Published by the government of Zimbabwe
21 July 2007
Harare — ZIMBABWEANS should work together to use arts and culture as a special component for the country's economic development, Vice President Joice Mujuru said yesterday.
She was speaking at a colourful function organised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation recognising the Mbende/ Jerusarema Dance as a "Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" in Murehwa.
"With the culture policy now in place, it is Zimbabwe's desire, through the efforts of all stakeholders, to put arts and culture at the forefront of Zimbabwe's economic development," she said.
Cde Mujuru said it was important for smaller nations like Zimbabwe to flaunt their cultural heritage to avoid their unique identities from being wiped out in the fast-globalising world characterised by cultural domination by developed countries.
She commended Unesco's proclamation of the Zimbabwean dance as a "Masterpiece of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity".
"We are humbled by such proclamation. It is now incumbent upon us to complement this gesture by announcing to the whole world the authentic and original Mbende dance," she said.
The Vice President also commended members of the various organs that worked hard resulting in the Unesco judges agreeing unanimously that the Mbende/Jerusarema Dance was an excellent piece of art, a creation deserving preservation for future generations.
The dance is one of the unique traditional dance forms found in this country. Originally called "Dembe", the dance was an expression of celebrating fertility, the sacredness of familyhood and sexual union.
The hip-vibrating, waist-shaking and pelvis-thrusting movements make the Jerusarema dance unique in Southern Africa because most of the traditional dances of the sub-continent were dominantly foot-stamping and intricate footwork.
Cde Mujuru said it was imperative to preserve this artistic form that truly represents one of Zimbabwe's distinctive cultural traits.
She said the yodelling vocal sounds which characterise the Jerusarema music had stood out significantly as mastery found among very few ethnic groups in the country.
This, she said, would make it difficult to hand over this mastery of human creativity to future generations.
Cde Mujuru said it was important for the world and the nation to know the true origin and function of the people living in Murehwa and Uzumba-Maramba-Pfungwe.
The Vice President also noted that as the arts industry continues to grow, the sector was plagued by rampant piracy, particularly in music, the visual arts and crafts.
She said that as the patron of the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe, she was happy that various instruments to fight piracy were now in place.
"The Copy and Neighbouring Rights Act is one of the pieces of legislation that my Government has enacted to positively promote the growth of the arts sector and to bring to book those people who infringe on the intellectual rights of creators," she said.
Cde Mujuru added that as South Africa was hosting the 2010 World Cup soccer extravaganza, the country should be set into real action designed to brand its ethnic dances.
She said the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe should use the dance to market Zimbabwe's tourism.
Unesco Harare cluster office director Mr Juma Shabani said for the Jerusarema dance to be considered a world masterpiece, it had demonstrated that it possesses outstanding value as the product of creative human genius.
It played a role as a means of affirming the cultural identity of the community concerned and constituted a unique testimony of a living cultural tradition.
Mr Shabani urged the Government to identify other areas for the Intangible Cultural Heritage Representative List.
"It is, however, the responsibility of Zimbabwe as a state party to take the initiative to have any intangible heritage listed," he said.
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