Amidst all the big literary names at Wordfest, 20 Eastern Cape women are making their mark. Some barely manage to make ends meet, but they are unique, special and deserve credit for what they have achieved.
”I am a single mother of five,” says Fanelwa Ngese. ”I have no job and I am trying to dig up this diamond. Diamonds come from the dust – they are glittering and we just need to expose them.”
Dressed in a traditional yellow Xhosa outfit, this amazingly optimistic woman has published, for the first time, a short story in the recently launched book You Can Do It, the project of an empowerment initiative for Eastern Cape women.
”It is like a dream come true – I have followed something I have been denying for a long time, my dream to be a writer,” she smiles.
Ngese hails from Gubevu location in the Amahlathi district. Her short story, called Ilisikolisiko, reminds Xhosa people of their culture and how important it is not to lose a heritage that determines who you are.
She lowers her voice and I get an eerie chill as she speaks of rituals that could have dire consequences in the Xhosa culture if not adhered to.
”For a long time cattle were dying in our village,” she whispers, ”in our culture you are supposed to shave off all your hair when this happens. My father refused to do this for a long time and cattle kept dying. When he finally did it – the bad luck stopped.”
Most of the short stories and poems emphasise the importance of embracing and accepting one’s culture. They are written in English, Afrikaans, Suthu and Xhosa.
”The Pondomise tribe had a problem with mole snakes a few years ago,” explains Nelly Lunika from Tsolo. ”The people were building a community centre when they were frightened by a whole lot of tangled snakes that had taken over the site they were building on. An appeasement ceremony was called and the snakes never ever returned. That is what my story is about – telling the story of a people who have such a rich heritage.”
Noxolo Ngumbela from Qumbu has taken a different approach. Her story, called Ibuyambomzikantu, imparts a valuable message to parents who still refuse to discuss the issue of sex with their children.
”Don’t hide things from our children,” she says earnestly, ”discuss issues of love and relations openly otherwise they do it secretly and could destroy their lives.”
The book contains powerful, thought provoking and pertinent issues about life – issues that should be ”shouted from rooftops” but for some unspoken reason they are not.
”It is because too many women are still scared to voice their opinions,” believes Nthombolundi Zitha, ”for fear of being attacked by members of the community. That is why issues of abuse and HIV are such problems. So few people are willing to confront them. Women must start writing now and get out there – put our struggles and issues down on paper.” – ECN-Cue