Artwatch announces cultural rights, creative freedom indaba

By Andrew Mulenga

Artwatch Africa, a project the Arterial Network (a continental network of creative practitioners with 5,000 members from 50 African countries) that “aims to assert, promote and defend artist rights and freedom of creative expression for artists and cultural practitioners in Africa” will from next week Monday hold a 3 day workshop at the ZAMCOM Lodge in Lusaka.

Artwatch Africa, which has its base in Cape Town South Africa, appointed two Zambian ambassadors for the project early this year namely award-winning filmmaker Musola Kaseketi and seasoned songbird and arts activist Saboi Imboela.

Targeting individuals and organisations within creative and media sectors, the workshop will focus on “Cultural rights and freedom of creative expression”, in a statement to Andrew Mulenga’s Hole In The Wall this week, one of Artwatch Africa’s two Zambian Ambassadors Musola Kaseketi stated “The purpose of the workshop is to enhance and deepen the understanding of Human Rights in the artists and media people.”

A project of Arterial Network, a continental network for artistic practitioners: “Artwatch Africa sets out to promote and defend the freedom of creative expression on the African continent. Through human rights training, public seminars, writing of articles and blogs, monitoring and reporting of censorship and repression, Artwatch Africa aims to empower local civil society actors within the arts, cultural, human rights and related sectors to defend the rights of artists and contribute to democracy building with-in Africa”.

According to the statement, the lead facilitator in attendance will be Nforchu Mabelle from Yaoundé, Cameroon, a thought-shaping human rights activist who works for the Human Rights Commission of her country.

Kaseketi - The purpose of the workshop is to enhance
and deepen the understanding of Human Rights
in the artists and media people

Kaseketi confirmed that participation will be drawn from a broad spectrum, namely NAMA-Film and Radio Association, Shakarongo Arts and Youth Academy, Yezi Arts Theatre and productions, International Film Festival Zambia Children In Media, Zambia Association of Musicians, Zambia Women Writers Association, Zambia Media Women Association, MISA-Zambia, Albinos National Association, Child Exposure in Zambian Arts (CHIEZA) Trust, Zambia National Broadcasting Corporations and Ministry of Tourism and Arts, Ministry of Information and Labour.

In an online media post early this year, shortly after her appointment, former Shatel songbird, Imboela reminded artistes that it was their right and duty to lobby government to ratify and implement international laws that relate to their freedom of creative expression.  

“Remember that Zambia is party to many International and regional human rights conventions that guarantee the protection of artistic expressions. Though some of these have not yet been domesticated, we can still draw on the rights or freedoms of expression, assembly, etc., that are guaranteed by our Republican Constitution. But like most African countries, while the Constitution provides for protections of freedom of expression, it places limits on what can be expressed. This has led to many radical songs and artists being banned or intimidated across the continent. Some artists have been kidnapped, tortured and even killed in different countries due to their artistic expressions,” stated Imboela in part “Like all other groups of people that advocate for the domestication of various ratified instruments that improve their wellbeing, artists in Zambia can also dialogue with government to domesticate some of these treaties. So far, Zambia adopted the definition of culture enshrined in the UNESCO Mexico City Declaration of 1982 on Cultural Policies to which Zambia is a signatory. The declaration was domesticated through the National Cultural Policy of June 2003.”

She indicated that being a member of the United Nations since 1964, Zambia recognizes the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). In addition to the UDHR, Zambia is a signatory to the following international instruments; The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, ratified in 1984; and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, also ratified in 1984. To date, Zambia is NOT party to the following instruments; UNESCO’s Recommendations concerning the Status of the Artist; The Rome Convention on Intellectual Property; and the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expression.

