes To The Citizens Of Chennai On This Historic Day That Has The Potential To Redefine Our Mutually-Enhancing Relations On The Social, Economic And Political Spheres.
We Hail From A City Of Golden Beaches Where Our Mantra Is The ‘Fun Never Sets’.
So Let Me Assure You That Our Esteemed Representatives From Some Of Our Finest Homegrown Brands Have Much More Than Their Social Stamina To Make This Long Haul Into A Fruitful And Enterprising Sharing And Exchanging Of Business Acumen, Trade Opportunities And Partnerships.
The Anc Ruling Party’s Progressive Business Forum Was Launched At Our Party’s Headquarters In Luthuli House As A New Vehicle To Stimulate The Economic Revolution That The Anc Had Embarked On In Recent Years To Place More And More Business Opportunities In The Public And Private Sectors In The Hands Of Previously Disadvantaged Communities, Of Which Includes The Indian Community.
Many Of These Companies Are Represented Among The 35 To 40 Companies And Consultancies In Our Delegation.
In The Footsteps Of The 1860 Indentured Labourers, We Are Retracing Our Steps To Strengthen A New Era Of Enterprise With Our Province And South India.
The One Of The Purposes Of Our Trade Visit Is To Seek Approval From The City Government Of Chennai To Sign The Sister City Agreement Between Ethekwini And Chennai.
This Memorandum Of Understanding Which Has Been Shared With The Consul-General Of India In Durban Has Been Submitted To Department Of International Relations And Co-Operation And Has Since Been Ratified And Approved.
Also, As The Deputy Mayor And Head Of International Relations And Governance In The City Of Durban, I Wish To Share Some Background With You.
South Africa And India Are Strong Trading Partners And Have Established Mutually Beneficial Relations Through A Number Of International Agreements. South Africa And India Have Signed A National Bi-National Commission And Has Agreed To Cooperate With India Within The Ibsa And Other International Agreements That Strives To Support And Strengthen The Worlds Developing Economies.
In Order To Give Added Momentum And Added Benefit To The Ethekwini Municipality It Has Been Recommended That The Municipality Join A Powerful Business Delegation To Chennai India.
The Delegation Will Seek To Build Strong Business To Business Engagements In The Fields Of Auto-Motor, Computers, And It Hardware Manufacturing And Health Care Industries.
In Order To Strengthen The Business And Political To Enhance Trade And Investment, We Believe That Signing Of A Memorandum Of Understanding And Laying Of A Plaque Within The City Of Chennai To Commemorate The Arrival Of Indentured Indian Labourers In 1860 On The First Ship From India That Departed From Chennai, Will Build Significant Political And Cultural Goodwill Between The Citizens Of The Two Cities, And In So Doing Fast Track Trade, Investment And Cultural Exchanges That Will Benefit Both Cities.
In The Past 16 Years Since Our Relationship Began Bearing Fruit And Blossoming Into A Full-Blown Socio-Economic And Political Partnership, We Have Established Links With Bollywood.
On This Mission, We Want To Promote Trade And Tourism And Continue The Cultural Link That Began 150 Years Ago And Still Continues Between Our Two Friendly Countries.
On This Mission, We Are Ready To Do Business With Our South Indian Counterparts.
We Now Need To Cement Links With This Ancient Seaport Where The Founding Forebears Of The Indian Community Set Sail For Durban.
Our Delegation Is Overwhelmed By The Historic Event That Commemorates And Celebrates 150 Years Of Indian Linkage To Africa.
I Believe The Twinning Of Durban And Chennai Is The Social And Economic Tonic That Will Set Our Romantic Relationship Alight.
Durban Has Twinning Agreements With Chicago, And New Orleans In The United States; Rotterdam In The Netherlands; Leeds In The United Kingdom; Bulawayo And Maputo In Africa; Reunion Island In The Indian Ocean Rim.
Chennai, Or Madras As We Knew It In The Colonial-Apartheid Era, Is The First City In India With Which We Are Proposing A Twinning That Will Build A Bridge For Us Across The Indian Ocean Rim.
With The Twin Cities Agreement In Place, I Can Assure You That The Big Blue Skies Will Be More Than The Limit Of Our Constructive Engagement Of Economic Toes And Social Exchanges.
We Are Confident That In This Heartland Of Tamil Nadu, Iconic Leaders Like Chief Minister M Karunanidhi And The Mayor Of The Chennai Municipal Corporation, His Worship Manickam Subramanian Will Help Us Navigate This Twinning Agreement To Bring Our Economies And Communities Closer Together For The Betterment Of Both Sides Of Our Shared Legacy.
Our Delegation Are Fully Behind Durban’s Initiative Because They Ardently Believe That Chennai’s World Reputation As Being A Strong Hub For Information Technology, Textiles, Motor Manufacturing And The Movie Industry Could Be Matched With The Similar Economic Growth Points And Strengths Durban Has To Offer Chennai.
Our Delegation Will Be Looking At How Business Based In The Port City Of Chennai Could Tie Up Agreements With Our Businesses Based In Durban.
We Are Also Keen To Link South African Companies With South Indian Counterparts.
In The Broader Picture Of Our Socio-Economic Journey, We Look To The South Indian Chamber Of Commerce And The Confederation Of Indian Industries To Join Durban And Chennai In This Brave New Journey Into South-South Trading And Business Synergy And Joint Venture Partnerships.
From Our From Quayside, We Are Ready For An Exciting New Economic Crossing To Chennai.
We Invite Our Indian Counterparts To Also Undertake The Crossing That Chennai And Durban.
As We Relive And Rekindle Our Historic Chapter That Ties Our Destinations And Democracies, Let Me Declare That South Africa Is Open For Business And Full Of Opportunity.
I Am Fortunate That The Durban-Chennai Route Is A Beaten Track For Me.
I Have Been Forging This Journey For Almost A Dozen Years.
Ever Since Consul-General Latha Reddy Raised The Indian Flag, Pre-1994, At The Old Station Building Where Mk Gandhi Set Out On A Historic And Controversial Train Journey To Pretoria That Was To Result In An International Racial Incident In Which Gandhijee Was Thrown Off The ‘Whites-Only Train’ In Pietermaritzburg, And When Ambassador Mangalmurthi Reopened The Indian Embassy In 1994 That Was Shutdown In Protest Against The Apartheid Government In 1940S, I Can Share With This Seminar That Trading Conditions Between Our Two Sister Cities Has Been Brisk.
Some Of The Positive Spin-Offs Of These Pioneering Early-Year Visits Have Been The Information Technology Footprints Of Ramco, An Innovative That Now Loom Large In The City Of Durban At Our It Hub That Ramco Executive Management And It Leaders Had Helped Our Municipality To Develop Since The 1990S.
Today, Ramco Is One Of The Pioneering Companies That Embarked On The Brave New Journey Into Africa.
It Is The Same Big Blue Ocean Where Our Indian Forebears Began A Horrific And Horrendous Journey Of Labour Migration That Was To Culminate In Future Generations Of Indians Tying Their Mast To An African Destiny.
Today, We Have Gathered On A Dateline And Destination That Will Forever Cement This Historic Milestone Between The People Of Chennai And The People Of Durban.
In The Final Analysis Of This Groundbreaking Trade Visit, We Would Have Succeeded In Unifying And Solidifying All Of India And South Africa Around A Commonness Of Our Cultural Diversity, Social Cohesion, Economic Advancement And Political Exchange And Sharing Of Economic Ideas And Strategies.
This Morning, As We Push Back The Frontiers Of A Unique Economic Journey That Began 150 Years Ago, We Are Upbeat And Confident That This Strategic Seminar Will Provide Us With A Fresh, New Route Marker To Narrow The Logistical Challenge Between Durban And Chennai.
Distinguished Speakers And Panelists, Honoured Guests And Ladies And Gentlemen, The Watermark On Any Trade Agreements Or Economic Pacts That We Will Endorse During This Trade Must Forever Be Inspired By The Intrepid Band Of Indian Indentured Visionaries.
As A Son Of The Slaves, I Am Proud To Be Standing Before You By Calling Upon All The Chennai Business Stakeholders To Join Your New Durban Counterparts In Giving New Meaning To The South-South Latitude That Could Encourage Both Sides Of The Indian Ocean Rim To Make This Trade Delegation An Annual Event So That More And More Entrepreneurs Enjoy The Opportunity Of Walking Through These New Avenues Of South Africa-India Business Partnerships And Synergies.
Surely The Success Of This Brave New Journey In Which We Are Chartering New Waters Will Be A Fitting Homage To The Historic Hour When ‘Coolie Number One’ 30-Year-Old Davuram From Madras Stepped Off The Ss Truro And Set Foot On The Shores Of Durban.
The Second Indentured Labourer On The Ship’s Manifest Was 18-Year-Old Naguram, Probably His Wife, And Their Two Children, Four-Year-Old Kubay, And One-Year-Old Elizabeth.
These Stoical Bands Of Indentured Labourers Who Were Followed By Thousands Of Economic Migrant Labourers, Traders, Artisans Were To Lay A Powerful Platform For Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi To Forever Change The Tide Of Oppressive Colonial Politics As We Knew It In South Africa, India And Other Countries Where Sugar Plantations Was The New Gold Of The 18TH Century.
