Algiers festival to mark African "cultural renaissance"
2009-04-19
The upcoming Pan-African Festival is being fêted as a major event marking Africa’s return to the international cultural stage. For the first time in forty years, African nations will join together to celebrate the continent's artistic revival.
By Mouna Sadek for Magharebia in Algiers – 19/04/09
 [Getty Images] Algerian Minister of Culture Khalida Toumi announces PanAf 2009. |
African artists will showcase the diversity and creative heritage of their continent at the second Pan-African Festival, which will be held in Algiers from July 5th-20th under the theme "African Renaissance". For two weeks, the stirring rhythms of Africa will pulsate across Algeria.
"Forty years after the famous PanAf of 1969, Algeria will once again celebrate Africa’s cultural renaissance. Algeria is back! And so is Africa!" Algerian Culture Minister Khalida Toumi proclaimed at an Algiers press conference held last month to detail plans for the historic celebration.
Forty-four of the fifty-three member states of the African Union have already confirmed their participation in the festival. Absentees include Morocco, which is not a member of the AU. Other countries invited to attend PanAf 2009 include those with African Diaspora communities, such as Cuba, Venezuela, Brazil, and the United States.
"We expect to receive around 8,000 artists, intellectuals, delegates, journalists, and official guests," Toumi said.
Minister for African and Maghreb Affairs Abdelkader Messahel said he hoped PanAf 2009 would be a "starting-point for the revival of African cultural activity", one that would be based on "dynamic cooperation with partners from developed countries".
Panaf 2009 will showcase the richness, beauty, and emotion that characterise the continent and focus on African creativity and genius in drama, music, dance, film, literature, cartoons, visual arts, and traditional crafts.
The programme includes exhibitions of contemporary African art, design, photography, fashion design, architecture, and the Sahara. A dozen or so symposia and conferences will touch on subjects ranging from colonialism in Africa, the origins of the human race and zaouia tidjania to theatre and financing film productions in Africa.
African literature will be in the spotlight, with an international youth literature forum and a writer-in-residence programme in Algiers for African authors and publishers. New editions of more than 200 major African works will also be issued to coincide with the event.
An African film festival will screen recent productions, including a Liamine Merbah documentary portraying Algeria as a haven for African liberation movements. Major African directors, including Algerians Mohamed Lakhdar Hamina and Rachid Bouchareb, will contribute five-minute films to a unique montage addressing African development.
Drama will also be a part of the festival. Some 27 theatre performances are planned, 14 of them Algerian.
Staging the festival, however, will be an expensive operation. While Algeria is spending 55 million euros on the event, officials say this sum falls short of what is required.
"We need another 5.5 million euros," Khalida Toumi said. "We’ll do everything we can to get hold of it. We’re in touch with sponsors and will publish the list of all partners once the contracts have been finalised. Africa is a continent of the future. Many large companies are interested in taking a high profile here."
Most of the money will be spent on building an artists' residence in Zeralda (west of Algiers) with a capacity of 2,500 beds. The Village des Artistes, designed on the model of the Olympic villages, will feature 24 buildings.
The ultimate goal of all the extraordinary preparations, festival communications officer Zouaoui Benhamadi said in an interview with Egyptian radio station Sawt El-Arab, is for PanAf 2009 to cement "a cultural, economic, political, and social union of all African countries".
"It should become an institution," he added.
Email to a friend
Print version
Anonymous Posted 2009-04-19
“A Cultural, Economic, Political and Social Union for All of the Countries of Africa” – For such a large project, they have chosen the head of communication for the festival to announce the news instead of the Minister of Culture, who, for her part, has complained of a lack of finances for the project’s scale. Not only is it continental, but it is also intercontinental given that Cuba, the United States, Venezuela and Brazil have been invited. This is quite convincing. In any case, if the Moroccans do not meanwhile move to Mars or Venus, there will be no need to make too much ruckus during the festival to disturb them. Would it not be easier to invite them and entertain them in order to make them forget about this ruckus? I do it with my neighbours. Moreover, I wonder mudslingers are going to think. I have already heard that Mr Bouteflika, a president elected by 90% of the 74% who voted, is making himself out to be a Roman emperor and organising circus festivities for distract his subjects from the scandal that accompanied his surprising election to the head of state. If the constitution were not violated, he would have able to retire and leave Algeria to the young people to rebuild and rid themselves of the no-so-glorious vestiges of their independence, marked by dictatorship, massacres, corruption, nepotism and the despair of a people who have become apathetic, doomed to serve, vote for and applaud a machine. Maybe if Bouteflika drew 5.5 million euros from his private finds, the festivities would be truly successful and the population could finally go to sleep after all the commotion they underwent during the presidential campaign and the counting of votes. He could also get a hold of a few clowns.
Ezanga Posted 2009-04-24
I think it is wonderful that Algeria is organising a inter-continental cultural festival that will lay the foundation of a union of African culture right beside that of our brothers from Latin America. This proves that Algeria is finally making a return to the international scene. After eight years of its own armed fighting against French imperialism and thanks to Ben Bella and Boumédienne, Algeria offered its help to Africa’s freedom movements in Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, South Africa and so on, as well as throughout the world. Mr Bouteflika’s election to the head of state in Algeria has allowed for qualitative changes within the country. Our Moroccan brothers stupidly quit the African Union out of disregard for the continent of Africa, which would not accept the repeated crimes committed against the Western Sahara by Hassan II’s Morocco. If Morocco wants to return to the African Union, may it do so. It will be welcome provided it sets aside its arrogance.
