I find myself in a space where I am asking (myself) a lot of questions but not getting any answers. It is such an uncomfortable, but necessary, process to go through. On the broader spectrum (of life), I am referring to a variety of reading material and consulting with a number of Teachers, something that can in itself result in confusion. One of these profound Teachers has advised that I enjoy the questions, another has advised that I not mind the friction for that's the only mode of polishing matter. I believe the Universe to be so divine that once a question is asked, an answer definitely follows. I believe the answers will come. Here are my most dominant questions.
On Reconciliation.
Last week I attended a round-table discussion at the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) where the topic of discussion was "Is it time to forgive?" Given its complexity, many of the comments and questions deviated from the topic. I believe it to be complex as it is a multi-layered question, its components being more complex questions. This was (and is) my question: "what is reconciliation?" Given that the name of the institute is IJR and that we were speaking on a matter that directly feeds into the 'reconciliation' process, I really want to understand what this term means. Exactly what are we, as a South African society, trying to reconcile? I believe reconciliation to be a process of bringing together that which once was one? If at all our mandate is to bring together the blacks and whites of our community, should we then not consider whether they were one to begin with. A study of history will show that our people were never one. Black people have been the object of oppression from the very moment Jan Van Riebeeck arrived in the Cape in 1652. Is 'reconciliation' then the right term to use? Has the IJR been correctly named? Has the Institute at the University of the Free State been correctly named? A term offered at a 'reconciliation' workshop I recently attended was 'nation building'. The guest speaker offered that since we have never been one, then maybe we should busy ourselves with the business of building a nation from scratch. Were we to decide on this route, where would we start? In a country with a very diverse population of approximately 51 million with 11 official languages, where do we begin and how do we go about it? Who do we consult about this process? Do we have able leadership to facilitate such a process? Are we even ready for such a process?
On youth education and employment
I choose to call it 'youth employment' so as to affirm that which I want to see in our communities. For a long time, I have advocated for quality education as a tool for poverty alleviation. For me, education is not a mere attainment of a degree, it is rather a process of learning that leads to the attainment of a degree and an ability to actively engage in a democratic society. I believe education to be the one tool that can break the many chains of (different forms) of poverty in our communities, both black and coloured. I now find myself faced with another question, the first having been "how do we empower our youth and communities?" I'm in a space where I know and see that education alone is not enough, it is necessary but not enough. Once educated, what will happen to our youth? Do they then go about looking for jobs? What if they cannot find jobs? Why should they look for jobs? Is it the only thing that they can do? Has the education system equipped them with the skills to do more than looking for a job? Having emphasised the need for education so much, what will be the next step? What opportunities or initiatives are we going to create to ensure that our youth can engage in meaningful activity? In the case of Botswana, what happens when the two years of internship (that follow after university) come to an end? What then happens to the millions of youth than now sit in departments which in most cases are not relevant to what they studied for? What is it going to take for us to start thinking beyond 'job hunting'? Isn't there more?
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