Posted on February 14, 2011
In November 2007, the General Assembly of the United Nations proclaimed 20 February at its 62nd session as World Day of Social Justice. The day was observed for the first time in 2009 with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) organising a panel discussion and other events under theme of global economic crisis. The launch of this important date in the UN calendar took place in conjunction with the 47th session of the Commission for Social Development, at UN Headquarters in New York.
Member states were invited to devote this special day to the promotion of concrete national activities in accordance with the objectives and goals of the World Summit for Social Development and the twenty-fourth session of the General Assembly, entitled "World Summit for Social Development and beyond: achieving social development for all in a globalizing world".
As recognized by the World Summit, social development aims at social justice, solidarity, harmony and equality within and among countries and social justice, equality and equity constitute the fundamental values of all societies. To achieve "a society for all" governments made a commitment to the creation of a framework for action to promote social justice at national, regional and international levels. They also pledged to promote the equitable distribution of income and greater access to resources through equity and equality and opportunity for all. The governments recognized as well that economic growth should promote equity and social justice and that "a society for all" must be based on social justice and respect for all human rights and fundamental freedoms.
The observance of the day should contribute to the further consolidation of the efforts of the international community and civil society in poverty eradication, promotion of full employment and decent work, gender equity and access to social well-being and justice for all. It is well documented and debated within the archive and heritage sector that we live in an information age where knowledge is power and as a result the "neutrality and objectivity" of archives has been questioned. The influence and power gained by those who determine what will preserved for future generation, as some argue, should be acknowledged and engaged with rather than pretending that it does not exist. Many in the field agree that its important then archivists should seek to exploit this "influence and power" for the greater good of broader society. What does this then mean for our transforming and transitional society? How do we then harness this archival power to assist in addressing these huge global socio-economic challenges? As there are countless examples since ancient times, where this "archival power" has been complicit in bolstering the prestige and influence of elites in society.
If we are convinced then that archivists should be 'active agents for change', how does one get over the hurdle of unavoidable omission in the creating of archives. Some are beginning to suggest that then it is important that we begin to look more closely at 'biography' of each archive so that one views it within its historical trajectory. Whilst others are arguing for a more revisionist prism countering that archivists need to take active steps to counter the biases of previous archival practices. Archives have been used to highlight social injustices and repression across the world, yet governments in open and free democracies are increasingly limiting access to public information in the name of 'national security'. The growth in government secrecy is an indication of the blatant attempts by public officials to 'control public discourse by manipulating access to information which is the enemy of truth, accountability and social justice.'
The recent spate of shattering revelations in released confidential diplomatic cables and cabinet memos by Wikileaks, has pushed governments to be ever more vigilant in ensuring that public access to government information is curtailed. Public officials have been arguing that such brazen and unrestricted to sensitive government information makes governments vulnerable to attacks from criminal and terrorist organizations. Civil society organisations have been arguing vehemently that these are not sufficient reasons to deny access to information. The reason being that the opaque nature of what (and how) is defined as state secrets in the interest of national security often is within the public interest and makes officials accountable for their decisions and actions.
Some archivists have suggested that 'the structural pull in all our recordmaking is towards the replication of power - we cannot avoid complicity but we can work against the pull and ... i [t] is a moral imperative to do so.' The key strategy for archivists should be, as Verne Harris suggests, 'to acknowledge that their profession is inherently and unavoidably engaged in political power struggles to define the nature of our societies.' These are position that I can relate to but what hampers the implementation of such strategies is the gross lack of adequate infrastructure, staff and services in the sector.
A report that was released last year 'The Demand for and Supply of Skills in Library and Information Services, Archival Services and Records Management', jointly commissioned by the National Council for Library and Information Services and the Department of Arts and Culture bears testimony to these critical challenges. The audit revealed a number of factors that have led to skills deficiencies in the current workforce and, therefore, to training needs. The pressures brought about by the rapid transformation of organisations, the unfavourable labour market conditions in the IMS (specifically skills shortages) and the budgetary constraints faced by the sector have given rise to a situation where the current skills deficiencies cannot be addressed through informal training in the workplace alone. The specific training needs identified included generic training needs (skills needed by employees in archival services, LIS and in records management) such as IT training, customer care/service delivery, literacy and language proficiency, communication and "soft skills" training and management training. These needs also included technical training specific to each of the three work environments.
It is my firm belief that by addressing these training, infrastructure and capacity challenges in the sector, we can begin to fully harness the power of the archival to be a conduit in social justice. It cannot be enough to have the moral conviction to resist the pull towards affirming existing power relations. We have to equip people working within sector with the necessary knowledge and resources in order to do their jobs better. This is especially important in a society like South Africa where the archives were actively used by then apartheid government to justify an illegal state and entrench its oppression of the majority of its citizens. A well trained and empowered archivist can be a fantastic catalyst in raising awareness in communities about the pivotal role archives can play in solving the current challenges facing them. If we can better understand our past and present, surely a brighter future is assured? As we celebrate World Day of Social Justice in 2011 in the context of the persisting outfall of the global financial crisis precipitating overwhelming food price increases, the archives sector needs to be engaged in innovative initiatives linking social partners across the spectrum to seek solutions to our global challenges.
Uthando Baduza is an Archival Platform correspondent and FET Project Co-ordinator at NMMU. He writes in his personal capacity.
References
Department of Arts and Culture, 'The Demand for and Supply of Skills in Library and Information Services, Archival Services and Records Management', 15 March 2010
R. C. Jimerson, 'Archives for All: Professional Responsibility and Social Justice', The American Archivist Vol 70 (Fall/Winter 2007): 252-281
