Deborah Akinyosoye
Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has said slavery, in its modern form, is not yet dead, but rife on the African continent. He made this known at the weekend during an event organised by Providus Bank to mark the World Poetry Day, in Lagos. Jahman Anikulapo, former Sunday Editor of The Guardian and Culture Advocates Caucus curated the programme.
In celebrating World Poetry Day, UNESCO recognises the unique ability of poetry to capture the creative spirit of the human mind. The theme of this year’s edition was “Sand Dune and Ocean Bed: The Template of Dispersal.”
Soyinka said: “So, Cuba is here both as a reminder, a tragic instance of our history on the African continent, but also as a spur to the continuing recollection that the task is not yet over, that aberration known as slavery is still very much with us not only externally, but internally on the African continent,” referencing the significance of the participation of Cubans in this year’s event in Lagos.
“However migration takes several forms, voluntary migration and there is violent migration, violent dispersal with no volition at the beginning, middle and the end. Hence the global recognition of the great harm that was done to the African continent, the hard-core resource centre of slavery, of that criminal tendency of humanity to enslave other people.
“European culture and civilization owe a lot, far more than is generally acknowledged, to the African continent. The route by which this cultural exchange took place is of course one of anguish. But again it is also a reminder of the resilience of humanity.”
“We should remind ourselves also, when we talk about dispersal, which is what slave trade, slavery, has in common with the word, migration. Dispersal . We ought to ask ourselves from time to time how does it begin. Not where does it begin, but how,” Soyinka averred.