Imboela - Remember that Zambia is party to many
International and regional human rights conventions
that guarantee the protection of artistic expressions

“However, Zambia is a signatory to the African Charter on Human and people’s rights, which is a regional instrument that was yet again ratified in 1984. From the above ratified instruments, it is clear that artistic and cultural rights are guaranteed in general human rights treaties, as all specific artistic conventions seem not to have been ratified by the country,” continued Imboela “Artwatch Africa aims to empower local civil society actors within the arts, cultural, human rights, and other related sectors to defend the rights of artists and contribute to democracy building in Africa.”

Artwatch Africa is premised on the understanding that freedom of expression is an essential condition for creative practice in the arts, and that to promote freedom of expression is to advance democracy, human rights and fundamental freedoms on the continent. This is the first of many activities in Zambia, Kaseketi and Imboela make a formidable team which looks set to champion the projects cause fittingly.

Kaseketi has been a well-known activist since she was a Human Rights Advocate at Columbia University, she has founded Pachibwanse Corner, a future village and project to enhance the lives of women and girls with disabilities her award winning film Suwi also looked at the plight of the girl child and as CEO of the annual Shungu Namutitima International Film Festival (SHUNAFFoZ) she has seen to it that advocacy in the arts remains a staple. Imboela’s vast experience on the Zambian music scene since her days under Mondo Music’s Zambian popular music’s revival in the late 1990s backed by her degree in political science from the University of Zambia hold her in good stead, furthermore, she is Advocacy and Communications Coordinator at Save the Children “a child rights organization with a dual mandate that seeks to inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children.”

Also helping to co-ordinate the forthcoming workshop are members of the Zambian chapter of Arterial Network, Clive Kawana a seasoned poet, author and educator and Betty Ngoma a screenwriter whose work on the popular television series Love Games has landed her a nomination for  The Graig Lungu Award for the Best Screen Writer at the National Association of Media Arts Awards scheduled for the Zambia Film, Television and Radio (ZAFTAR) week to take place from Sunday 7th to Friday 12th December, 2014. 

Mwakalombe’s colourful swirls and twirls inspired by faith

By Andrew Mulenga

Although he often restricts figures to elongated egg-shapes most likely to lay emphasis on his powerful colour contrasts, it has somehow made Mansa-based artist Victor Mwakalombe’s paintings stand out whenever he travels to the capital to exhibit.

Employing a flatness of perspective, with intentional emphasis on a two-dimensional presentation of the picture surface, he makes no attempt at all to create an imagined depth of field.

Typical is Stations of the Cross inspired by his Catholic faith it references a ceremony conducted by Lutherans, Anglicans and Catholics in memory of the suffering of Jesus of Nazareth in his last hours. The painting shows a congregation in a procession, the multitude is sandwiched by two planes an earthy ground and clear blue sky that help impose a sense of movement.

Station of the Cross, acrylic on canvas,
 by Victor Mwakalombe

“I’m a Catholic Christian and therefore, I’m attached to some significant Christian events like Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Palm Sunday, and Easter Sunday, but apart from this I like to depict women and children in my paintings,” explains the family man who turned 41 two weeks ago.

Works such as Mother Zambia show him pushing his inventiveness further where he depicts a group of figures that appear to be women at a water source, some drawing it and others carrying it away in vessels on their heads. Only a closer look will show the hidden map of Zambia embedded right in the centre of the painting. The work reflects the country’s abundance of natural resources, complimented by the title, it bestows a motherly role on the land, suggesting how she is able to provide for her children.

 As much as he can go the realistic route especially when working on commissions, like many abstract painters, he maintains he can best express himself in what he describes as his “flowing style”.

Mwakalombe however complains that as much as he is inspired, it is unfortunate that he has to travel to Lusaka for his art materials, the 12 hour bus journey (one way) is not only tedious, but even when he gets to the capital at times he will not find everything he is looking for, particularly certain types of the acrylic paint that he favours, it so happens that at times the only two stockists are out of certain shades. But the challenge does not end there.

