STAFF at the KwaZulu-Natal Museum which is marking its 120 year anniversary, have an extra reason to celebrate has a planned merger with Ditsong Museum in Gauteng has been withdrawn.
The announcement was made by the Department of Sports, Arts and Culture last week.
The merger which had been gazetted in May had caused uncertainty among staff, with many fearing either losing their jobs or having to relocate to Gauteng.
Dumisani Jali, who is a member of the museum’s Staff Association ( a body formed by the workers), welcomed the news, saying it ended months of anxiety for workers.
“The problem had been that under former Department of Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Zizi Kodwa we were just told that there would be this merger with a Gauteng based institution, and we were not given much of a chance to express our views on the matter,” said Jali.
He said that they were encouraged by Minister Gayton MacKenzie who met with staff and management in July.
“One of the difficulties for many staff members was coming to terms with the possibility of relocating in the event that we still had our jobs. The question was why there was no consideration of merging with institutions that are close by instead of one that is almost 600 kilometres away. Thankfully that is now water under the bridge,” said Jali.
He expressed optimism that under the new leadership more was likely to be done by the museum in the coming years.
As part of the celebrations marking the 120 years anniversary there were song and dance performances which highlighted the province and country’s rich heritage.
In addition to this, Cultural History Assistant, Sboniso Gcumisa, led a drama production paying homage to the Museum's 120-year existence emphasising how this had enriched many over the years.
“It was a double celebration for us as staff members,” said Jali.
One of the key moments marking the celebration was a presentation by renowned archaeologist and senior curator at the KZN Museum, Dr. Gavin Whitelaw, giving an insightful presentation titled "120 𝒀𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑪𝒐𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝑹𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑬𝒙𝒉𝒊𝒃𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑲𝒘𝒂𝒁𝒖𝒍𝒖-𝑵𝒂𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑴𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒖𝒎", touching on the Museum's legacy of extensive collections.
Whitelaw, who has contributed immensely to the field of archaeology took the audience through a journey of ground-breaking research, and exceptional exhibitions, which have captivated audiences for over a century. He emphasised how far from being storage facilities for dead animals, museums provided education about the natural and cultural worlds.
The celebrations culminated in the opening of a new gallery which is a culmination of the museum’s dedication to educating and inspiring visitors about our collective history and natural world.
It highlights some significant objects and research gathered over the KwaZulu-Natal Museum’s 120-year history.
One of the exhibitions opened recently was on how political violence in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands had affected people resulting in many of them getting displaced.
The museum prides itself in being at the forefront of the collection, preservation, study and exhibition of objects of cultural and scientific value, in the fields of Natural and cultural history.