Hundreds of people, several in traditional attire, met at the Kuyasa library on Thursday May 23 to celebrate Africa Day, an annual worldwide celebration of the continent's people, culture and heritage.

It was about celebrating Africa as well as promoting social cohesion in Khayelitsha through the community's libraries, said principal librarian Vuyokazi Njambatwa-Rani.

“It is a day that we need to respect and commemorate... We ought to respect it by showcasing our talent and skills but also not forgetting to read our history,” she said.

Participants included councillor Ayanda Thethani, King Mawethu Ndude, author Phindile Memani, publishers, musicians, librarians, and the public.

King Ndude, in traditional attire, spoke about being an African and ubuntu, and he urged people to know their roots and be proud of their African heritage.

Cultures, customs and traditions of all nationalities should be revived, he said, adding that some of today's crimes were probably the result of people straying from their cultures.

“We need to love each other. It does not matter whether you are from north Africa or south. We are all black people. We also came from up north. If you kill what you call a foreigner from the north, you are not sure if you are killing your background. Long before this democracy, we cared for each other. There were no orphans and widows because everybody would help them in one way or another. The chiefs were given a task to take care of widows and their children. That is ubuntu."

Being an African meant embracing your culture and spreading the spirit of ubuntu across all racial groups, he said, calling on people to be proud of their traditional attire and wear it.

"Gone are the days when people were mocked for wearing their traditional attire. There was a time when a person wearing traditional attire was regarded as amaqaba (primitive people). But today we encourage our people to be proud of their culture and tradition."

He said chiefs should stay out of politics and he called for unity to fight crime in the country.

Congolese national Fwamba Mukole called on foreign nationals to respect the country’s laws.

“I do not believe that crime is only targeting foreign nationals. South Africans too are scared to walk the streets,” he said.

Traditional leaders, from left, Chief Xolani Daniel, King Mawethu Ndude and Chief Ngxowayesizwe, in full song.

Phakama Matoti, from the National Library of South Africa, directed the programme.

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