This Historic Date, 16TH Of November 1860, Has Come To Define And Shape The Destiny Of Generations Of Our Indian Citizens In Durban And Other Metropolitan Cities And Towns In South Africa.
Today, More Than 800 00 Of South Africa’s 1, 3 Million Citizens Of Indian Origin Reside In The City Of Durban And Cities And Towns Across The Province Of Kwazulu-Natal.
For Me, As A Son Of Indentured Labourers, I Am Grateful That We Are Sharing This Moment Of History To Cement The Relations Between Durban And Chennai At The Unveiling Of A Commemorative Plaque Later Today.
This Colourful Ceremony, I Firmly Believe, May Forever Stand As A Symbol Of Our Of Past Era Of Adversity And Our Present Journey Of Advantage And Economic Co-Operation Between Our Seaports; As A Lasting Moment Of Our Present And Future Co-Operation.
Closer To Home, An Indian Flag Flying Alongside The South African Outside A Landmark Tyre Manufacturing Company Called Dunlop Outside The Durban Cbd Tells A Remarkable Story Of How Far The Trade Journey Has Come Between India And South Africa.
In The Business Hub Of Johannesburg, The Gupta Family From India Has Established A Best-Known Computer Brand Called Sahara.
The Guptas Are To Launch An Independent National Newspaper Called The New Age That Will Take A Fresh New Look At Politics, A Progressive People-Centred Government And The Social And Economic Revolution That Is Taking Place In Our Rainbow Nation Of Peace And Prosperity Where Indian Nationals Are At Home In The Heart Of Africa’s Economic Melting Pot.
With The Signing Of A Sister-City Relationship With Chennai, We Assure Indian Businesses That You Will Be Flying More Than Your Colours In Our Cosmopolitan City Where East Meets West Across The African Diaspora.
A Uniquely Cosmopolitan City, Durban Can Best Be Described As A Paradise And Its People.
A Visitor To Durban May Struggle To Find A Definite Phrase That Fits The City And Its Suburbs.
For Durban, Or Ethekwini (The City By The Water In The Isizulu Language), As It Is Also Called, Contains Such A Vast Spectrum Of Cultures, Beliefs And Physical And Economic Landscapes, That Is Indeed Difficult To Encapsulate The Place In A Well-Worded Phrase.
But It Is Precisely In This Difficulty Of Finding A Central Metaphor Or Description That The Secrets And Riches Of This Lively African City Reside.
For Durban Is A City Of Fusion, Cross-Pollination, Of Wild Eclecticism.
Here Africa, Europe, America And The East Meet At A Single Geographical Point.
Durban Has A Summery Climate Without Being Sweltering.
As A Beach Paradise, The Durban Golden Mile, Where We Are Planning A Bollywood/Hollywood Type Film Studio, Is A Stretch Of Golden Sandy Beaches As Far As The Eye Can See, Complemented By All Year Round Warm Indian Ocean, Sunny Clear African Skies And As New Arrivals You Will Enjoy All That Tropical Paradise And Vibe Of Our Colourful Continent.
We Are Home To South Africa’s Biggest Port, Is Hot And Sometimes Humid, A Beach Paradise.
Now, You Will Understand Why Indian Business Legacy And Entrepreneurship Reigns Supreme In The City Of Durban, Whether It’s The Food Mecca Of The Jewel Of India That Ensured That The Chennai Super Kings Were Well Fed With Indian Cuisines During Their Recent Cricket Series Tour, Or How The Bank Of Baroda Is Providing Indian Nationals With World Class Banking Services In Our Culturally Diverse Cbds.
There Are Many Other Indian Multinationals Flags Flying High In The City Of Durban.
Durban Is An International Investment Friendly City And The Statistics Speak For Themselves.
Research By Mcgregor Information Services Shows That Since 1993 Indian Investment Has Grown From Nothing To R2, 7BILLION Since 1994 In The New South Africa.
Estimates Now Put The Number Of Indian Companies, Which Are Trading In South Africa At More Than 500, Of Which 20 Have Established Local Subsidiaries And A Further 100 Have Appointed Local Agents And Distributors.
Export-Import Bank Of India Relocated Its Africa Office From Abidjan To Johannesburg And Recently Signed An Agreement With Standard Bank To Extend A $10M Credit Line To Finance Exports From India To South Africa.
Other Indian Banks Active In South Africa Are Bank Of Baroda And The State Bank Of India, Which Has Opened A Branch In Durban To Augment Its Johannesburg Office In The Country’s Commercial Capital.
Distinguished Guests, Ladies And Gentlemen, As The Deputy Mayor Of One Of Africa’s Leading, Debt-Free Cities With One Of The Best City Administrations, Let Me Round Up My Address By Touching On Some Very Attractive Highlights That Will Encourage South Indian Businesses To Invest In The City Of Durban.
Our Municipal Area Is Located On The Eastern Seaboard Of South Africa Within The Province Of Kwazulu-Natal, Covering About 2 297 Square Kilometres.
While Our Total Municipal Area Is Only 1.4% Of The Total Area Of The Province Of Kwazulu-Natal, Just Over A Third Of Our Provincial Population And 60% Of Its Economic Activity Are Concentrated Within Our Ethekwini Municipal Area.Our Region Is Characterized By Diverse Topography, From Steep Escarpments In The West To A Relatively Flat Coastal Plain In The East.
We Have Almost 100KM Of Coastline, 19 Rivers And 17 Estuaries. This Diverse Land Form Supports A Wide Variety Of Terrestrial, Fresh Water And Marine Natural Ecosystems.Our PeopleOur City Is A Mix Of Racial And Cultural Diversity, With Its African, Indian/Asian And European Influences Creating A Vibrant Cosmopolitan Society. Our Municipal Area Has An Estimated Population Of Just Over 3 Million People.The Black African Community Makes Up The Largest Sector (65%) Of The Population Followed By The Indian/Asian Community (21%). The Age Profile Reveals That, The Working Age Group Comprises 68% Of The Population; We Also Have A Relatively Large Youthful Population, With 38% Under The Age Of 19 Years.Our EconomyDurban Is South Africa’s Major Port City With A Diverse A Diverse And Vibrant Local Economy.
Durban Is South Africa’s Second Largest Industrial Hub Behind Gauteng.
Durban Has A Large Concentration Of Manufacturing Activity Directly And Indirectly Linked To Our Status As A Port City.
Durban Is Also The Countries Key Trading Gateway With Access To Important Trading Routes To The East And The Sub-Continent.
Durban’s Proximity To The Gauteng Mineral-Industrial Complex And The Commercial Capital Of Johannesburg, And An Economic Link Into Southern Africa, Makes It An Attractive Investment Destination.With The Four Major Sectors Of The Economy Being Manufacturing, Tourism, Finance And Transport, We Have A Strong Presence In Advanced Sectors Of The Economy.
Manufacturing, Which Contributes About 30% Of The Local Economy, Has Historically Been Located To The South Of Our Cbd In Our Idustrial Basin.
More Recently, This Has Been Spreading To The West And Extent To The North Of The City Where Modern Shopping Malls And Business Centres Serves Our Economic Landscape.Tourism, Another Strong Sector Adds 24% To The Local Economy And Is Concentrated Along The Coast.Durban Is The Home Of The Annual Indaba Travel Trade And Tourism Exhibition That Attracts More Than 20 000 Delegates, Visitors And Investors Each Year.
Commercial Services Such As Banking, Insurance And Other Financial Activities Are Well Developed.
Transport And Communication Is The Fourth Biggest Sector Contributing About 14% To The Economy Of Our Region.
We Have Substantial And Fast Growing Less Formal Economy Although Much Of It¹S Current Growth Is Focused In Lower Income Jobs. We Have A Growing ‘Second Economy’ Made Up Of Street Vendors, Cottage Industries And Bead Making And Handicrafts Run Mainly By Rural Women.The Financial Environment: Local Government Within Our Municipal Region Operates From A Sound Financial Footing With Strong Financial Management Systems In Place.
Our City Council Currently Holds Assets Of Almost R8.8 Billion And Has An Annual Expenditure Of Close To R8 Billion. About R1.3 Billion Of The City Council Expenditure Is Devoted To Capital Investment With The Balance Used For Operating Expenses.The Twinning Of Durban And Chennai Could Mark A Follow Up Journey Akin To The Enterprising Spirit Of The First Batch Of Economic Migrants Who Entered The African Landscape To Ensure That This Everlasting Relationship Takes On A New Meaning Of South-South And City-To-City Socio-Economic Co-Operation.
In My Closing Remarks, I Once Again Thank Our Hosts For Giving Me This Wonderful Opportunity To Address You On Behalf Of Our Delegation And The City Of Durban.
May Our Relationship And Social And Economic Toes Taking Place On This Historic Day Pave The Way For Prosperous Partnerships That Will Create An Enabling Climate Between The People Of Chennai And Durban.
I Thank You.
