[ 2014-08-27 ]

Africa and the need to preserve its culture
Accra, GNA - Africans can be said to be people who
are interested in their culture. This is so due to
the way some ethnic groups and countries have
managed to preserve their culture up to this day.

About eight years ago, some Bushmen from the
Kalahari in Botswana sent their government to
court when they were faced with possible
eviction.

The government claimed it had wanted to develop
the area but the Bushmen, who had occupied that
region for ages, felt allowing the government to
evacuate them would amount to losing their
identity, hence their fierce resistance and the
court action.

Not surprisingly they won against the government.
What these Bushmen did was a clear demonstration
of the importance they attach to their identity
and culture as well.

In Swaziland, which is run by a monarch,
occasionally festivals are held for the King to
choose a new wife in addition to those he already
has. The King chooses the young and the beautiful
ones.

Although he has faced a lot of criticisms both
from within and outside his country, the monarch
has done virtually nothing to abolish this
practice. The monarch claims it is part of their
culture.

All these show the importance Africans attach to
their culture even the obnoxious ones which need
to be reformed or abolished.

The Ethiopian government has been agitating for
years for the return of the country's regalia and
artifacts from Italy but not much has been
achieved.

About nine years ago the Italian government did
well by sending some of the country's artifacts to
them but unfortunately many more are still in
museums in that country.

While some Africans have fought very had to
preserve some good aspects of their culture, which
is their identity, globalisation and foreign
influence among the youth are is having a negative
toll on them and their identity as Africans.

It is based on this that there has been a clarion
call on Africans, both young and old, to help in
the preservation of its culture and heritage.

Globalisation has affected all aspects of
Africans’ lives. These include music, food, mode
of dressing and even our way of greeting.

In Ghana for example, the new form of music, which
is known as Hiplife, is a blend of the old
highlife music and Hip Hop, which has its roots in
the US, especially among the blacks.

This Hip Hop has not only affected Ghanaian music
but also that of Southern and East African music
where the youth nowadays rap in Swahili, one of
their native languages.

The Francophone countries are not left out. A
country like Senegal has many of its youth raping
in French when rap music.

In recent times there has been a lot of criticism
about the way the youth in the country dress. It
is not uncommon to see young men wearing oversized
jeans trousers with half laced sneakers.

Some even go to the extent of plaiting their hair
and wearing earrings, something, which is totally
foreign to our culture.

The girls are those who are worst affected; hardly
would one go out without seeing a girl improperly
dressed. They love to be in short skirts or tight
fitting jeans which sometimes expose their
underwear.

All these have come about partly because of the
way the youth of today patronize the services of
the Internet and the television.

Almost all the television stations in the country
are filled with telenovelas. These programmes are
also filled with indecent scenes and that is what
the youth of today love to watch.

Former President John Agyekum Kufuor once incurred
the displeasure of Ghanaians when he appeared in
suit during the celebration of the country’s
Golden Jubilee celebration. Many

When we take pride in what we produce in the
country it encourages foreigners to also purchase
them. No wonder nowadays when one goes out, it is
common to see foreigners, especially whites, in
batik and “kente”.

When we talk about the preservation of Africa's
culture, it is not only what we have in the
country which must be preserved; what has been
taken away from us must also be preserved.

In a speech delivered by Lord Paul Boateng, Fomer
British High Commissioner to South Africa as part
of Ghana’s Independence Day celebration some
years back, he called on all African leaders to do
what they could to ensure the return of all the
artifacts and regalia which had been stolen and
sent to western countries.

Source - GNA

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