Gwaza Muthini's 128th

Anniversary

The battle of Gwaza Muthini took place on February 2nd, 1895, near Marracuene, in Maputo province, fought between the Ronga forces commanded by the young prince Zixaxa and the Portuguese forces led by Major Alfredo Augusto Caldas Xavier. The battle took place during the Portuguese colonial occupation manoeuvres, at the time referred to as conquest and pacification campaigns. Our warriors fought with all their might, but could not win. This battle is, however, one of the greatest symbols of Mozambican colonial resistance. Every year, on the date it occurred, there is a series of emblematic festive commemorations associated with it, aiming to exalt our culture, resilience and identity. The occasion coincides with the “canho” (or “canhu”) season, the fruit of the Canhoeiro tree (Sclerocarya birrea, also known as Marula tree, elsewhere in southern Africa), which allows for the production of "ukanyi", a type of centuries-old traditional wine with low alcoholic content, greatly appreciated and consumed by the communities attending the Gwaza Muthini festival.

As always, the 2023 festivities were held in Marracuene, this time under the motto ‘128 Anos de Gwaza Muthini, Exaltando a Cultura como Legado da Nossa Identidade’ (“128 Years of Gwaza Muthini, Exalting Culture as a Legacy of Our Identity”). They kicked off with the now customary Tribute to Canhu, followed by the Farewell Ceremony at the tombs of the Mabjaias chiefdom, and had as the last component the Gwaza Muthini Festival, held at the monument marking the battle. Over 28 artists participated, including António Marcos, Melancia de Moz, Adelino Eduardo Mabatida, Casal do Ouro, Denny Love and many others. An interesting fact was the participation of a group of marrabenta dancers from Rome (Italy). More than five thousand people attended the festival, which had two stages: one sponsored by 2M and the other by Heineken. The public’s response was very positive as everything ran smoothly, in an atmosphere of irrepressible joy. The Government of Marracuene District, organiser of the event, also manifested great satisfaction, as everything corresponded to the expectations and objectives outlined by the CODGE – Comissão Organizadora Distrital dos Grandes Eventos (“District Organising Committee for Major Events”). It is therefore considered that the event has quite an impact on local development, since all institutions and communities are involved and end up benefiting economically, culturally and historically, since future generations get to know their communities’ past, in an attempt to preserve the legacy left by their ancestors. The festivities can even be seen as a cult phenomenon of national importance, since they present various customs and cultural manifestations, including dancing, singing, gastronomy, typical dress and others, to a vast public and various State entities.

The organisation hopes that next year the festivities will be even better, with an increase in the number of participants as well as a greater presence of artists from other geographies.

Vestígios do silêncio

A poesia de Mucavele desenvolve-se em meio à alegoria do fazer do arquitecto que molda nas formas da cidade a forma do desejo e a pulsão sexual.

Vestígios do silêncio (“Traces of Silence”)

Mucavele´s poetry unfolds amidst the architect’s allegorical making, in which desire and sexual drive are imprinted into the city’s morphology.

Para onde foram os vivos

Um livro que encara os males do nosso tempo, no olhar sensível do poeta que não se conforma com o estado das coisas. Uma crónica fingida de poema sobre tempos, lugares, memória e saudade, amor e espanto. É o retrato do mundo em decadência, estilhaçado, as cidades em ruínas, com o silêncio ensurdecedor das almas que ainda habitam o lugar com a esperança no exercício do amor. A quem amaremos quando estamos sós, isolados num lugar de silêncios e ausências, retratos de egoísmo, violência e tensões que levam a que o mundo, como o conhecemos, se desfaça sob o nosso olhar indiferente? Uma outra imagem das grandes cidades repletas de gente, ostentando o seu mais elevado amor material, mas ausentes em afectos. Nesta obra, a cidade e o corpo se confundem. Assim como o amor e o ódio se fundem para gerar tensões e violências. O poeta lança-se com o único amor que lhe resta, para esses corpos, ora vivos, mas ausentes, apátridas, levados para lugar nenhum com sentimentos ambíguos, ora à procura de algum lugar seguro, ora à procura de melhores condições de vida. O poeta usa esses corpos ausentes para espelhar a sua saudade, a dor da ausência, uma dor física e espiritual, encontrando no seu amor as palavras para descrevê-lo, como quem chora ou canta, mas nunca encantado, antes impressionado com a capacidade de autodestruição dos vivos que matam para salvar vidas. É a imagem desértica do amor. É o corpo na sua própria ausência. É a vida em escombros da própria vida.

Para onde foram os vivos

(“Where

did the living go”)

A book that tackles the evils of our time through the sensitive eyes of a poet who is dissatisfied with the state of things. A chronicle disguised as a poem about time, places, memory and longing, love and awe. It is the portrait of a world in decay, shattered; the cities in ruins, filled with the deafening silence of the souls that still inhabit the place, where loving is an act of hope. Whom do we love when we are alone, isolated in a place made of silences and absences, portraits of selfishness, violence and tensions that cause the world as we know it to crumble under our indifferent gaze? Another portrait of big cities full of people, displaying their highest material love, but lacking in affection. In this work, the city and the body are inseparable, just as love and hate merge to generate tension and violence. With the little love that’s left in him, the poet throws himself towards those bodies – sometimes alive, and yet absent, stateless, taken nowhere with ambiguous feelings, sometimes in search of somewhere safe, sometimes in search of better living conditions. The poet uses these absent bodies to mirror his longing, the pain created by absence, a physical and spiritual pain. Finding in his love the words to describe it, as one who weeps or sings, but never enchanted, rather impressed by the self-destructive capacity of the living who kill to save lives. It is the image deserted by love. It is the body in its own absence. It is life among the debris of life itself.

Espresso Cold Brew

INGREDIENTES:

Absolut – 30 ml

Kahlua – 30 ml

Cold Brew Café – 10 ml

Xarope de canela – 10 ml

Coloque todos os ingredientes num shaker, agite bem e, de seguida, sirva numa taça de cocktail.

Espresso Cold Brew

INGREDIENTS:

Absolut – 30 ml

Kahlua – 30 ml

Cold Brew Coffee – 10 ml

Cinnamon Syrup – 10 ml

Place all the ingredients in a shaker, shake well and serve in a cocktail glass.