The Zimbabwean
9 March 2011
Harare, March 9th 2011: Prince Edward School and the U.S. Embassy in Harare hosted the premier of internationally recognized Zimbabwe documentary, iThemba (Hope in isiNdebele) on Tuesday March 8.  The film follows the lives, dreams and hard work of Liyana, a band from the King George VI School for the disabled in Bulawayo. Liyana’s eight members have various handicaps, yet live independently and have won devoted audiences from rural Zimbabwe to Hollywood.  Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture David Coltart and Ambassador Charles A. Ray welcomed over 250 students, film makers, NGO leaders, senior government officials and disabled persons at the premiere.
“Zimbabwe faces many of the same challenges in overcoming prejudice about disabilities that we faced and still face in America.  The need to overcome negative stereotypes and misinformation is an on-going struggle.  But there is hope and action occurring here in Zimbabwe,†said Ambassador Ray. The Americans with Disabilities act was passed by the U.S. Congress two decades ago.   It prohibits private employers, state and local governments, employment agencies, and labor unions from discriminating against qualified individuals with disabilities in the workplace.
According to recent media reports, more than 1 million Zimbabweans have some type of disability and the loss to Zimbabwe’s economy through their under-employment and unemployment is nearly $200 million dollars annually.
“These are large numbers. They show that helping people with disabilities through fair and equal treatment is good for all Zimbabweans,†said the U.S. Ambassador who also hailed the young musicians in Liyana, noting that “the vibrant, dynamic young musicians of Liyana inspire me by their passion and skill as musicians.  They inspire me as they have leapt over barriers, and broken down walls with their determination and passion.
Commenting on the documentary, Minister Coltart said the film made him feel “uplifted.â€
“Liyana (band members) are not just great ambassadors for Zimbabwe.  This film is very appropriately named, iThemba- it speaks of hope.  This band and its members are purveyors of hope not just for communities and individuals, but for our nation and other disabled people throughout the world,†said Minister Coltart.
The film, iThemba, was shot during the 2008 Zimbabwean presidential election and the country’s economic meltdown. It unfolds against the backdrop of political tensions and the daily struggle to find a bank with cash on hand, to buy food in stores with empty shelves, and to navigate streets pocked with wheelchair-mangling potholes.
Far from being another demoralizing documentary about Africa, iThemba is an unexpected, funny and poignant narrative about eight compelling young people who refuse to succumb to the stigma of disability or the collapse of their country. Â Their musical passion and fierce determination eventually took them on a dream tour to the United States of America.
The documentary film was first premiered in Africa in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso at the FESPACO film festival in early March 2011.
Co-director Elinor Burkett, a former Fulbright Professor who taught at the National University for Science and Technology in 2006, hailed the King George VI and Jairos Jiri schools which provide facilities for disabled students to explore their potential.
“You give young people the chance, and you never know how far they will go,†she said. Burkett co-directed the film with Jamaican Erroll Webber.
Burkett was also the producer of a related documentary, Music for Prudence, which won the 2010 Oscar for Best Short Subject Documentary. Â iThemba is a longer version of that film featuring the stories of all the band members.