Tsoro-o-tso San Development Trust, an organisation fighting for the rights of the marginalised minority San people, has organised a conference to address the tribe’s loss of land, language and identity.
BY SILAS NKALA
The trust’s director, Davy Ndlovu, yesterday said the conference would be held in Bulawayo on Friday.
“The theme of the conference is Land, Language and Identity: The Story of the San People in Zimbabwe. This follows the successful launch of the report on the San people in Zimbabwe last year in November. Discussions will be centred on the history of the San in Zimbabwe, why the Zimbabwe San are the least researched in the region, land disposession, loss of language and identity,” Ndlovu said.
“We are also going to discuss the constitutional provisions on language and cultural preservation, citizenship and indignity.”
The conference comes at a time the San people have, for more than three decades, been complaining of marginalisation and being sidelined on governance issues.
Tsoro-otso San Development Trust is also involved in the writing of Tsao-language books.
Historian Phathisa Nyathi will take the delegates through the history of the San people in Zimbabwe and how they lost their land to other tribes and ended up marginalised.
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Other speakers will be Prisca Dube, who will talk about constitutionally recognised languages, Delme Cupido, who will present a report on Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa’s case study in promoting indigenous groups in Southern Africa and Tineyi Mukwewa, who will talk about possibilities of class action by San people — lessons from the region.
The San people got recognition in 2013 when their language was included as one of the country’s official languages of communication.
However, they are worried over limited reading material in their language.