Anonymous Posted 2009-04-24
I learned with great interest about all the good that Algeria did in Angola, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, South Africa and so on from the response this expert made. This reminds me of the story of the astronomer who walked in the darkness of night with his gaze fixed on the stars, preventing him from seeing the deep ditch in his path. Should I continue? Algeria could have also minded just slightly the good of its people, who have been subject to horrible carnage from the very first day of its independence. These horrific massacres were not carried out by the evil colonisers. Hundreds of thousands of people lost their lives to and the most horrible tortures were committed by brother-dictator Boumédiene and the military predators that followed him. South Africa is on its third president elected democratically and honestly. The former presidents, including the legendary Mandela, left power as naturally as possible at the end of their term and did not tamper with the constitution in order to stay in office even longer and further stuff their pockets. When is Algeria going to follow this civilised example? Accusing Morocco of disregard for the continent of Africa is bizarre when we know that the most common word on Algerians’ lips is “hogra”, which simply means contempt. No one has any misunderstanding about what this points to: it is indicative of the dictators’ disregard for the people, most of whom now dream of leaving the country and finding another where human rights are respected without any fanfare and without trying to give lessons to others. Poor Algeria, it has not finished with its suffering.
BEN Posted 2009-04-27
This is classic! The people need to be entertained so that they forget the electoral fraud, which the Minister of Culture’s party both dismisses and authorised itself. This is just another question of bakshish; the system’s profiteers need to be rewarded for their obedience. With Algeria, Africa is unfortunately closed off. Morocco, one of the founders of the African Union, does not find itself in good company. We know the history of the African Union. What a comedy! Bakshish! And, of course, we are in Bouteflika’s country, where the fat cats never stop getting fatter. The oil revenues are turning him into a prince, like a child’s dream. It is never too late for him, and what is he risking at age 72? What did he risk when he squandered the state coffers as a minister. We know that he has protectors – they are the invisible hands of the government in Algeria, the real shareholders!
Anonymous Posted 2009-04-28
To the translator of the French reaction. It is clear you are not an Algerian. "Hogra" is a transcription in latin characters of a word in Algerian dialect which means "contempt". You confused it with the Arabic word "hejra" which means emigration. Those things can happen. I hope you are not a machine and you understand the point.
زاكي Posted 2009-04-29
What are the intended goals of this African cultural meeting and what is the role of students in it?
Real Algerian Posted 2009-06-14
Dear Khalida toumi is dreaming Algeria has never been and africa never been too they made it we still need a lot befor having this big party, i love Algeria and we do not like to be actors in movie titeled Algeria the return walooo...pleas be realistic and just say we ve been blocked for 40 years and now we just wok up. and inchalah we will be.
ZERGUINE YASMINA Posted 2009-06-27
Oh, how I would like to be there for this festival in Algeria. I am nostalgic for 1974. I have not since returned to my country of origin. I hope all is well in Algeria. I kiss you all, you women of Algeria who want your families to succeed. These are indeed the women who are building up the Algerian economy! Long live Algeria!
panaf09 Posted 2009-06-30
Always such criticism and blah blah blah. Here, we call into questions politics, society and a president who violates the constitution and has deserted the people and blah blah blah. Honestly, this is just bad faith, jealousy and, rather, malice!!! This is about celebrating a cultural even, a meeting between the different peoples from the same continent, a cultural exchange with festivities. Leave politics aside, because, even if this is also a political (and economic) gesture at the heart of it, it for once seems charitable to me. I will not permit myself to take on the political and social situation of Morocco because, as I have not set foot there; I consider myself ignorant of it (and all the more so given I greatly mistrust the media). A little humility would not hurt those who are critical and ready at every opportunity to spread their venom. And I say this too for a country I have been visiting for 20 years. Keep your "Poor Algerians!" and your "The people will only end up suffering" to yourselves! This sort of false compassion goes no further than being indecent. In return, I note that there is a lot of advancement to be made in social terms (housing) and the standard of living; however, paradoxically, the unemployment rate has been slowly declining. Moreover, I find it regrettable that Morocco, which has such a rich heritage, was not invited here. Furthermore, I am unaware of any reason for this except that it does not belong to the African Union, but then neither does Mauritania. As for the conflict over the Western/Moroccan Sahara, I do not see what this has to do with anything. If it does, then I would much prefer that we quite intelligently move beyond all of this.
Mourad Posted 2009-07-02
Hi all , i was born and grew up in France . I'm French and Algerian as i live here and my parents are algerian. im a bit out of the game regarding all politicals things in Algeria , but the sure things is that we need these kinds of events to open the country to the world ! As music producer and Dj im travelling all over the world to spread my music which was inpired in Soul by Poets and singer like Rabah Driassa to name him and artist i heard when i was young thanks my mother. So i just wanted to say that this festival in Algeria is without doubt another chance to share our culture. Good Luck with it !! God Bless Algeria , Mourad from France.
Tito Posted 2009-07-04
Indeed 1969 was an event in itself. I still remember it. PANAF'09 is a good initiative for African culture as a whole; my only concern is the tendency to use government funds because the coffers are filled. Then, again, where is the private sector? I sincerely hope it brings joy and admiration in the eyes of Algerians and its few visitors. May security prevail.
We welcome your comments on Magharebia's articles.
It is our hope that you will use this forum to interact with other readers across the Maghreb. In order to keep this experience interesting, we ask you to follow the rules outlined in the comments policy. By submitting comments, you are consenting to these rules. While Magharebia.com encourages discussion on all subjects, including sensitive ones, the comments posted are solely the views of those submitting them. Magharebia.com does not necessarily endorse or agree with the ideas, views, or opinions voiced in these comments. This is a moderated forum. Comments deemed abusive, offensive, or those containing profanity may not be published.
Magharebia's Comments Policy