This document discusses many iconic aspects of South African culture and history that could represent the country's legacy in a time capsule. It mentions Nelson Mandela's role in the anti-apartheid movement and transition to democracy, iconic landmarks like Table Mountain and the Union Buildings, cultural elements like biltong and bunny chow, the 1995 Rugby World Cup victory, and the ongoing struggle against inequality represented by the Marikana massacre. Overall, it aims to capture South Africa's natural beauty, diversity, political history, and continued challenges through numerous brief examples and quotes.

1. IF ALL OF THE WORLD´S CULTURAL
HERITAGE (SPORTS, MUSIC, FASHION,
ARCHITECTURE, LITERATURE, PAINTING,
ETC..) WAS CONTAINED IN A TIME
CAPSULE, WHAT WOULD YOU INCLUDE TO
DEMONSTRATE THE LEGACY OF YOUR
COUNTRY?
BY MELISSA ARJOONAN

2. “I BELIEVE THAT SOUTH AFRICA IS THE
MOST BEAUTIFUL PLACE ON EARTH.
ADMITTEDLY, I AM BIASED BUT WHEN YOU
COMBINE THE NATURAL BEAUTY OF
SUNNY SOUTH AFRICA WITH THE
FRIENDLINESS AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY
OF OUR PEOPLE, AND THE FACT THAT THE
REGION IS A HAVEN FOR AFRICA'S MOST
SPLENDID WILDLIFE, THEN I THINK THAT
WE HAVE BEEN BLESSED WITH A TRULY
WONDERFUL LAND.” – NELSON MANDELA

3. IN MY MIND, THE UNION BUILDINGS
IN PRETORIA ARE MORE THAN JUST
THE OFFICIAL SEAT OF THE SOUTH
AFRICAN GOVERNMENT OR A
DEMOCRATIC LANDMARK; IT IS THE
PLACE WHERE I HAD THE
OPPORTUNITY TO PERSONALLY BID
FAREWELL TO AND SAY THANK YOU
TO NELSON MANDELA IN
DECEMBER 2013. IT IS AN
EXPERIENCE THAT WILL ALWAYS
REMAIN CLOSE TO MY HEART.
Nelson Mandela will always be the face of South Africa. The traveler passing through the country will see Mandela's face
almost everywhere he looks. Truly, the man is omnipresent.”
–Henry Rollins

4. THE AFRICAN RHINO – SOUTH AFRICA IS HOME TO MOST OF AFRICA’S RHINOS. SINCE
2008, RHINO POACHING IN THE COUNTRY HAS SOARED, RESULTING IN OVER 600 DEAD
RHINOS IN 2012 ALONE. UNFORTUNATELY, DESPITE NUMEROUS EFFORTS BY THE SOUTH
AFRICAN GOVERNMENT, AS WELL AS PRIVATE ORGANISATIONS TO FIGHT RHINO
POACHING, THERE IS NO CLEAR INDICATION THAT THE CRISIS IS MODERATING.
“Only when the last of the animals horns, tusks, skin and bones are sold, will Mankind realise that money can never buy
back our wildlife.” –Wild at Heart

5. THE NATIONAL ANTHEM OF SOUTH AFRICA IS UNIQUE AS IT INCORPORATES A
STRUGGLE SONG OF THE AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS DURING THE APARTHEID ERA
(“NKOSI SIKELEL' IAFRIKA”) AS WELL AS THE NATIONAL ANTHEM OF THE COUNTRY
DURING APARTHEID (“DIE STEM”). THE FACT THAT EVEN THE APARTHEID NATIONAL
ANTHEM WAS INCLUDED IN POST-APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA WAS SYMBOLIC TO
CITIZENS AS IT DISPLAYED THAT THE NEW SOUTH AFRICAN GOVERNMENT WAS ALL-INCLUSIVE.
“South Africa never leaves one indifferent. Its history, its population, its landscapes and cultures –all speak to the visitor, to
the student, to the friend of Africa.”
– Tariq Ramadan