Presentation Paper Researched And Written For The Office Of The Deputy Mayor And Councillor Logie Naidoo , Ethekwini Municipality, City Of Durban, South Africa On The Anc Pbf South Africa-India Trade Delegation To Chennai, South India From 13-17 November 2010 And The Twinning Of Durban And Chennai And Unveiling Of 1860 Plaque By Marlan Padayachee, In Association With Amanda Cele, Sally Nene-Mbhele, Pinky Naidoo, Sibusiso Ngema, All Of Greengold Africa Communications: Greengold@Mtnloaded.Co.Za/ (031) 266 2134/ 073 625 8247/ 078 076 8121/ 078 2453579/Fax 00 27 31 266 8592.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Don:t let your CV's end up in File 13
UMAFRIKA GRADUATION – SPEECH BY MARLAN PADAYACHEE, MANAGING PARTNER OF GREENGOLD AFRICA COMMUNICATIONS AT DURBAN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY HOTEL SCHOOL 17.12.2011
THANK YOU, PROGRAMME DIRECTOR.
· ANN SEWLAL, FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR OF UMAFRIKA SKILLS PROJECT.
· THE STAFF AND MANAGEMENT OF UMAFRIKA SKILLS PROJECT.
· COUNCILLOR DIANA HOORZUK, REPRESENTING THE SPEAKER OF THE DURBAN-ETHEKWINI MUNICIPALITY, COUNCILLOR LOGIE NAIDOO.
· ALL DISTINGUISHED DIGNITARIES, GUESTS, PARENTS AND MEMBERS OF THE DURBAN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY.
· AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN OF THE MOMENT, THE STUDENTS WHO HAVE SUCCESSFULLY GRADUATED TO BECOME GRADUANDS.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I AM HUMBLED AND HONOURED TO BE ADDRESSING YOU THIS AFTERNOON AS SOMEONE WHO LEARNT EARLY IN MY LIFE THAT ‘EDUCATION IS YOUR SALVATION’ AND ‘KNOWLEDGE IS POWER’ – THAT IS WHY I AM STANDING BEFORE YOU TO SHARE MY WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY WITH ALL OF YOU.
IF YOU LOOK TO YOUR LEFT AND RIGHT, YOU WILL NOTICE A GRADUATE SEATED NEXT TO YOU: YOUR PARENTS, GUARDIANS, GRANDPARENTS – ALL OF WHOM WORK TIRELESSLY TO ENSURE THAT YOU RECEIVE THE GIFT OF EDUCATION.
ALL OUR PARENTS DESERVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE AND SOME ACADEMIC ACCOLADES, AS WELL.
THAT’S WHY MANY OF US BELIEVE AND LIVE BY THE ANCIENT AFRICAN MANTRA, UBUNTU (HUMANKIND), WHICH MEANS IN ISIZULU OR INDIGENOUS AFRICAN LANGUAGES, ‘I AM BECAUSE OF YOU’.
THAT’S WHY WE ALSO SAY IN THE AFRICAN VERNACULAR: ‘IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE A CHILD’.
WE MAY LIVE IN A COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT, WHERE PEOPLE ARE COMPETING FOR EACH OTHER FOR WEALTH, CASH, AND STATUS, AND DREAM FOR A GET-RICH-QUICK SCHEME .
THERE IS NO SHORT-CUT TO SUCCESS;
THERE IS NO SIDE ROAD TO ACCUMULATING WEALTH;
· THERE’S ONLY THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD TO SUCCESS AND ITS CALLED :
· HARD WORK;
· HONESTY;
· HUMILITY;
THE CERTIFICATE YOU ARE RECEIVING TODAY MOST TELL A STORY OF A DINT OF HARD WORK, HONESTY AND HUMILITY.
IF YOU PRESENT FALSE INFORMATION ON YOUR CURRICULUM VITAE, THEN YOUR CAREER WILL BE CONDEMNED FOR LIFE.
IT’S CALLED ACADEMIC FRAUD.
YOUR EMPLOYER WILL SHOW YOU THE DOOR THAT IS SIGN-POSTED AS ‘EXIT’.
SO, VALUE THIS CERTIFICATE YOU ARE RECEIVING TODAY.
IT IS THE START OF A NEW BEGINNING.
LEARNING DOES NOT STOP HERE.
IT CONTINUES AND CONTINUES UNTIL YOU ARE A WELL ROUNDED CANDIDATE FOR CAREER SUCCESS.
TODAY, WE ARE LIVING IN A GLOBAL VILLAGE, WHICH MEANS BY THE TOUCH OF A BUTTON YOU CAN CONTACT ANYONE IN THE WORLD, VIA CELLPHONE, VIA EMAIL, VIA INTERNET, VIA FACEBOOK, VIA TWITTER AND VIA ANY SOCIAL MEDIA.
I STAND BEFORE YOU BECAUSE I BELIEVE IN ANN SEWLAL’S UMAFRIKA SKILLS PROJECT.
IN THESE TRYING TIMES OF ECONOMIC DOWNCAST WHERE JOBS ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY SCARCE AND POVERTY AND SOCIAL ILLS ARE REDUCING THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF THE CITIZENS OF THE GREATER DURBAN REGION, AND MANY OF THE COUNTRY, GOVERNMENT LED BY THE AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS UNDER OUR MULTIPARTY DEMOCRACY SYSTEM, IS WORKING HARD TO GIVE US ‘A BETTER LIFE FOR ALL’.
JOBLESSNESS IS THE SINGLE GREATEST THREAT TO ALL US – PARTICULARLY OUR YOUTH POPULATION – OUR FUTURE CITIZENS – OUR FUTURE LEADERS.
UMAFRIKA, THROUGH AN SEWLAL’S VISION, OFFERS STUDENTS, SCHOOL-LEAVERS, UNDERGRADUATES AND POST-GRADUATES A PRAGMATIC ANSWER TO A VERY DIFFICULT JOB MARKET – AND THAT IS FOR YOUR TO GAIN NEW SKILLS.
TO DESCRIBE UMAFRIKA, WHICH COMPLIMENTS THE TERTIARY EDUCATION INSTITUTION WITH ITS RANGE OF SHORT COURSES, I WOULD AGREE THAT: ‘
· UMAFRIKA PROJECT SPECIALISTS IS A MODEL FOR COMMUNITY OUTREACH EDUCATION AS A UNIQUE PLATFORM FOR ADVANCED, SHORT COURSES, WORKSHOP-BASED TRAINING PROGRAMME TO COMPLEMENT SOUTH AFRICA’S CRITICAL AND SCARCE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING CHALLENGES.
TODAY’S JOB MARKET ALSO DEMANDS THAT YOU ARE VERSATILE.
· YOU MUST STRIVE TO BE AN ALL-ROUNDER.
· YOU MUST SAY TO AM PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYER AT A JOB INTERVIEW: ‘I AM MULTISKILLED; I AM A HARD WORKER AND HUMBLE ENOUGH TO MAKE THE TEA OR COFFEE WHILE YOUR COMPANY TEACHES ME THE TOOLS OF THE TRADE’.
· WHILE SERVING THE TEA OR COFFEE, YOU MUST DEVELOP AN APPETITE FOR KNOWLEDGE AND BE WILLING TO LEARN, AND BECOME A TEAM PLAYER WITHIN THE WORKPLACE.
· THERE IS NO ‘I’ IN THE WORD ‘SUCCESS’.
· EMPLOYERS ARE LOOKING FOR JOBSEEKERS WHO CAN ADD VALUE TO THE PROFITABILITY AND VIABILITY OF A BUSINESS, AND IT’S CALLED BOTTOMLINES.
· LEARN TO SPEAK THE ECONOMIC LANGUAGE.
· IF YOU UNDERSTAND SOMEONE’S BUSINESS, THEN YOU WILL GROW WITHIN THE WORKPLACE AND YOU WILL BE A BIGGER ASSET TO THE COMPNAY, AND THAT’S CALLED HUMAN CAPITAL.
IF YOU ARE A SLAVE TO WAGES OR SALARY THEN YOUR CAREER HAS A SHORT SHELF LIFE AND YOU WILL BE WASTING VALUABLE TIME EMAILING AND DROPPING YOUR CV’S ALL OVER.
AND IF YOU CV IS NOT A HONEST STORY OF WHAT YOU CAN OFFER YOUR EMPLOYER, THEN IT ENDS UP IN FILE 13 – THE DUSTBIN.
THAT BRINGS ME TO SOME WORDS OF VISION:
· AN AMERICAN, PHILLIP J KRAWITH, WRITING ABOUT THE FIVE REVOLUTIONS - INDUSTRIAL, TRANSPORT, COMMUNICATIONS, COMPUTER AND INTERNET: “IF YOUR COMPANY HAS PEOPLE WHO ARE SMARTER, BETTER TRAINED, MORE INNOVATIVE AND MORE PASSIONATE THAN THE OPPOSITION, YOU WIN - AND THE IMPLICATIONS ARE PROFOUND.”
APART FROM LEARNING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS, THE OTHER ASPECT OF SUCCESSFUL CAREER PATHING ARE MENTORING AND COACHING.
REMEMBER THAT ‘WITHOUT A MENTOR, AN INDIVIDUAL WILL LEARN LESS, MORE SLOWLY OR NOT AT ALL,’ SAYS MARIUS MEYER AND LEON FOURIE IN THEIR BOOK, ‘MENTORING AND COACHING’.
