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SASL Star: Lerato Sheila Thamahane

22 September 2021 | Story Michelle Nöthling | Photo Supplied

Lerato Thamahane may be able to speak and understand all nine of South Africa’s official African languages, but it is a tenth language she is devoting her life to: South African Sign Language (SASL).

With nearly ten years’ experience as a SASL interpreter in several settings – ranging from the medical and mental-health fields to that of conferences and Deafblind interpreting – Lerato is living her life’s purpose. “I regard myself as a member of the Deaf community and a servant at the same time.”

Lerato lives by the principle that the more perspectives she gains on the world, the better service as an interpreter she can provide. This is also part of the reason why Lerato decided to take on the role of student again to study BA Language Practice to provide her with an even broader perspective on the field.

But why does Lerato feel so strongly about SASL? It is only through Sign Language, Lerato explains, that one can bridge the divide between the world of the hearing and that of the Deaf. “SASL is the only way for the minority Deaf group to receive and transfer information,” Lerato emphasises. “Deaf people cannot communicate in any other way.” Now, consider for a moment the plight of a Deaf child in South Africa. To receive education in SASL, most Deaf children have to move far away from home at a very young age in order to attend a school for the Deaf. For many years, schools for the Deaf did not include other languages as subjects, which prevented Deaf school-leavers from entering higher education. Although this situation has largely changed, Deaf students are still fighting an uphill battle when entering higher education institutions where prejudice and ignorance still persist. This is where the work of the Centre for Universal Access and Disability Support (CUADS) and the Department of South African Sign Language (SASL) and Deaf Studies makes such a crucial difference.

“I firmly believe,” Lerato says, “that only Sign Language can open opportunities for all groups of the Deaf community – from Deaf children to adults, and from the uneducated to the most educated Deaf people.” It is for this reason, Lerato argues, that our constitution needs to recognise SASL in order to give Deaf people full and equal access to information, to education, and ultimately, to all the opportunities South Africa has to offer.

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Summer programme a first outside Austria

2012-12-06

Mr Derek Hanekom, Minister of Science and Technology
Foto: Johan Roux
05 Desember 2012

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People often fight about their differences, like skin colour, religion and more. “These differences are minute. We must celebrate our common ancestry and commit ourselves to a common destiny. Your work can make a difference.” This is according to Mr Derek Hanekom, Minister of Science and Technology.

He opened the Southern African Young Scientists Summer Programme (SA-YSSP) at the Bloemfontein Campus on Sunday 2 December 2012. The UFS is the first institution outside Austria to host the Summer Programme. A total of 19 young researchers from 17 countries will be hosted by the UFS until 28 February 2013. Researchers in the programme are, among others, from South Africa, Egypt, China, Italy, Sweden, Iran, Hungary, India, the USA and Indonesia.

The programme will form part of an annual three-month education, academic training and research capacity-building programme jointly organised by the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), based in Austria, the National Research Foundation (NRF) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST). IIASA is an international research organisation that conducts policy-oriented scientific research in the three global problem areas of energy and climate change, food and water and poverty and equity. South Africa’s engagements with IIASA, specifically with regard to the SA-YSSP, relate primarily to the DST’s Ten-Year Innovation Plan.

Mr Hanekom spoke about the impact the growing global population, which is expected to grow from 7 billion in 2012 to 9 billion in 2050, has on natural resources. “We use purified water to flush our toilets while other people do not have clean drinking water. We cannot carry on like this. Somewhere it must stop, if we do not want to be responsible for the 6th great extinction. We must know how our systems impact on each other.

“We can do things differently and better and should endeavour that other people enjoy luxuries we take for granted,” he said.

He urged the researchers to believe that they can make a difference, share knowledge and translate the knowledge into plans.

Prof. Dr Pavel Kabat, Director/CEO of IIASA, said the summer programme was presented outside Austria for the first time, with plans to expand to Brazil and China in future. Twenty countries are represented on the IIASA board, with more than 3 000 researchers associated with the organisation.

IIASA was launched in 1972 in the days of the Cold War as a “science bridge” between the West and the Soviet Union. It served as a “think tank” for various issues that needed to be resolved. Its mission was reconfirmed after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989.

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