South Africa: Timbila poetry manifesto

“We, poets of South Africa, declare for all the country and the world to know that a country that does not appreciate poetry is a doomed country. This means that our poetry, just like our music and dance, contributed a great deal to South Africa’s present dispensation. Another reason is that new South African poetry is hardly ever studied in schools and universities; and that our public libraries do not carry sufficient poetry resources. Although there are policies and institutions to support the arts, there has been very little support for poetry and poets. We therefore commit ourselves to building a conscious society that appreciates poetry from primary to higher levels.”