| Wimsa
Report on Activities 2002/03 |
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Media and Reasearch ContractWIMSA developed a “Media and Research Contract (General Purpose) of the San of Southern Africa” to help ensure that the San also benefit from media products especially in the sense that articles, books, photographs, films and TV programmes accurately reflect their reality and they have a say on research projects targeting their communities. This is a standard contract, but one allowing for additions and adjustments agreed on by all parties involved. Two outstanding examples of fair treatment of San interests are the agreement between WIMSA and the co-producers of the film The Great Dance, and the agreement between WIMSA, the OST, and the San musicians and MELT2000/Peermusic who collaborated to produce Sanscapes, a CD featuring live performances by San musicians. In both cases the producers’ representatives have taken great care to ensure that the agreed share of the income deriving from the product is channelled to WIMSA, the OST and the San musicians immediately. In accordance with the WIMSA General Assembly’s decision in 2001, the income thus far received has been deposited in a media investment account to serve San media interests in future. All researchers affiliated to San communities in the region have signed the Media and Research Contract apart from two well-known academics, an anthropologist and a linguist lecturing at European universities whose research mainly among Namibian San communities is ongoing. One research undertaking consumed a great deal of the San’s time and energy before the group of academics contributing to a book titled The San and the State saw reason to sign the contract. Originally they informed WIMSA in a letter that they had “decided not to sign the document”, stating as one of their “principal points” the fact that “all of us have already conducted research at a time when the contract has not existed yet”. It was also “unclear” to them “in which way the San at our respective research sites are represented by WIMSA”. The doubts they expressed about WIMSA being a San-owned organisation and about the San wishing, as stated in the contract, “to ensure [by means of this contract] that all San intellectual property … is controlled and protected”, sparked a massive protest from the San bodies. San in key positions in San bodies including the !Xun and Khwe CPA in South Africa, the Teemacane Trust in Botswana, the Khwedam Language Committees and WIMSA, did not hesitate to put their views on the academics’ letter in an exchange of e-mails to one another and in letters they wrote to the group in response. ”I have similar strong feelings towards this letter especially concerning the researchers who have been with the San for quite a long time. Are the researchers, after receiving all the information, assistance and help from the San in the region and their own organisations, trying to betray the San?” “ … [the contributors to this book] might think that WIMSA is the organisation of the white people but it is the organisation of the San to have a say and to meet those from other groups.” “Refusal to sign the contract is a disrespect and violation of the San people’s rights.” “It is true that WIMSA has been discussing media and research contracts in all of its annual general meetings since its inception. The current contract may have been re-designed in 2001 but the idea of such contracts has existed even before WIMSA. ... It is disturbing to note that you refuse to sign the contract because you claim that the San in your research site do not have any affiliation to WIMSA. Unfortunately that is not an acceptable reason to stop justice from taking its course. WIMSA is obliged to represent the interest of the San … .” “It is not WIMSA’s intention (as you mention ...) but WIMSA’s mandate to protect the San from any kind of exploitation.”
Though
painful for all parties involved, this experience with the contributors
to The San and the State had the effect of uniting the San across
the region, who generally responded by expressing profoundly positive
feelings about their own organisation, WIMSA, and their determination
to assert their rights to their own intellectual property. In December
2002 the applicable group of academics signed the Media and Research
Contract after adding a few comments to it which the WIMSA board
accepted.
Handbook on Heritage and Intellectual Property RightsA draft practical handbook intended to serve as a tool for training on intellectual property rights for San community members across the region has been compiled by WIMSA legal advisor Roger Chennells. At their last meeting, the members of the Regional San Culture and Education Committee and the WIMSA board discussed the draft handbook and concluded that it covered all the important San heritage rights. It was suggested that lessons learnt from the negotiations on the Hoodia benefit-sharing agreement be included in the final version of the handbook, scheduled for publication by August 2003.
Regional Craft WorkshopsAn informal grouping of NGOs involved in or supporting San craft production throughout southern Africa has gradually evolved into a co-operating network. On behalf of the group, WIMSA applied to the Irish Agency for Personnel Service Overseas (APSO) for the assignment of a short-term specialist to provide support in building the capacity of the group during 2002. Barry O’Loughlin was assigned on a consultancy basis in April 2002 to, as stated in the contract, “support the stakeholder NGOs in becoming a co-operating network with a viable marketing strategy for crafts produced in Southern African San communities”. An opening workshop was held at Platfontein near Kimberley, Northern Cape, South Africa, in early April 2002. The participants agreed on the following mission statement to guide their endeavours: “To improve the socio-economic status of San people in their communities in Southern Africa through supporting the production and marketing of their art and crafts.” The workshop was process-oriented, and the 16 participants defined common and individual issues on which they felt input was required and exchanged experiences. The stakeholders clearly expressed their desire to work together in areas of common interest, three highlighted areas being fair trade, San branding and quality, and training.
The consultant produced a consultation document titled, “Towards
becoming a co-operating network with a viable marketing strategy
for crafts produced in Southern African San communities”,
for discussion at an implementation workshop in Windhoek at the
end of April 2002. The overall conclusion of this document is that
the network members should concentrate on building their individual
capacities and in parallel the capacity of the group as an entity
before undertaking any exportation of products. Another conclusion
is that constraints on the availability of essential natural raw
materials and difficulties in generating the necessary volumes of
quality products have to be overcome to make it possible to serve
export markets on an economically viable basis. A framework within
which these developments could take place is proposed in the document. The overall conclusions of the document are supported by a joint marketing strategy proposed in the document for adoption as an action plan. This strategy is underpinned by recommended sets of individual and joint actions designed to help the network as a whole and each of its members to realise the concrete recommendations of the document, beginning at the implementation workshop in Windhoek. A follow-up regional craft workshop was organised jointly by Gantsi Craft and WIMSA at Dqãe Qare, the Kuru game farm in Botswana, in March 2003. The 10 participating new and old members of the NGO network formulated an agenda that accords with the recommendations of Barry O’Loughlin’s consultation document. The following is a summary of the key points of discussion and decision:
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