Film ‘wounds’ Africans’ culture
SOUTH Africa is a society in transition and cultural issues need to be discussed with sensitivity.
This was the view expressed by Mbuyiselo Botha of the Commission on Gender Equality (CGE) during an indaba on the
Inxeba (The Wound) film. “It is important to acknowledge that we are a society in transition and it must be done with sensitivity,” Botha said. He said culture was sacrosanct. “African culture can’t be humiliated and disrespected. We wish the producers could’ve engaged the CRL (the Commission for the Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Cultural, Religious and Linguistic Communities) to get their views.”
He said South Africans should not “shut each other up” if they did not agree. “That is when dialogue should be opened.”
Inxeba (The Wound) is a film about the traditional Xhosa rite of passage, or initiation, but has provoked outrage over the gay aspect to the film.
The Film and Publication Board (FPB) Appeal Tribunal on Wednesday overturned the classification rating of 16 LS given to the film, and instead gave it a rating of X18 with the classifiable elements of sex, language, nudity, violence and prejudice.
At an indaba on the film, the Zulu prince Thulani Zulu said the Zulu nation was wounded by the film, and that they wanted to engage with the producers to have it removed from cinemas. “There are things that you don’t talk about. It’s secretive in nature or it loses its value,” Zulu said.
Keitumetsi Mahlangu, representing the religious community, said the film was derogatory and should not be seen by children. The Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) has strongly condemned the banning the film. “We urge the public to question and scrutinise this move reflecting an increasing culture of censorship and the erasure of queer narratives that is detrimental to the fight for representation,” the IJR said. – Staff Reporter and African News Agency (ANA)