· THIS BOOK WAS WRITTEN TO PROVIDE GUIDELINES FOR MANAGERS, TEAM LEADERS, FACILITATORS, MENTORS OR COACHES WHO ARE REQUIRED TO DO SOME FORM OF MENTORING AND COACHING AS PART OF THEIR JOBS.
· THE AUTHORS SAY ‘EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT AND CHANGE MANAGEMENT ARE ESSNTIAL REALITIES OF THE NEW BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT’.
· THAT’S WHAT IS WAITING FOR YOU IN THE WORKPLACE – A NEW BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT, A FAR CRY FROM THE WORKPLACE OF YOUR PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS.
· COACHING, MENTORING AND TRAINING IS ALL ABOUT HOW ELL YOU PERFORM IN THE WORKPLACE.
SO, RECEIVING YOUR CERTIFICATES AND BEING HAPPILY PHOTOGRAPHED, IS THE START OF YOU’RE YOUR THOUSAND MILE JOURNEY INTO A LIFE WHICH IS REALLY IN YOUR HANDS.
· YOUR ATTITUDE WILL DETERMINE YOUR ALTITUDE.
· YOUR ATTITUDE WILL DETERMINE YOUR DESTINY.
· TAKE NOTE OF THESE TIPS:
· GOOD COMMUNICATIONS SKILLS;
· RESPECTFUL OF SELF AND OTHERS;
· WILLINGNESS TO SHARE;
· FLEXIBLE;
· ENCOURAGING;
· SENSITIVE TO THE NEEDS OF OTHERS;
· SELF-CONFIDENT;
· COMMITTED;
· SUPPORTIVE;
PUT ALL THE TIPS TOGETHER, IT’S A WORD CALLED ‘UBUNTU’ (HUMANENESS OR HUMANKIND).
WE ALL NEED EACH OTHER, NO-ONE IS INDISPENSABLE, NO-ONE IS AN ISLAND;
BE A TEAM PLAYER.
WE ALL KNOW WHO OPRAH WINFREY IS: WELL, SHE SAYS: “WHERE THERE IS NO STRUGGLE, THERE IS NO STRENGTH.”
ALWAYS REMEMBER: “THERE ARE TWO THINGS NEEDED THESE DAYS; FIRST, FOR RICH PEOPLE TO FIND OUT HOW POOR PEOPLE LIVE; AND SECOND, FOR POOR PEOPLE TO FIND OUT HOW RICH PEOPLE WORK.”
AND WILLIAM SPRAGUE ONCE SAID: “DO NOT WAIT TO STRIKE TILL THE IRON IS HOT; BUT MAKE IT HOT BY STRIKING.”
GOOD LUCK.
NKOSI SIKELEL IAFRIKA.
Marlan Padayachee
Marlan.padayachee@gmail.com/ 073 625 8247/ (031) 266 4293/ 266 2134: PA Pinky Naidoo: 078 076 8121/ Professional coordinator & isiZulu tutor: Sally Nene: 082 686 7561
THANK YOU, PROGRAMME DIRECTOR.
· ANN SEWLAL, FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR OF UMAFRIKA SKILLS PROJECT.
· THE STAFF AND MANAGEMENT OF UMAFRIKA SKILLS PROJECT.
· COUNCILLOR DIANA HOORZUK, REPRESENTING THE SPEAKER OF THE DURBAN-ETHEKWINI MUNICIPALITY, COUNCILLOR LOGIE NAIDOO.
· ALL DISTINGUISHED DIGNITARIES, GUESTS, PARENTS AND MEMBERS OF THE DURBAN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY.
· AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN OF THE MOMENT, THE STUDENTS WHO HAVE SUCCESSFULLY GRADUATED TO BECOME GRADUANDS.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, I AM HUMBLED AND HONOURED TO BE ADDRESSING YOU THIS AFTERNOON AS SOMEONE WHO LEARNT EARLY IN MY LIFE THAT ‘EDUCATION IS YOUR SALVATION’ AND ‘KNOWLEDGE IS POWER’ – THAT IS WHY I AM STANDING BEFORE YOU TO SHARE MY WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY WITH ALL OF YOU.
IF YOU LOOK TO YOUR LEFT AND RIGHT, YOU WILL NOTICE A GRADUATE SEATED NEXT TO YOU: YOUR PARENTS, GUARDIANS, GRANDPARENTS – ALL OF WHOM WORK TIRELESSLY TO ENSURE THAT YOU RECEIVE THE GIFT OF EDUCATION.
ALL OUR PARENTS DESERVE A ROUND OF APPLAUSE AND SOME ACADEMIC ACCOLADES, AS WELL.
THAT’S WHY MANY OF US BELIEVE AND LIVE BY THE ANCIENT AFRICAN MANTRA, UBUNTU (HUMANKIND), WHICH MEANS IN ISIZULU OR INDIGENOUS AFRICAN LANGUAGES, ‘I AM BECAUSE OF YOU’.
THAT’S WHY WE ALSO SAY IN THE AFRICAN VERNACULAR: ‘IT TAKES A VILLAGE TO RAISE A CHILD’.
WE MAY LIVE IN A COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT, WHERE PEOPLE ARE COMPETING FOR EACH OTHER FOR WEALTH, CASH, AND STATUS, AND DREAM FOR A GET-RICH-QUICK SCHEME .
THERE IS NO SHORT-CUT TO SUCCESS;
THERE IS NO SIDE ROAD TO ACCUMULATING WEALTH;
· THERE’S ONLY THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD TO SUCCESS AND ITS CALLED :
· HARD WORK;
· HONESTY;
· HUMILITY;
THE CERTIFICATE YOU ARE RECEIVING TODAY MOST TELL A STORY OF A DINT OF HARD WORK, HONESTY AND HUMILITY.
IF YOU PRESENT FALSE INFORMATION ON YOUR CURRICULUM VITAE, THEN YOUR CAREER WILL BE CONDEMNED FOR LIFE.
IT’S CALLED ACADEMIC FRAUD.
YOUR EMPLOYER WILL SHOW YOU THE DOOR THAT IS SIGN-POSTED AS ‘EXIT’.
SO, VALUE THIS CERTIFICATE YOU ARE RECEIVING TODAY.
IT IS THE START OF A NEW BEGINNING.
LEARNING DOES NOT STOP HERE.
IT CONTINUES AND CONTINUES UNTIL YOU ARE A WELL ROUNDED CANDIDATE FOR CAREER SUCCESS.
TODAY, WE ARE LIVING IN A GLOBAL VILLAGE, WHICH MEANS BY THE TOUCH OF A BUTTON YOU CAN CONTACT ANYONE IN THE WORLD, VIA CELLPHONE, VIA EMAIL, VIA INTERNET, VIA FACEBOOK, VIA TWITTER AND VIA ANY SOCIAL MEDIA.
I STAND BEFORE YOU BECAUSE I BELIEVE IN ANN SEWLAL’S UMAFRIKA SKILLS PROJECT.
IN THESE TRYING TIMES OF ECONOMIC DOWNCAST WHERE JOBS ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY SCARCE AND POVERTY AND SOCIAL ILLS ARE REDUCING THE QUALITY OF LIFE OF THE CITIZENS OF THE GREATER DURBAN REGION, AND MANY OF THE COUNTRY, GOVERNMENT LED BY THE AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS UNDER OUR MULTIPARTY DEMOCRACY SYSTEM, IS WORKING HARD TO GIVE US ‘A BETTER LIFE FOR ALL’.
JOBLESSNESS IS THE SINGLE GREATEST THREAT TO ALL US – PARTICULARLY OUR YOUTH POPULATION – OUR FUTURE CITIZENS – OUR FUTURE LEADERS.
UMAFRIKA, THROUGH AN SEWLAL’S VISION, OFFERS STUDENTS, SCHOOL-LEAVERS, UNDERGRADUATES AND POST-GRADUATES A PRAGMATIC ANSWER TO A VERY DIFFICULT JOB MARKET – AND THAT IS FOR YOUR TO GAIN NEW SKILLS.
TO DESCRIBE UMAFRIKA, WHICH COMPLIMENTS THE TERTIARY EDUCATION INSTITUTION WITH ITS RANGE OF SHORT COURSES, I WOULD AGREE THAT: ‘
· UMAFRIKA PROJECT SPECIALISTS IS A MODEL FOR COMMUNITY OUTREACH EDUCATION AS A UNIQUE PLATFORM FOR ADVANCED, SHORT COURSES, WORKSHOP-BASED TRAINING PROGRAMME TO COMPLEMENT SOUTH AFRICA’S CRITICAL AND SCARCE SKILLS DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING CHALLENGES.
TODAY’S JOB MARKET ALSO DEMANDS THAT YOU ARE VERSATILE.
· YOU MUST STRIVE TO BE AN ALL-ROUNDER.
· YOU MUST SAY TO AM PROSPECTIVE EMPLOYER AT A JOB INTERVIEW: ‘I AM MULTISKILLED; I AM A HARD WORKER AND HUMBLE ENOUGH TO MAKE THE TEA OR COFFEE WHILE YOUR COMPANY TEACHES ME THE TOOLS OF THE TRADE’.
