The UN agency, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has injected millions of shillings in an attempt to revive the dying intangible cultural heritage among tribes in Uganda.
Already Acholi, Alur, Ik and Basongora in Western Uganda have benefited from the pilot project which begun two years ago.
The objective is to aid the process of documentation of some of the intangible cultural practices in a bid to save it from extinction.
Mr Daniel Kaweesi, the Programme Officer at Uganda National Commission for UNESCO, says, “The documentation will help to preserve and safeguard the rituals and ceremonies among the cultures which are facing a threat of being extinct.”
Kaweesi noted that if nothing is done, such practices may die completely in the future without a trace.
He explained that values and culture govern and shape the behavior of a society and if it disappears, it is likely to lead to loss of identity of a particular tribe.
According to Kaweesi, such knowledge helps in innovation, peaceful coexistence and solution to problems citing Mato Oput which is widely practiced among the Acholi tribe as restorative justice system.
He explained that, “Mato Oput as a traditional justice mechanism has been tested by fore parents of Acholi as the best way of resolving disputes and if dies, that can lead to danger for the future generation to come.”
Kaweesi described the intangible cultural practices as software which suppress bad behaviors in a society.
The cultural chief of Pawel clan, Rwot Baptist Latim says he will soon release a book on Acholi culture and tradition with intends to address the break down in culture which is blamed on the insurgency that took over two decades.
Rwot Latim, a former primary school teacher in Gulu says the book which he is currently working on contains a lot of information about the Acholi and its way of life.
The book titled Tekwaro Wa Ki Kuc (Tradition and peace) is intended to tackle the current social evils in the Acholi community such as the lack of esteem for God and human beings, peace forgiveness, selfishness among other things.
Rwot Latim says, “Many has chosen not to obey God and have turned to witchcraft, sorcery, adultery, doers of evils, corrupt, arson to settle differences and gossiping.”
He adds that people now days do not fear killing one another just to gain riches not knowing such things will haunt his descendants.
The Rwot Pawel noted that despite the human being created in the image of God; they choose not to live in his Godly ways.
He decried the disunity among the resettling population who said has opted to use spear instead of dialogue to solve the land disputes among themselves.
Mr Alfred Ongaya Acellam, an elder at Ker Kwaro Acholi, the Acholi cultural institution admitted that not only the intangible cultural heritage of the Acholi community is at danger of extinction but the language as well.
Acellam blamed the problem on the youth saying many children don’t learn their mother-tongues, so languages need to be protected and more widely taught in order to survive.
But Okello P’ Layeng, a literature and history teacher in Gulu says language is dynamic and will keep on evolving as people come into contact with outsiders.
But how it became transcribed into Acholi language and culture is not yet clear.
The Principal Cultural Officer at the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, Ms Cecilia Ajom who was in Gulu on Tuesday asked parents to keep teaching their children the good cultural values so that they can treasure the spirit of peaceful coexistence with other cultures.
Recently, the Acholi Paramount Chief David Onen Acana II says the cultural institution will acquire a radio station that will be used to preserve the Acholi culture, discuss the issue of peace and reconciliation, security, social justice and farming besides mobilisation.
He also says the radio will do more in promoting the issue of culture.
There is growing fear among Acholi elders that the Luo language spoken by majorly the Acholi tribe is under threat because of neglect and outside influences.
With Uganda being one of the most linguistically diverse countries in the world with 60 spoken languages, Luo or Acholi is the fourth widely spoken languages.
UNESCO says half the world’s 6,000 languages could disappear by the end of the century unless steps are taken to preserve and encourage their use.
2 Comments
Language is power.If Luo or Acholi is the fourth widely spoken languages then the UNESCO must support the Heritage Culture,re-organize it back in to what it use to be African hearth beat,so that they tour the World,especially in Europe and the rest of Africa.
Our Paramount Chief,David Onen Acana II should visit the Acholi Youth Organisations World Wide.You imagine the kids born in London,Canada,America and Sweden cannot write our Cultural Heritage. All the time they hear of the Queen’s speech , while their Rwot is down in Acholi Sub-Region, Uganda.
Please do Communicate with your People and launch a Cultural Center with your Picture and Educative Literature.
@kankodi:disqus
You have made good points. Also we need to promote writing and speaking in Acoli more. The statement of Mr. Okello P’ Layeng above in the article is not going to save us. Those are words of people who have no vision for the tribe. They can fold their hands and watch our language die without doing anything about it.
Acoli macon nongo pi leb Acoli tek ma pe twere. Leb pa lurok pe bino bwoyo ma megwa kulu. Acoli gicako nying jami gidwoko cen i leb Acoli kadi ka lurok gubino ki leb tugi. Labolle Tractor, Acoli nongo pe kimeyo ki leb munu. gilwongo ni TINGATINGA. Police kilwongo ni ABILI pe kimeyo ni Police. Kombedi wa cuk i Gulu kicoyo i leb Munu kun jami pa wan kaka myero kiywek kakawa. Nying lutino ducu kitye kacokko leb munu kun dong wa peke i te loc aconya pa muni. Gin muni naka yam gutero wan i ot kwan ni ya ni kacako nying ci guloko nyingwa ducu i leb tugi kara man me bwoyo tipuwa. Joni ludini ku, joni lujok. Dok myero kijuk woro calgi i ot lega goba goba ma gukelo botwa ni.