OPINION | It's time to embrace stories of the past three decades

Thirty years into democracy, the issues related to heritage resources in public spaces continue to pose a challenge in defining our collective cultural identity and building a nation united in diversity.

It may be time to move forward from the heritage narrative shaped by the colonial and apartheid eras to embrace the stories of the past three decades of democracy.

First, it is important to review the concept of heritage since the Venice Charter was adopted in 1964. There have been numerous conservation guidelines in the form of charters, recommendations, and resolutions introduced and adopted by international heritage bodies such as Unesco and the International Council on Monuments and Sites, a professional association that works for the conservation and protection of cultural heritage places around the world. (ICOMOS).

The National Monument Act of 1969 was the first legislation introduced after adopting the Venice Charter. However, this does not diminish the impact of memorialisation practices under the Natural and Historical Monument Relics and Antiques Act of 1923.

What it did was solidify biased documentation of history and perpetuate an oppressive and exclusive national heritage narrative. The dominant narrative categories across the country are composed of cultural, historical, architectural, and material legacies left behind by colonial and apartheid powers in the regions and territories they controlled. This is essentially because of the colonial perception that heritage was physical, effectively tangible.

This year marks 30 years since the dawn of democracy. The adoption of the constitution in 1996 was one of the turning points in the history of the Struggle for democracy. Its preamble advances a belief that SA belongs to all who live in it … in addition, it heals the division of the past and establishes a society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental rights.

To advance these ideals in 1999 the president approved the Heritage Resources Act. This legislation aims to promote good management of the national estate and to enable and encourage communities to nurture and conserve; our heritage is unique and precious and cannot be renewed. It helps us to define our cultural identity and therefore lies at the heart of our spiritual well-being and has the power to build our nation.

The advanced view is that the statues, place names, and other forms of symbolism in public spaces need to be reviewed in line with the values and spirit of a non-racial, democratic, and inclusive SA.

The conversation on this matter is complicated, as shown by the events of 2015 (#FeesMustFall and StatuesMustFall) and is likely to continue in the future. Despite the challenges we have made progress and achieved a lot.

It is not easy to traverse the layered complexity inherent in matters of heritage and public memory, but it provides an excellent space for critical engagement, conversations, and dialogues. After all, in line with Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, we can't tell the South African story and start with secondly.

As we pursue the goal of acknowledging and honouring stories that are often overlooked, instead of choosing to erase them, we have the opportunity to present an alternate viewpoint, fill in the gaps, and make corrections. This allows us to move beyond simply preserving physical, tangible heritage but also celebrate the intangible aspects, thus promoting the concept of living heritage, a practice unique to African traditions of documenting and storytelling.

Living heritage at its core emphasises a connection between the past, the present, and the future. It includes the continuity of a heritage site’s original function, which speaks to the purpose for which the site was intended but can also be repurposed to form part of the future narrative. Another factor is continuity of care, which speaks to the ways communities take care of their heritage.

• Serekoane is lecturer in the department of anthropology at the University of the Free State