· WHILE SERVING THE TEA OR COFFEE, YOU MUST DEVELOP AN APPETITE FOR KNOWLEDGE AND BE WILLING TO LEARN, AND BECOME A TEAM PLAYER WITHIN THE WORKPLACE.
· THERE IS NO ‘I’ IN THE WORD ‘SUCCESS’.
· EMPLOYERS ARE LOOKING FOR JOBSEEKERS WHO CAN ADD VALUE TO THE PROFITABILITY AND VIABILITY OF A BUSINESS, AND IT’S CALLED BOTTOMLINES.
· LEARN TO SPEAK THE ECONOMIC LANGUAGE.
· IF YOU UNDERSTAND SOMEONE’S BUSINESS, THEN YOU WILL GROW WITHIN THE WORKPLACE AND YOU WILL BE A BIGGER ASSET TO THE COMPNAY, AND THAT’S CALLED HUMAN CAPITAL.
IF YOU ARE A SLAVE TO WAGES OR SALARY THEN YOUR CAREER HAS A SHORT SHELF LIFE AND YOU WILL BE WASTING VALUABLE TIME EMAILING AND DROPPING YOUR CV’S ALL OVER.
AND IF YOU CV IS NOT A HONEST STORY OF WHAT YOU CAN OFFER YOUR EMPLOYER, THEN IT ENDS UP IN FILE 13 – THE DUSTBIN.
THAT BRINGS ME TO SOME WORDS OF VISION:
· AN AMERICAN, PHILLIP J KRAWITH, WRITING ABOUT THE FIVE REVOLUTIONS - INDUSTRIAL, TRANSPORT, COMMUNICATIONS, COMPUTER AND INTERNET: “IF YOUR COMPANY HAS PEOPLE WHO ARE SMARTER, BETTER TRAINED, MORE INNOVATIVE AND MORE PASSIONATE THAN THE OPPOSITION, YOU WIN - AND THE IMPLICATIONS ARE PROFOUND.”
APART FROM LEARNING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SKILLS, THE OTHER ASPECT OF SUCCESSFUL CAREER PATHING ARE MENTORING AND COACHING.
REMEMBER THAT ‘WITHOUT A MENTOR, AN INDIVIDUAL WILL LEARN LESS, MORE SLOWLY OR NOT AT ALL,’ SAYS MARIUS MEYER AND LEON FOURIE IN THEIR BOOK, ‘MENTORING AND COACHING’.
· THIS BOOK WAS WRITTEN TO PROVIDE GUIDELINES FOR MANAGERS, TEAM LEADERS, FACILITATORS, MENTORS OR COACHES WHO ARE REQUIRED TO DO SOME FORM OF MENTORING AND COACHING AS PART OF THEIR JOBS.
· THE AUTHORS SAY ‘EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT AND CHANGE MANAGEMENT ARE ESSNTIAL REALITIES OF THE NEW BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT’.
· THAT’S WHAT IS WAITING FOR YOU IN THE WORKPLACE – A NEW BUSINESS ENVIRONMENT, A FAR CRY FROM THE WORKPLACE OF YOUR PARENTS AND GRANDPARENTS.
· COACHING, MENTORING AND TRAINING IS ALL ABOUT HOW ELL YOU PERFORM IN THE WORKPLACE.
SO, RECEIVING YOUR CERTIFICATES AND BEING HAPPILY PHOTOGRAPHED, IS THE START OF YOU’RE YOUR THOUSAND MILE JOURNEY INTO A LIFE WHICH IS REALLY IN YOUR HANDS.
· YOUR ATTITUDE WILL DETERMINE YOUR ALTITUDE.
· YOUR ATTITUDE WILL DETERMINE YOUR DESTINY.
· TAKE NOTE OF THESE TIPS:
· GOOD COMMUNICATIONS SKILLS;
· RESPECTFUL OF SELF AND OTHERS;
· WILLINGNESS TO SHARE;
· FLEXIBLE;
· ENCOURAGING;
· SENSITIVE TO THE NEEDS OF OTHERS;
· SELF-CONFIDENT;
· COMMITTED;
· SUPPORTIVE;
PUT ALL THE TIPS TOGETHER, IT’S A WORD CALLED ‘UBUNTU’ (HUMANENESS OR HUMANKIND).
WE ALL NEED EACH OTHER, NO-ONE IS INDISPENSABLE, NO-ONE IS AN ISLAND;
BE A TEAM PLAYER.
WE ALL KNOW WHO OPRAH WINFREY IS: WELL, SHE SAYS: “WHERE THERE IS NO STRUGGLE, THERE IS NO STRENGTH.”
ALWAYS REMEMBER: “THERE ARE TWO THINGS NEEDED THESE DAYS; FIRST, FOR RICH PEOPLE TO FIND OUT HOW POOR PEOPLE LIVE; AND SECOND, FOR POOR PEOPLE TO FIND OUT HOW RICH PEOPLE WORK.”
AND WILLIAM SPRAGUE ONCE SAID: “DO NOT WAIT TO STRIKE TILL THE IRON IS HOT; BUT MAKE IT HOT BY STRIKING.”
GOOD LUCK.
NKOSI SIKELEL IAFRIKA.
Marlan Padayachee
Marlan.padayachee@gmail.com/ 073 625 8247/ (031) 266 4293/ 266 2134: PA Pinky Naidoo: 078 076 8121/ Professional coordinator & isiZulu tutor: Sally Nene: 082 686 7561
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Miss India Worldwide 2010 in South Africa
Africa> Southern Africa, South Africa
New accounts : Marketing & Media Accounts
Marlan Padayachee GreenGold Africa Communications gains 2010 Miss India Worldwide Pageant account
More accounts...
Marlan Padayachee GreenGold Africa Communications gains 2010 Miss India Worldwide Pageant accountMarlan Padayachee GreenGold Africa Communications have been appointed by African Cultural Events and India Festival Committee New York to secure a host-city for the 2010 Miss India Worldwide Pageant, following the success of the 'House Full' 2009 Miss India Worldwide Pageant at Durban's SuncoastCasino Sundeck on Valentine's Day.
New accounts : Marketing & Media Accounts
Marlan Padayachee GreenGold Africa Communications gains 2010 Miss India Worldwide Pageant account
More accounts...
Marlan Padayachee GreenGold Africa Communications gains 2010 Miss India Worldwide Pageant accountMarlan Padayachee GreenGold Africa Communications have been appointed by African Cultural Events and India Festival Committee New York to secure a host-city for the 2010 Miss India Worldwide Pageant, following the success of the 'House Full' 2009 Miss India Worldwide Pageant at Durban's SuncoastCasino Sundeck on Valentine's Day.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Memons Spread Humanitarian Work in South Africa
Welcome Address by Councillor Fawzia Peer, Chief Whip of the eThekwini Municipality, at the opening ceremony and gala dinner of the of the World Memon Organisation and Board of Management Meeting in Durban on 13-15th February 2009.
Assalamu alaikum. Peace be to you.
Sawubona.
Good Evening to the officials and members of the World Memon Organisation.
I acknowledge the presence of the honourable and distinguished guests.
Assalamu alaikum. Peace be to you.
Within the spirit of the ancient Islamic greeting used by Muslims worldwide, I trust that the three-day get together of the World Memon Organsation will generate a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.
Your conference, taking place in the international convention city of Durban, will bring strangers together on common grounds even when they do not speak each other's languages.
Ladies and gentlemen, I extend an official welcome to all of you from the eThekwini Municipality and the African National Congress that is the ruling party in the City of Durban.
I take this wonderful opportunity to open the three-day World Memon Organisation’s gala dinner and board of management meeting.
At the city hall, we were thrilled when we received information that this international meeting was taking place in Durban in the second month of the New Year.
I am particularly pleased that this historic gathering and important board meeting is taking place at a historic juncture in a city filled with the history of ancient peoples who had traversed this Indian Ocean Rim over the past centuries.
Let me use this opportunity to thank Mr Solly Suleman of the World Memon Organisation, South Africa Chapter, for firstly winning the bid to bring this meeting to Durban, and secondly, for giving me the humble of honour and duty of addressing all of you this evening.
On behalf of the Mayor, His Worship Councillor Obed Mlaba and the eThekwini Municipality and the African National Congress, the ruling party in our democratic city council, I wish to personally acknowledge the presence and participation of the more than 200 delegates.
Among the delegates, I am told, are leading international and local business people and community personalities.
I thank the leadership of the World Memon Organisation for holding its Board of Management Meeting at the Elangeni Hotel, one of the city’s finest hospitality centres.
Durban is indeed honoured to be hosting this prestige annual meeting that rotates every year between chapters across the globe.
We are privileged to be this year’s host city.
Ladies and gentlemen, I stand before you, brimming with a sense of pride that the World memon Organisation will be leaving behind its global footprint and legacy on what we fondly refer to as the “Golden Mile” – a stretch of sun-baked beaches.
Given the organisation’s extensive work around the world, in which you succeed each year in changing the human landscape, the Local Organising Committee has certainly chosen an appropriate venue for this evening’s braai.
The Bay of Plenty has come to represent the collective abundance of human spirit, compassion and goodwill of this vibrant African city where East criss-crosses the West.