Mother Zambia, acrylic on canvas,
by Victor Mwakalombe

“There is a serious lack of art market and  materials in Mansa except for the few members of the American Peace Corps community who ask for work on commission  after a  couple of months and sometimes after years,” he says echoing the outcries made by fellow artists Samuel Mabuku and Aubrey Chali who are also based in Mansa.

This brings to light the fact that there is a small band of very inventive artists in Mansa, even as a rural town, it appears to be the most active small town outside Lusaka which is probably the reason Mwakalombe believes as a provincial headquarters it deserves an art gallery.    

But as much as the artists in Mansa are all fired up and motivated, living on their paintings alone would mean becoming penniless so they have to make ends meet through other efforts.

“I have a great deal of passion but unfortunately I can be destitute if I entirely depend on art hear in Mansa unless in Lusaka, so for survival’s sake I decided to run a small art studio called Diversity Expressions with my  friend Collins Kangwa. The Studio deals with authorized pressed car number plates, T-shirt Printing, date stamps and outdoor signage,” he explains also sharing where he gets the inspiration to continue working.

Mwakalombe

“First and foremost my inspiration comes from the most High God, because he is the number one artist and us as human beings simply follow. But also my works are influenced by where I live, the surrounding in which I am at that moment in time and sometimes it’s just the overwhelming feeling I get to express myself on the canvas through the intensity of colours.”

Among his fellow artists, he is inspired by Mulenga Chafilwa, Chulu Zenzele, the Yombwes of Livingstone, the late Bright Chishimba, Poto Kabwe, Style Kunda, Stary Mwaba, Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci.

Mwakalombe is a self-taught artist but after completing school at Kawambwa Boy’s Technical Secondary School in 1994 he has consistently attended workshops and exhibitions in Lusaka, Livingstone and Mansa and has also served as the elected provincial secretary of the now defunct Luapula Visual arts Council, this year he participated in the Golden Jubilee National Art Exhibition at the newly opened Livingstone Art Gallery where a few of his works are still on display for purchase. 

From grief to promise, victory and glory

By Andrew Mulenga

“Nga waumfwa ubwite bwa mfumu, wasuke muchinshi muchinshi, wasuke auti Kalombo Mwane (When you hear the call of the LORD, answer with respect, answer saying Kalombo Mwane),” chants an all-male choir setting the tone for Eighteam the new documentary on the football in Zambia, a Spanish and Zambian co-production by writer, director and producer Juan Rodriguez-Briso of Omnicorp Estudio and co-producer Ngosa Chungu of Purple Tembo Media. 

The lyrics are a mixture of Bemba and Luvale and this particular song has been sung in the Catholic Church for quite some time now although a contemporary adaptation has been popularized by singer B M Sampa on his hit 2009 album “Bola Panshi” or “ball on the ground” (a Bemba exclamation used on the pitch advising players to take it easy when facing opponents that are good in the air.)

Photo credit: FAZ

The words Kalombo Mwane are a Luvale expression of gratitude, thanks and respect, often reserved for a respectable figure such as chief, king or distinguished elderly personality. It can also be used in varied day-to-day contexts as an expression of thanks, accompanied by the traditional clapping of hands and curtsying.

As the film unfolds, it is revealed that this skilled choir is in fact the Zambia national team, the African Cup of Nations 2012 champions who have adopted the song to heighten morale and invigorate their spiritual faith while in camp and just before matches, they take it as a devout hymn to commit their sporting efforts to God’s will.

Fringing on a gloomy dirge and an uplifting spiritual the song sets the stage for a poem recited by a pensive Kalusha Bwalya (Football Association of Zambia President and, seen like before, clad in a suite gazing reflectively upon the names of the players (many of them his personal friends) and crew that died off the coast of Gabon on the monument dedicated to their honour at Heroes Acre, and as the acapella and clapping die down, Bwalya poetically recites a rendition of the tail of the Phoenix, the mythical bird that rises from ashes to triumphantly fly again. Such is the mood of the film, it lifts the viewer high and low, undulating from point to point, from grief to promise, victory and glory.

