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Youth want politicians to listen to them but, because they don’t, most channel their voices through creative expressions
As the country marks Youth Day today, the changing face of June 16 in 2019 includes widespread political apathy among young people who are more interested in music, cooking and film than politics.
This is according to the millennial dialogue on South African youth conducted by the Mapungubwe Institute for Strategic Reflection (Mistra) in partnership with the Foundation for the European Progressive Studies, Global Progress Network and the Friedrich Ebert Stiftung South African office.
While last month’s general elections showed that there were 26 million registered voters in South Africa, only 6 million were young people.
A weeklong national study of more than 1 285 youngsters aged between 16 and 35 by Mistra showed that youth are more interested in music (80%), film (63%), cooking (58%), technology and gaming (57%), and sports and exercise (56%), with religion being an interest to 41% of youth and only 25% interested in politics.
From the study only 12% of the youth had taken part in a political meeting, with only 10% participating in a demonstration, while 52% said they had taken part in religious meetings and events and 43% in sports.
Only 2% wanted to become politicians.
Duduetsang Mokoele, head researcher of the study, said a lot of the discussions during the study highlighted that “the so-called voiceless youth indeed do have a voice but in fact what they need instead is to be listened to”.
“Young people urged those in positions of power to first seek to understand and thereafter to be understood. The inverse is thought to be more the case.
“The sentiment in the study expressed by the young people was the increasing disconnect ... between political leadership at all levels [local, provincial, national] and the public.
“The overwhelming majority of the sample has indicated that the young people often feel like mere voting fodder at best and that the country is experiencing an interregnum which is a case of the old ways refusing to die and the new struggling to be born.”
According to participants leaders are urged to rise to the call of young people seeking a more ethical and caring political landscape that is truly people-centred, said Mokoele.
Honours student in public management and governance at Unisa Tholakele Nyathi (24) believes young people should be at the forefront of political activity.
“Corruption in politics should not discourage you from participating. Absolute power corrupts [absolutely] and people get to be corrupt because they have never had what power gives them access to.
“So if you give a hungry lion food what do you expect that it will do? Corruption is normal. Human beings, by nature, are corrupt but this should not stop young people from participating in politics,” said Nyathi.
“Young people should vote for parties led by other young people so their voices can be represented. As a young person I think the EFF represents me but as a young black woman I don’t feel represented because of patriarchal dynamics in the space.
“For me, June 16 has less to do with lamenting on the past and how people fought for education. I feel it means the fight continues and there is greater advocacy for free basic and higher education that needs to take place.”
Swimming instructor Altaaf Adam, (25) says youth should participate in religion.
“Religion helps maintain morals and values. As a society we must encourage youth participation in religious activities.
“I think parents’ emphasis on religious activities from a young age has influenced why young people are more into religion than politics.
“But I think young people must equally participate in political activities. Furthermore, politics plays an important role in our daily lives and in our religious freedom.”
. Sound engineer, producer and musician Thandile Ngabo (23) says music offers young people a legitimate platform from which to advocate change.
Ngabo says the youth have lost their voice in politics and find it through music.
“The majority of young people at school were encouraged to get educated and participate in society and have an opinion on politics but the realities of the outside world have discouraged us because what we are taught and what is practised outside of the classroom differ.”
He says young people do not have a voice in national politics.
“We use music as an outlet to share common associations such as wanting to be happy and successful. We also use it to highlight the ills of society and how we want to escape the cycle created by poverty that keeps us in debt and jobless. This generation, my generation, has lost hope in the government as being a channel for us to express ourselves, so we use music to do that.”
Creative entrepreneur and second-year Vega student Mogorosi Dire (21) says young people have moved away from the significance of June 16.
“June 16 has less to do with the memorial of the [Class of] 1976 and more to do with wearing uniforms and drinking. Young people would rather empower themselves than look to the government.
“Even ministers in the arts don’t have updated knowledge on the trends of recent years.”
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