Our ancient cultures have merged to produce a unique cacophony of the sights and sounds of our cultural diversity and demographics.
By Sunday when you wrap up your meeting, you would have appreciated the uniqueness of our city, our hospitality and our people.
As I address, the world is facing more than a financial crunch.
Add poverty, starvation, unemployment, diseases and you have a cocktail of horrendous social problems.
Ladies and gentlemen and distinguished delegates, South Africa’s democracy is maturing progressively after 15 years, but yet we face a myriad of challenges that we had largely inherited an apartheid state that was financially and morally bankrupt.
In few weeks, the nation will go to the polls to elect the third government on 22 April, followed by the inauguration of a new president, cabinet, and ministers.
The national elections will impact on our city. There will be changes at the city hall, but I assure you that a democratically elected leadership will be in place to take our dynamic city into the African century.
As Chief Whip of the African National Congress, I believe the vision and mission of the World Memon Organisation falls within the ambit of my party’s slogan that promises a “Better Life for All”.
Having experienced both worlds, the apartheid state and the democratic state, I can assure you that more progress in improving the lives of the impoverished communities have taken place since President Nelson Mandela led the new South Africa in 1994.
Our job as city councilors and politicians at the coalface of our communities, I can share with you that our seven-day week job has its fair share of complexities and challenges as we navigate our work to bring relief and comfort to the poorest of the poor in our city.
Ever since I joined public office, I have embraced a simple and ancient philosophy: “It is better to light a candle, than to curse the darkness”.
Given some of the local and global social and economic dynamics I have briefly alluded to, we need to borrow from the pearls of wisdom of our Blessed Prophet Muhammed (Peace Be Upon Him) when he inspired us with these uplifting words: “When the world pushes you to your knees, you are in a perfect position to pray”.
In South Africa, and particularly in city, we have learnt a culture of volunteerism from our great leaders before us – Mahatma Gandhi, Dr Yusuf Dadoo and many other leaders.
This evening, I am comfortable to be addressing a movement that thrives on volunteerism and self-help.
Your mission and vision is in a perfect position to brighten the bleak human landscape.
This evening, I urge the World Memon Organisation, to keep up your momentum as a leading global social responsibility organisation that encourages businesses and individuals to assist the underprivileged, and may you continue providing leadership vision and empowering our women and youth.
This evening, I urge you to continue building your business networks to fund and sustain this worthy worldwide cause.
I am firmly of the view that government alone cannot solve the social ills of the world. The private sector such as business and your organizations are the catalysts for public-private sector partnerships.
I salute you this evening for having assisted countless families and individuals globally with skills development, scholarships, and bursaries.
The organisation deserves due recognition for providing equipment to empower disadvantaged people to become self sufficient.
The R100 million you have individually and collective invested in this noble humanitarian cause and campaign has not gone unnoticed, at least in the City of Durban.
The city is truly honoured that an organisation of your stature and status has gathered here to map the way forward.
May your organisation of associations, corporate bodies and Jamaats continue to spread your vision and mission across the world.
May your socio-religious calling be heard loud and clear in communities where the sun has to rise.
May the Memon community spread its love and humility to distance lands where people live with hope of a new tomorrow.
I Thank you.
Speech researched and written for the Office of the Chief Whip, Cllr Fawzia Peer of the eThekwini Municipality, City of Durban, South Africa, by Marlan Padayachee Amanda Cele, GreenGold Africa Communications: greengold@telkomsa.net/ www.greengoldcom.com/ www.marlanpadayachee.com/ 083 796 1762/ (031) 266 1762/ Durban South Africa __________________
Assalamu alaikum. Peace be to you.
Sawubona.
Good Evening to the officials and members of the World Memon Organisation.
I acknowledge the presence of the honourable and distinguished guests.
Assalamu alaikum. Peace be to you.
Within the spirit of the ancient Islamic greeting used by Muslims worldwide, I trust that the three-day get together of the World Memon Organsation will generate a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.
Your conference, taking place in the international convention city of Durban, will bring strangers together on common grounds even when they do not speak each other's languages.
Ladies and gentlemen, I extend an official welcome to all of you from the eThekwini Municipality and the African National Congress that is the ruling party in the City of Durban.
I take this wonderful opportunity to open the three-day World Memon Organisation’s gala dinner and board of management meeting.
At the city hall, we were thrilled when we received information that this international meeting was taking place in Durban in the second month of the New Year.
I am particularly pleased that this historic gathering and important board meeting is taking place at a historic juncture in a city filled with the history of ancient peoples who had traversed this Indian Ocean Rim over the past centuries.
Let me use this opportunity to thank Mr Solly Suleman of the World Memon Organisation, South Africa Chapter, for firstly winning the bid to bring this meeting to Durban, and secondly, for giving me the humble of honour and duty of addressing all of you this evening.
On behalf of the Mayor, His Worship Councillor Obed Mlaba and the eThekwini Municipality and the African National Congress, the ruling party in our democratic city council, I wish to personally acknowledge the presence and participation of the more than 200 delegates.
Among the delegates, I am told, are leading international and local business people and community personalities.
I thank the leadership of the World Memon Organisation for holding its Board of Management Meeting at the Elangeni Hotel, one of the city’s finest hospitality centres.
Durban is indeed honoured to be hosting this prestige annual meeting that rotates every year between chapters across the globe.
We are privileged to be this year’s host city.
Ladies and gentlemen, I stand before you, brimming with a sense of pride that the World memon Organisation will be leaving behind its global footprint and legacy on what we fondly refer to as the “Golden Mile” – a stretch of sun-baked beaches.
Given the organisation’s extensive work around the world, in which you succeed each year in changing the human landscape, the Local Organising Committee has certainly chosen an appropriate venue for this evening’s braai.
The Bay of Plenty has come to represent the collective abundance of human spirit, compassion and goodwill of this vibrant African city where East criss-crosses the West.
Our ancient cultures have merged to produce a unique cacophony of the sights and sounds of our cultural diversity and demographics.
By Sunday when you wrap up your meeting, you would have appreciated the uniqueness of our city, our hospitality and our people.
As I address, the world is facing more than a financial crunch.
Add poverty, starvation, unemployment, diseases and you have a cocktail of horrendous social problems.
Ladies and gentlemen and distinguished delegates, South Africa’s democracy is maturing progressively after 15 years, but yet we face a myriad of challenges that we had largely inherited an apartheid state that was financially and morally bankrupt.
In few weeks, the nation will go to the polls to elect the third government on 22 April, followed by the inauguration of a new president, cabinet, and ministers.
The national elections will impact on our city. There will be changes at the city hall, but I assure you that a democratically elected leadership will be in place to take our dynamic city into the African century.
As Chief Whip of the African National Congress, I believe the vision and mission of the World Memon Organisation falls within the ambit of my party’s slogan that promises a “Better Life for All”.
Having experienced both worlds, the apartheid state and the democratic state, I can assure you that more progress in improving the lives of the impoverished communities have taken place since President Nelson Mandela led the new South Africa in 1994.
Our job as city councilors and politicians at the coalface of our communities, I can share with you that our seven-day week job has its fair share of complexities and challenges as we navigate our work to bring relief and comfort to the poorest of the poor in our city.
Ever since I joined public office, I have embraced a simple and ancient philosophy: “It is better to light a candle, than to curse the darkness”.
Given some of the local and global social and economic dynamics I have briefly alluded to, we need to borrow from the pearls of wisdom of our Blessed Prophet Muhammed (Peace Be Upon Him) when he inspired us with these uplifting words: “When the world pushes you to your knees, you are in a perfect position to pray”.
In South Africa, and particularly in city, we have learnt a culture of volunteerism from our great leaders before us – Mahatma Gandhi, Dr Yusuf Dadoo and many other leaders.
This evening, I am comfortable to be addressing a movement that thrives on volunteerism and self-help.
Your mission and vision is in a perfect position to brighten the bleak human landscape.
This evening, I urge the World Memon Organisation, to keep up your momentum as a leading global social responsibility organisation that encourages businesses and individuals to assist the underprivileged, and may you continue providing leadership vision and empowering our women and youth.
This evening, I urge you to continue building your business networks to fund and sustain this worthy worldwide cause.
I am firmly of the view that government alone cannot solve the social ills of the world. The private sector such as business and your organizations are the catalysts for public-private sector partnerships.
I salute you this evening for having assisted countless families and individuals globally with skills development, scholarships, and bursaries.
The organisation deserves due recognition for providing equipment to empower disadvantaged people to become self sufficient.
The R100 million you have individually and collective invested in this noble humanitarian cause and campaign has not gone unnoticed, at least in the City of Durban.
The city is truly honoured that an organisation of your stature and status has gathered here to map the way forward.
May your organisation of associations, corporate bodies and Jamaats continue to spread your vision and mission across the world.
May your socio-religious calling be heard loud and clear in communities where the sun has to rise.
May the Memon community spread its love and humility to distance lands where people live with hope of a new tomorrow.
I Thank you.