Nevertheless, according to its directors: "Eighteam" is a documentary film that narrates the resurrection of Zambia's national football team after losing 18 players in a plane crash in Gabon in 1993. The country faces an 18-year road of reconstruction until destiny makes its move: in Gabon, Zambia becomes African Champion for the first time after a long penalty shoot-out. Their destiny could no longer be denied: there were 18 penalties.”

Although it is technically segmented into several brief titles, such as A Golden Generation, Duty Calls, The Chipolopolo are back, An Era Ends, Weathering the Storm, What is Your Dream, Destiny Calls and Gear 6, it is loosely segmented into three main parts.

The first takes the viewer back to the Olympics, Seoul 1988; when a little known Zambian side humiliated a star studded Italian side 4 goals to 0 in a clean David and Goliath moment, the Italian side already had about five players in Italia Serie A from Napoli, Juventus and Milan but were no patch for the Zambians.

“They had a pattern of play we didn’t expect”, confesses Lazio and Milan legend Mauro Tassoti in the footage “[…] a football without burdens or restraint, a natural football”.

“We hardly touched the ball, I must say it was like the wrath of God” adds Ciro Ferrara his countryman who had about 500 caps between his Milan and Juventus during his on pitch career.

The footage of the 1988 match also gives a nostalgic glimpse of a younger Dennis Liwewe in the commentary box. Liwewe is in fact one of the main contributors to the narrative throughout the film.

Anyhow, in the second part, from the glorious event of 1988 the film nose dives into what is the saddest bit. The Gabon crash, it takes us into a build-up before the crash, by means of personal accounts from journalist Chanda Kristensen who was on the plane but has to stay behind when it changed route. Former Football Association of Zambia boss Simataa Simataa also gives an exonerating account that reminds us what critical role he too has played in the history of Zambian football, in the film, it is he that gives a pointed reminder to the viewers that official findings on the crash have never been made public.

Bwalya gives an emotional account of how close he was with the players that perished, with whom he had started his career; he was scheduled to meet them while playing in Europe at the time. It is Liwewe however who gives a tearful, operatic speech in some footage when he was seen on television beckoning young Zambian footballers to take up the challenge of volunteering for a new national team after Frederick Chiluba declared that the show must go on after he led the nation in mourning.  Roald Paulsen, the coach brought in to rebuild the team with the help of the Danish government also makes an appearance sharing how challenging it was to rebuild a team from scratch in 6 weeks.

The third part of the film highlights more recent events the, AFCON 2012, where Zambia emerged victorious as unexpected underdogs. But other than focus on the glory itself, it gives a touching insight into the overwhelming pressure that was on the team. Players, Christopher Katongo, Kennedy Mweene, Emmanuel Mayuka, Christopher Katongo and Hijani Himoonde share their personally experiences in fascinating conversations giving us a feel of how it felt to be in their boots.

Zambian President Michael Chilufya Sata (3rd L) touches

 the trophy with founding President Kenneth Kaunda (2nd R), 

Vice President Guy Scott (R) as members of the soccer team (back) 

and former President Rupiah Band (L) look on, 

during a ceremony at the State House in Lusaka February 14, 2012. 

(/Mackson Wasamunu/Courtesy Reuters).

Eighteam captures the essence of what drives the national team, which is what perhaps drives Zambia as a nation which is spiritual faith, teamwork, hope for the best and the ability to achieve. The film can come at no better time than this as the nation celebrates a jubilee, mourns a president and experiences a spasm of political uncertainty. It reminds us that Zambia has risen from the ashes and overcome her challenges before and this was done by working together.  It is certainly a film that Zambian’s will definitely be watching for the rest of their lives.

It premiered on the 16th of October 2014 at Fresh View Cinema’s Levy Park where it has been showing twice weekly.