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2019 Kovsies Multilingual Mokete Competition winners

23 September 2019 | Story Xolisa Mnukwa | Photo Charl Devenish

Best dressed winner — The winners of the best dressed social media competition with Earl B (third from the left).

On 18 September 2019, the University of the Free State (UFS) hosted its first ever Multilingual Festival in an effort to promote a multilingual and multicultural environment for staff, students, and all stakeholders of the university.

Staff, students, and other stakeholders of the university dressed in imibaco (traditional Xhosa apparel) ranging from white, yellow, red, and green, Diaparo tsa setso sa Sesotho, and traditional attire from other cultural tribes including Zulu, Swati, Ndebele, and Tswana, to name a few, were treated to various forms of celebration. The festival entailed visual-art displays, poetry, storytelling, drama, music, and song in the dominant languages spoken at the UFS, which are English, Afrikaans, Sesotho, isiZulu, and South African Sign Language, and food stalls selling dishes ranging from pap and braaivleis to koeksisters and milk tart.

The audience were treated to short stories, including Magic on campus, written by Siphilangenkosi Dlamini and performed by Oliver Bongo; Xola Nhliziyo, written by Noluthando Portia Khumalo and performed by Ayanda Khanyile; and Grense, written by Joane Jansen van Rensburg. Nina and Palesa compiled a drama piece titled WTF is a relationship, poems included Mohlomong, written by Thabiso Lesaba and Lucky Mokeona, and Mosadi, written by Relumetse Makhatsane, N’kone Mametja, Abby Gabarone-Phate and Ayanda Khanyile.

Attendants had the opportunity to participate and win cash prizes ranging from R500 to R1 000 in various competitions and performances that took place during celebrations at the multilingual festival.

The winners for the mokete festivities are as follows:
Best artwork – Elaine Mahlalela and Kamogelo Mankuroane
Best short story – Siphilangenkosi Dlamini: Magic on Campus
Best poem – Thabiso Leshaba: Mohlomong
Best drama piece – Nina and Palesa

The best-dressed moketers for the 2019 #KovsiesMultilingualMokete were Joseph Sako, Evodia Mohoanyane, Karabo Lekomanyane, Tshepo Ramokoatsi, and Lungelo Mthimkhulu, who each walked away with R500 for their efforts to dress up and stick to the multicultural theme. Soet-Bravado (House Soetdoring and House Villa Bravado) won the most votes for their performance in the People’s Choice category, claiming R1 000 each.

News Archive

Panel to discuss: 'Speaking wounds: voices of Marikana widows through art and narrative' on Monday 27 July 2015

2015-07-24

The massacre of 34 mine workers at Marikana on 16 August 2012 had South Africans in uproar. But what remained, after the razor wire was rolled up and the camera crews left, were 34 widows engulfed in silent despair. That was until the Khulumani Support Group introduced them to the transformative power of art and storytelling. In the last installment of the Vice-Chancellor’s Lecture Series for this year, a panel of speakers will discuss these widows’ journey with the theme of ‘Speaking wounds: voices of Marikana widows through art and narrative’.

Panel
The panel will consist of members from the Khulumani Support Group that include Dr Marjorie Jobson (National Director), Nomarussia Bonase (National Organiser), and Judy Seidman (Sociologist and Graphic Artist). Nomfundo Walaza, who is the former CEO of the Desmond Tutu Peace Centre, will be the respondent.

Details of the event:
Date: Monday 27 July 2015
Time: 12:00
Venue: Chancellor's Room, Centenary Complex, Bloemfontein Campus
RSVP: Nomusa Mthethwa at Nomusam@ufs.ac.za (Members of the public are welcome to attend.)

Body maps
An art exhibition consisting of body maps created by the widows will also be on display. These paintings quietly portray the turmoil of their inner landscapes, their perceptions of the massacre, and the impact these events had on their lives.

Collaboration
The lecture series is hosted by Prof Pumla Gobodo-Madikizela, Senior Research Professor in Trauma, Forgiveness, and Reconciliation Studies at the University of the Free State (UFS), as part of a five-year research project funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. This installment of the lecture series is presented in collaboration with the UFS Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice.

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