Speech researched and written for the Office of the Chief Whip, Cllr Fawzia Peer of the eThekwini Municipality, City of Durban, South Africa, by Marlan Padayachee Amanda Cele, GreenGold Africa Communications: greengold@telkomsa.net/ www.greengoldcom.com/ www.marlanpadayachee.com/ 083 796 1762/ (031) 266 1762/ Durban South Africa __________________
Friday, February 6, 2009
Tribute to Krishna Naidoo
Tribute to a Tireless Charity Fundraiser – Krishna Naidoo A TIRELESS fundraiser and philanthropist for many charities, Krishna Naidoo, died at Durban's Nu Shifa Hospital this week of a heart attack after a short illness, aged 82.Mr Naidoo, of Asherville, Durban, raised hundreds of thousands of rands for the construction of the Saiva Sithantha Sungum's temple and community hall, a project that took spiritual head Guru Krishna Naidoo 30 years to complete. The Mother Theresa Foundation, Benny Hinn and the Divine Life Society also benefited from his contribution and humanitarian work."Ever since my father-in-law's audience with acclaimed spiritual icon Sai Baba in India years ago, he had devoted his life to helping charities and impoverished communities, raising funds, and rallying support for socio-religious organisations both here and abroad," said his son-in-law Marlan Padayachee.Mr Naidoo is survived by his widow, Mrs Pappamah Naidoo and children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His funeral will take place at the Clare Estate Crematorium, where his body will lie in state on Sunday, 8 February 2008, from 1pm to 3.30pm. Ends _____________________________________________________________________________________Issued by Pinky Naidoo 031 266 5599/ 266 1872/ 083 796 1762/ 083... pnpinkynaidoo@gamil.com
Saturday, January 10, 2009
Imagine Durban Promotes Tomorrow's Clowns without Borders
Eureka! Imagine Durban Puts Smiles on Tomorrow’s Homegrown Clowns
Written by Marlan Padayachee
Monday, 22 December 2008
In its quest to make a difference to the city’s environmental and human landscapes, Imagine Durban has transformed the lives of several young people from previously disadvantaged and indigent communities through the drama therapy of simply clowning around for a worthy cause.
Step aside circus institution, Boswell Wilkies. Let the drums roll for a curtain call to Vuka Circus, Durban’s first, homegrown circus road show.
With jobs becoming scarce for young graduates and school-leavers amid a global recession and economic meltdown, Imagine Durban, in an exciting partnership with the internationally-renowned Clowns Without Borders, has successfully harnessed the untapped skills of eight youths from the Durban’s inner-city townships and other areas. After a month-long programme, including workshops in the art of clowning around, twisting a balloon, juggling in pairs and scaling new heights on the shoulders of clowning colleagues, Eureka!
Vuka Circus is the latest red-nosed brigade that’s on the roll to put smiles on the faces of men, women and children throughout Durban, from the historic heritage site of Bhambayi’s Gandhi Settlement to the Valley of 1000 Hills.
The Clowns Without Borders’ mentoring and skills development workshops with Vuka Circus is one of the central themes of Imagine Durban, a project led by the eThekwini Municipality, to celebrate Durban’s cultural diversity, arts and heritage.
Imagine Durban is a Municipality sponsored project being implemented in conjunction with Sustainable Cities, a Canadian NGO and the PLUS Network, a network of 35 cities in 14 countries that has been established to share experiences in sustainability planning, that is funded by the Canadian International Development Agency.
A core element of the Imagine Durban project was to allocate funding for community Demonstration Projects that would directly benefit the citizens of Durban in a sustainable way. There are currently eight Imagine Durban Demonstration Projects that will be implemented throughout the Municipality addressing issues ranging from public safety and food security to art and livelihoods.
With the launch of the first Demonstration Project, Vuka Circus has arrived. Through choreography of colourful antics, juggling, animation, acrobats and even scaling shoulders, Vuka Circus narrates the painful and poignant stories of the deadly scourge of HIV-Aids and the post-apartheid nightmare of xenophobhia that has blighted the new South Africa’s human rights image.
Vuka Circus performed the awareness raising show eleven times in early December. Nine of the performances were followed by workshops in which children were taught some clowning basics after which they were divided into groups and the performers facilitated a discussion about xenophobia.
Through the skilful antics of Busi Biyela or Bongekile Mabuya or Sipho Mdletshe, or Michael Ncayiyana’s red-nosed clowning, the juggling prowess of Sabee Shozi and Mduza Nzuza, Thandile Phoswa’s prancing in hoops of joy and jubilation, the rookie change agents animates the intolerance of humanity towards each other, the desperate scramble for bread crumbs in the shrinking food chain cycle and a dash for menial jobs in the marketplace.
“Clowns are far more than showing how to twist balloons or creating balloon sculpture and Clowns Without Borders, with the excellent support of Imagine Durban, has empowered Vuka Circus with new skills as clowns, acrobats and jugglers,” said Jamie Lachman, Founder and Director Clowns Without Borders South Africa, soon after his protégés delivered their final laugh-a-minute performance at the BAT Centre on the city’s waterfront recently.
“Through juggling, acrobats, games and some clowning, children learn in a fun way how to talk about the recent xenophobic attacks on foreigners and how to deal with the burning question of HIV-AIDS that continues to affect parents and guardians and leaves children orphaned.”
Project administrator Lulu Ngcobo says she has witnessed some “amazing transformation” in the scores of youths who have benefited from the road shows: “Imagine Durban has given us an excellent opportunity to source the best talents from communities that are sidelined from the social and economic mainstream. These free skills development opportunities has empowered youths with professional development and life skills and many of them are now much more versatile.
Eleven performances later, the colourful clown troupe that makes up the Vuka Circus has brought smiles and laughter to the children and adults in schools and communities across Durban, highlighting the pangs of a post-apartheid society caught in a grip of grinding poverty and unemployment. They left their audiences in stitches.
Published on Imagine Durban website on 22 December 2008 Durban South Africa
Marlan Padayachee GreenGold Africa Communications provide journalistic and photographic support for Imagine Durban
Written by Marlan Padayachee
Monday, 22 December 2008
In its quest to make a difference to the city’s environmental and human landscapes, Imagine Durban has transformed the lives of several young people from previously disadvantaged and indigent communities through the drama therapy of simply clowning around for a worthy cause.
Step aside circus institution, Boswell Wilkies. Let the drums roll for a curtain call to Vuka Circus, Durban’s first, homegrown circus road show.
With jobs becoming scarce for young graduates and school-leavers amid a global recession and economic meltdown, Imagine Durban, in an exciting partnership with the internationally-renowned Clowns Without Borders, has successfully harnessed the untapped skills of eight youths from the Durban’s inner-city townships and other areas. After a month-long programme, including workshops in the art of clowning around, twisting a balloon, juggling in pairs and scaling new heights on the shoulders of clowning colleagues, Eureka!
Vuka Circus is the latest red-nosed brigade that’s on the roll to put smiles on the faces of men, women and children throughout Durban, from the historic heritage site of Bhambayi’s Gandhi Settlement to the Valley of 1000 Hills.
The Clowns Without Borders’ mentoring and skills development workshops with Vuka Circus is one of the central themes of Imagine Durban, a project led by the eThekwini Municipality, to celebrate Durban’s cultural diversity, arts and heritage.
Imagine Durban is a Municipality sponsored project being implemented in conjunction with Sustainable Cities, a Canadian NGO and the PLUS Network, a network of 35 cities in 14 countries that has been established to share experiences in sustainability planning, that is funded by the Canadian International Development Agency.
A core element of the Imagine Durban project was to allocate funding for community Demonstration Projects that would directly benefit the citizens of Durban in a sustainable way. There are currently eight Imagine Durban Demonstration Projects that will be implemented throughout the Municipality addressing issues ranging from public safety and food security to art and livelihoods.
With the launch of the first Demonstration Project, Vuka Circus has arrived. Through choreography of colourful antics, juggling, animation, acrobats and even scaling shoulders, Vuka Circus narrates the painful and poignant stories of the deadly scourge of HIV-Aids and the post-apartheid nightmare of xenophobhia that has blighted the new South Africa’s human rights image.
Vuka Circus performed the awareness raising show eleven times in early December. Nine of the performances were followed by workshops in which children were taught some clowning basics after which they were divided into groups and the performers facilitated a discussion about xenophobia.
Through the skilful antics of Busi Biyela or Bongekile Mabuya or Sipho Mdletshe, or Michael Ncayiyana’s red-nosed clowning, the juggling prowess of Sabee Shozi and Mduza Nzuza, Thandile Phoswa’s prancing in hoops of joy and jubilation, the rookie change agents animates the intolerance of humanity towards each other, the desperate scramble for bread crumbs in the shrinking food chain cycle and a dash for menial jobs in the marketplace.
“Clowns are far more than showing how to twist balloons or creating balloon sculpture and Clowns Without Borders, with the excellent support of Imagine Durban, has empowered Vuka Circus with new skills as clowns, acrobats and jugglers,” said Jamie Lachman, Founder and Director Clowns Without Borders South Africa, soon after his protégés delivered their final laugh-a-minute performance at the BAT Centre on the city’s waterfront recently.
“Through juggling, acrobats, games and some clowning, children learn in a fun way how to talk about the recent xenophobic attacks on foreigners and how to deal with the burning question of HIV-AIDS that continues to affect parents and guardians and leaves children orphaned.”
