Although the Qiniso dialogues is about finding a common identity among South Africa’s citizens, spending just 10 minutes in one of the sessions drives home how difficult it is for citizens from different backgrounds to connect with one another.
Delegates converse with each other freely and seemingly engage on a level you’d only expect from a confidante of many years, but it only flows to a point where delegates find themselves tripped up by the age-old hurdles of language and cultural differences.
Perhaps this should be expected, owing to the vibrant mix of the second session’s attendees.
From the hipster to the business executive, the social worker to the public servant and the artist to the ex-convict; clad in a range of jeans, suits, and ethnic attire; all came together with their own ideas and perceptions on where South Africa is as a nation.
Often, it is simply being able to talk honestly and openly with a diverse mix of South Africans that makes a world of difference in engaging meaningfully with fellow citizens.
“Given our past, our perceptions are often very misguided. By just talking face to face we are immediately able to start breaking down those stereotypes. We need to understand each other and this is a start,” Sheena Adams, features editor at Ndalo productions, told the Mail & Guardian.
But talking openly with someone is not always possible when you are faced with social and cultural differences, and also don’t speak the same language.
“Our past is so overwhelming and certain folk still have this image in the back of their minds that some people are inferior to them — just because they are different. It keeps them from connecting — and from engaging,” managing director of Intellect Magazine Sifiso Thshabalala said.
It’s about discourse
Even though the differences come across as superficial at times, the divide between many of the participants in the dialogues is striking as each one tries to tell their story or get their point across.
The old adage about not judging someone until you have walked a mile in their shoes might fit into the theme of the dialogues well; but the perception as an observer was that sometimes, even though participants tried, simple empathy was the most each could offer the other.
Then again, this might not be the main goal of the dialogues, as attendee Thabo Lesora, cultural activist and social scientist attests.
“You have to be aware what we are trying to do — it’s not only about getting people talking but also about engaging. You can talk, but it’s the way your message is translated. People are talking but the discourse needs to change.”
It certainly is a tall order to expect significant engagement between participants who hardly know each other and come from such different backgrounds — even more so if you expect this to be instantaneous.
But for some, it is the striking variety of the participants that makes the Qiniso dialogues a worthwhile experience.
“The diversity among delegates is what makes these things work. We all live such insulated lives; this gives us a chance to truly engage. We have our own differences but there is a common passion among young people in South Africa that will go a long way in fixing the country’s problems. Often we’re quick to give answers and not listen. Here you are forced to do both,” said Gilbert Pooley, director at the Umuzi Photo Club said.
Can it be done?
So while South Africans might struggle to find common ground, is it fair to assume that in the right context, time and setting, it can be done?
Perhaps the most poignant viewpoint came from the mouth a non-South African: York Zucchi, a Swiss entrepreneur and South African resident for three years, who was able to articulate something so many South Africans have trouble conceding: South Africa is a great country.
“You come here and realise that there are people here with so much charisma and character. You can’t put your finger on what exactly it is about this country and the continent [that makes it great] — but it’s there and it’s special. What’s important is that you are talking about it though — and for me that’s the right way to go,” Zucchi said.
In helping to bridge our cultural and linguistic divides, the Qiniso dialogues present a compelling argument: That by just talking to one another, South Africans will realise they have far more in common than they had previously imagined.