Date: 27/05/2010
Source: The Presidency
Title: SA: Zuma: Address by the President of South Africa, at the 10th Anniversary Celebration of the Journal new Agenda Parliament, Cape Town

Programme Director;
The Chairperson and Editor of New Agenda, Prof Ben Turok;
Deputy Editor Dr Soko;
Honourable Members,
Distinguished guests;

We are gathered to celebrate a critical milestone in the
promotion of progressive thought in our country, the celebration of
10 years of the journal, New Agenda.

For a decade, this journal has been true to its mission to
engage and advance progressive ideas on social and economic issues
in South Africa and the continent.

We commend the team of dedicated men and women, under the
leadership of Professors Ben Turok and Mills Soko, who have ably
steered this project. It is thanks to their foresight that South
Africa now has an intellectual platform of the kind of New Agenda.

This is indeed a great achievement.
It is a tribute to the achievements that we have made as a
nation in our pursuit of the complete emancipation of our people.

Ladies and gentlemen, robust and vibrant debate and engagement
builds a nation. The media is a powerful platform for such
engagement, and must be a mirror of the society it operates in.

Clause 16 of our Constitution enshrines the right to freedom of
expression.

It states that everyone has the right to freedom of expression,
which includes -
(a) freedom of the press and other media;
(b) freedom to receive or impart information or ideas;
(c) freedom of artistic creativity; and
(d) academic freedom and freedom of scientific research.

The celebration of the anniversary of journals such as New
Agenda is a celebration of that clause and those freedoms.

It reminds us that we all have a right to express ourselves by
any means as long as this does not amongst others, incite racial
hatred, violence and other negative tendencies.

We need to use that provision and create instruments that will
encourage us to develop new ideas to improve the quality of life of
our people.

These could be newspapers, magazines, electronic media or
research journals.

We all know that the media arena is a highly contested terrain
in our country. It is dominated by various interests who push their
own viewpoints and world view.

While not treading upon the right of media owners and
practitioners to push their own world view, we would urge that they
also open up the space for various perspectives to be heard in
order to enrich the public discourse in our country.

We have to promote diversity in our media industry and the more
voices the better, especially if they bring different perspectives.
This journal helps us to achieve that goal.

We need diversity of ownership, staffing and content including
language, before we can say we have media products that truly
reflect South African society.

The advantage of research journals such as New Agenda is that
they are able to portray South Africa truthfully as a success
story. Solutions are presented to deal with any challenges, with
the sole purpose of taking the country forward.

This journal tackles a wide range of issues affecting South
Africa, the African continent and the global community.

It has sharpened our understanding of the forces that shape our
world. It has provided a platform for crucial policy positions of
government to be explained, considered and interrogated.

It is also important that this journal provides an opportunity
for us to challenge stereotypes about our continent.

We often emphasise the need for Africa to be presented
constructively and objectively to the world, as a continent that is
making a lot of progress, despite facing many challenges.

One of Africa's most distinguished writers, Chinua Achebe, said:

"People go to Africa and confirm what they already have in their
heads and so they fail to see what is there in front of them. This
is what people have come to expect.

"It's not viewed as a serious continent. It's a place of
strange, bizarre and illogical things, where people don't do what
common sense demands".
We must not allow our continent to be put down by anybody.
Africa is re-emerging as a future growth centre, and is developing
political and economic ties with new partners.

With its substantial natural resources, Africa is a very
important region in the 21st century.

Journals like New Agenda have a crucial role to play in helping
to shape our thinking on these questions, to assist Africa's
developmental agenda, without necessarily glossing over mistakes
made in the continent.

New Agenda should continue to grow, broaden its readership, and
expand its influence.

It should pursue interaction with progressive thinkers across
the continent and the globe, seeking to apply new solutions to old
challenges.

We should recall the words of one of our revered African
leaders, the late President Mwalimu Julius Nyerere of Tanzania,
when he said:
"...intellectuals have a special contribution to make to the
development of our nation, and to Africa. And I am asking that
their knowledge, and the greater understanding that they should
possess, should be used for the benefit of the society of which we
are all members."

As it celebrates 10 years of existence, New Agenda should
continue to provide us with valuable insight as we seek to improve
the lives of our people.

Inspired by progressive journals such as this one, as a country
we must formulate and drive a new agenda. Like this journal we
must lose focus of the important relationship between theory and
practice, policy and action.

Let use ideas to change the lives of our people.

Ladies and gentlemen,
Once more, I congratulate and thank all people who have made New
Agenda a resounding success over the years.

I thank you.