Project administrator Lulu Ngcobo says she has witnessed some “amazing transformation” in the scores of youths who have benefited from the road shows: “Imagine Durban has given us an excellent opportunity to source the best talents from communities that are sidelined from the social and economic mainstream. These free skills development opportunities has empowered youths with professional development and life skills and many of them are now much more versatile.
Eleven performances later, the colourful clown troupe that makes up the Vuka Circus has brought smiles and laughter to the children and adults in schools and communities across Durban, highlighting the pangs of a post-apartheid society caught in a grip of grinding poverty and unemployment. They left their audiences in stitches.
Published on Imagine Durban website on 22 December 2008 Durban South Africa
Marlan Padayachee GreenGold Africa Communications provide journalistic and photographic support for Imagine Durban
Indians A Colourful Community
A colorful community 08 Jan 2009 published in the Natal Witness, South Africa
Marlan Padayachee
This week local Indians are building bridges at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (Global Indian Diaspora) Convention in Chennai, India, an occasion that provides an opportunity to examine the perennial identity crisis facing the Indian community in South Africa who will celebrate 150 years in South Africa in 2010. This time next year the Indian community will celebrate a plethora of projects marking their 150-year co-existence in Africa, a far cry from the country they refer to as the motherland or Thai Nadu.While older generations are emotional and sentimental about traditional and historical ties with Mother India, the younger generations seek jobs and lifestyles in Western democracies, leaving behind the baggage of the past.On the flipside, the hybrid of labourers and traders has the capacity to fuse this milestone into a continental psyche that will herald the first kick-off of the 2010 Soccer World Cup and throw Africa into a euphoric explosion of football frenzy. Their culture contributes to our cosmopolitan society.A community with a history and heritage can offer much more to a country with the complexities and challenges of economic empowerment, nation-building, poverty, crime and corruption.During the reign of the British Raj, agriculturally skilled Indians were shipped to South Africa and other colonial outposts to turn sugar cane plantations into new economies for the imperial industrialists, hence the term “green gold”. Peasants, faced with grinding poverty, were lured via the colonial expansion to work on the railways, mines, agriculture and domestic services.After the SS Truro dropped anchor in Durban Bay on November 16, 1860 with the first batch, shiploads of semi-skilled slaves, professionals and merchants were ferried in droves. The economic migration ended 50 years later. The pioneers gave birth to a new generation, the largest outside India.While the stoical semi-slaves transformed the green fields into gold for sugar barons, traders and craftsmen gave Indians an economic and capitalist face on this edge of the Indian Ocean rim.It took a visionary, M. K. Gandhi, to change the complexion of how the business and the underclass Indians would map out their survival strategy and destiny in the face of discrimination that was also meted out to indigenous people.In an Indian diaspora of 20 million, the local community stands out for a variety of reasons, with political resistance and an enterprising spirit ranking high.The “uniqueness” comes from the work culture that they inherited from their forebears, always resilient in the face of adversity. Credibility came by siding with the oppressed masses. With this al-liance, they got rid of the colonial-apartheid leg irons.Staving off repatriation, they sacrificed so much for so many people to enjoy freedom, social justice and human rights, making them a cut above the rest in the global village.On the other side of the coin, the grass is no longer greener for working-class Indians, now in a similar position to poorer black workers.Although Indians today are a formidable presence, enjoying social cohesion and economic advantage, and continue to influence business and politics, the legacy of the 1860 descendants has been left behind by change.Or did the winds of an epoch-making transformation push Indians onto the margins of the economically empowered black mainstream, in sharp contrast to the role they played in the resistance to apartheid?With 800 000 Indians in KwaZulu-Natal, 2010 still provides an excellent exhibition to showcase their 150 years.Politically, the Indian swing vote is important to the national ballot, being split between the African National Congress and its dissident Congress of the People formation, and a variety of opposition parties.Conservative by nature, Indians blow hot and cold. Always apolitical, they are cautious and put “place bets” on the political roulette wheel. They need to assimilate themselves into the nation’s heartbeat.Yet of 1, 3 million Asians, two percent of South Africa’s population of 47 million, Indians are in the majority.When they arrived from colonial India, they were termed Indian South Africans. At the Global People of Indian Origin gathering, they were called South Africans of Indian origin. They have evolved via political resistance to Indian-African or African-Indian.Notwithstanding the sentimental journey, emotional bloodlines and poignant history, culminating in the triumphal spirit of humanity, the identity crisis is a post-apartheid challenge. This is further complicated by a strong identification with Bollywood, heart-throbbing ethnic music, spicy cuisines, sweetmeats and saris, demonstrating that the umbilical cord with Mother India is still intact. That’s why a contingent of Indians is lobbying at the Chennai Convention, hoping to sharpen their profiles, forge business opportunities and explore their ancestry. Significantly, Chennai is the port where mainly Tamil and Telugu-speaking labourers from the Madras presidency sailed for the “bay by the water”, and began to push into Africa. Today, a legacy lives in the hearts and minds of a people whose forebears toiled from dawn to dusk under the African sun.Marlan Padayachee
Marlan Padayachee
This week local Indians are building bridges at the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (Global Indian Diaspora) Convention in Chennai, India, an occasion that provides an opportunity to examine the perennial identity crisis facing the Indian community in South Africa who will celebrate 150 years in South Africa in 2010. This time next year the Indian community will celebrate a plethora of projects marking their 150-year co-existence in Africa, a far cry from the country they refer to as the motherland or Thai Nadu.While older generations are emotional and sentimental about traditional and historical ties with Mother India, the younger generations seek jobs and lifestyles in Western democracies, leaving behind the baggage of the past.On the flipside, the hybrid of labourers and traders has the capacity to fuse this milestone into a continental psyche that will herald the first kick-off of the 2010 Soccer World Cup and throw Africa into a euphoric explosion of football frenzy. Their culture contributes to our cosmopolitan society.A community with a history and heritage can offer much more to a country with the complexities and challenges of economic empowerment, nation-building, poverty, crime and corruption.During the reign of the British Raj, agriculturally skilled Indians were shipped to South Africa and other colonial outposts to turn sugar cane plantations into new economies for the imperial industrialists, hence the term “green gold”. Peasants, faced with grinding poverty, were lured via the colonial expansion to work on the railways, mines, agriculture and domestic services.After the SS Truro dropped anchor in Durban Bay on November 16, 1860 with the first batch, shiploads of semi-skilled slaves, professionals and merchants were ferried in droves. The economic migration ended 50 years later. The pioneers gave birth to a new generation, the largest outside India.While the stoical semi-slaves transformed the green fields into gold for sugar barons, traders and craftsmen gave Indians an economic and capitalist face on this edge of the Indian Ocean rim.It took a visionary, M. K. Gandhi, to change the complexion of how the business and the underclass Indians would map out their survival strategy and destiny in the face of discrimination that was also meted out to indigenous people.In an Indian diaspora of 20 million, the local community stands out for a variety of reasons, with political resistance and an enterprising spirit ranking high.The “uniqueness” comes from the work culture that they inherited from their forebears, always resilient in the face of adversity. Credibility came by siding with the oppressed masses. With this al-liance, they got rid of the colonial-apartheid leg irons.Staving off repatriation, they sacrificed so much for so many people to enjoy freedom, social justice and human rights, making them a cut above the rest in the global village.On the other side of the coin, the grass is no longer greener for working-class Indians, now in a similar position to poorer black workers.Although Indians today are a formidable presence, enjoying social cohesion and economic advantage, and continue to influence business and politics, the legacy of the 1860 descendants has been left behind by change.Or did the winds of an epoch-making transformation push Indians onto the margins of the economically empowered black mainstream, in sharp contrast to the role they played in the resistance to apartheid?With 800 000 Indians in KwaZulu-Natal, 2010 still provides an excellent exhibition to showcase their 150 years.Politically, the Indian swing vote is important to the national ballot, being split between the African National Congress and its dissident Congress of the People formation, and a variety of opposition parties.Conservative by nature, Indians blow hot and cold. Always apolitical, they are cautious and put “place bets” on the political roulette wheel. They need to assimilate themselves into the nation’s heartbeat.Yet of 1, 3 million Asians, two percent of South Africa’s population of 47 million, Indians are in the majority.When they arrived from colonial India, they were termed Indian South Africans. At the Global People of Indian Origin gathering, they were called South Africans of Indian origin. They have evolved via political resistance to Indian-African or African-Indian.Notwithstanding the sentimental journey, emotional bloodlines and poignant history, culminating in the triumphal spirit of humanity, the identity crisis is a post-apartheid challenge. This is further complicated by a strong identification with Bollywood, heart-throbbing ethnic music, spicy cuisines, sweetmeats and saris, demonstrating that the umbilical cord with Mother India is still intact. That’s why a contingent of Indians is lobbying at the Chennai Convention, hoping to sharpen their profiles, forge business opportunities and explore their ancestry. Significantly, Chennai is the port where mainly Tamil and Telugu-speaking labourers from the Madras presidency sailed for the “bay by the water”, and began to push into Africa. Today, a legacy lives in the hearts and minds of a people whose forebears toiled from dawn to dusk under the African sun.Marlan Padayachee
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
