SATMA honours South African heroines and a hero

The South African Traditional Music Awards (SATMA) honoured three South African heroines and a hero on Saturday at the 17th Satma honorary awards event at Freedom Park, Salvokop, Pretoria.

The recipients of the awards included Hector Peterson’s sister Antoinette Pieterson-Sithole, broadcasting legend Dr Noxolo Grootboom, poet, sculptor and author Professor Pitika Ntuli and struggle stalwart Winnie Madikizela-Mandela.

Satma awards spokesperson Keletso Dlamini said Pieterson-Sithole was part of 1976 uprisings in Soweto as she could be seen on a widely published picture running with Mbuyisa Makhubo who was carrying Antoinette’s dying brother, Hector, after he had been brutally shot by the police of the apartheid regime.

“Antoinette, who was 17 years old at the time, is in the picture where Makhubo famously carried a dying Hector Pieterson during the June 16 uprisings,” Dlamini said.

He said the Satma awards honoured Pieterson-Sithole with a special award for her contribution to the fight for South Africa’s freedom.

“The honorary award to Antoinette was special because we did not tell her that she would receive an award today so it was a great surprise to her.”

Pieterson-Sithole said she was extremely sad about losing her brother.

“When I looked at the picture where my brother was losing his life, it broke my heart but I finally told myself that I could not live like this and had to find closure,” Pieterson-Sithole said, addressing more than 100 dignitaries at the event.

“Hector was nobody trying to tell somebody.”

The Satma awards were first handed over to South African singer, songwriter and actress Abigail Kubheka.

“We were not honouring maKubheka today but it was just a handover of the award she was unable to receive during Covid-19 at Mbombela in Mpumalanga in 2020,” Dlamini said, citing that they actually honoured her in 2020.

Satma awards CEO Zandile Nzimande said the Satma awards were inaugurated in 2006 and this year they celebrates 17 years of their existence.

“We celebrate culture and it is all about preserving what we have as Africans,” Nzimande said, citing that the Satma awards preserved culture through music.

She said the awards were however not only about music but also needed to ensure that those who made a significant contribution in the country were recognised.

“We have honoured a lot of legends, kings and queens.”

She said the Satma awards also played an important role in terms of social cohesion, which is about uniting people who are from different walks of life and together recognising and celebrating various cultures.

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