6. MOSES MABHIDA STADIUM – THE STADIUM IS ARGUABLY THE BEST IN SOUTH AFRICA
AND DISPLAYS EXCEPTIONAL ARCHITECTURE. IT IS ALSO SYMBOLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
HOSTING THE GREATEST SPORTING EVENT IN 2010: THE SOCCER WORLD CUP; A SHEER
PRIVILEGE AND INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY FOR A COUNTRY THAT WAS ONLY SIXTEEN
YEARS INTO DEMOCRACY. FIFA IS COMMONLY CRITICISED FOR ENCOURAGING WASTED
EXPENDITURE IN HOST COUNTRIES IN WHICH STADIA ARE BUILT BUT NEVER FULLY
UTILISED AFTER THE EVENT ITSELF. THE MOSES MABHIDA STADIUM PROVIDES A
NOTEWORTHY EXAMPLE OF A STADIUM THAT IS GENERATING SIGNIFICANT REVENUE
FOR THE CITY OF DURBAN AS IT IS BEING UTILISED AS A MAJOR TOURIST ATTRACTION
BY PROVIDING A HOST OF ACTIVITIES AND HAS BECOME A SIGNIFICANT LANDMARK IN
THE CITY.
“We who have walked with the giants know that Moses Mbheki Mabhida belongs in that
company too.”
– Oliver Tambo

7. THE BOOK “LONG WALK TO
FREEDOM” – THIS IS THE
AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF THE EX-PRESIDENT,
MR. NELSON MANDELA,
AND IS THE STORY OF THE FIGHT
FOR FREEDOM BY THE GREATEST
MAN WHO HAS GRACED OUR LAND.
IT IS NOT ONLY A MUST-READ FOR
ALL SOUTH AFRICANS, BUT FOR
PEOPLE THROUGHOUT THE WORLD
AS IT DEMONSTRATES THE
GREATEST LIFE LESSONS THAT AN
INDIVIDUAL COULD HOPE TO
EMULATE.
“It's a blessing that South Africa has a man like Nelson Mandela.”
– Desmond Tutu

8. THE UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU NATAL (UKZN) – THIS IS THE INSTITUTION AT
WHICH I COMPLETED BOTH MY UNDERGRADUATE AS WELL AS MY POST-GRADUATE
DEGREES. IT WAS FORMED ON 01 JANUARY 2004 AFTER THE
MERGER BETWEEN THE UNIVERSITY OF NATAL AND THE UNIVERSITY OF
DURBAN-WESTVILLE. THE UNIVERSITY BOASTS FIVE CAMPUSES IN THE
PROVINCE OF KWAZULU NATAL AND WAS VERY PROMINENT DURING THE FIGHT
AGAINST APARTHEID. THE CAMPUS THAT I ATTENDED, PIETERMARITZBURG,
CONTAINS THE UNIVERSITY'S OLDEST STRUCTURE (OLD MAIN BUILDING –
PICTURED ON THE TOP LEFT), WHICH WAS BUILT IN 1912. THE UNIVERSITY IS
RICH WITH SOUTH AFRICAN HISTORY AND ITS FOUNDING INSTITUTIONS
INCLUDE (AMONG OTHERS) THE FOLLOWING ALUMNI: STEVE BIKO, ALAN
PATON, MANGOSUTHU BUTHELEZI, NKOSAZANA DLAMINI-ZUMA, AND MAMPHELA
RAMPHELE.
“Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.”
–George Washington Carver

9. PHOTOGRAPH OF SOWETO UPRISING
– JUNE 16TH IS A PUBLIC HOLIDAY IN
SOUTH AFRICA CALLED YOUTH DAY IN
MEMORY OF THE STUDENTS WHO
TOOK PART IN A SERIES OF PROTESTS
IN SOWETO IN 1976. THE STUDENTS
PROTESTED IN RESPONSE TO THE
INTRODUCTION OF AFRIKAANS AS A
MEDIUM OF INSTRUCTION IN LOCAL
SCHOOLS. THIS PARTICULAR
PHOTOGRAPH SHOWS THE DEAD
BODY OF HECTOR PIETERSON AND
CAUSED INTERNATIONAL OUTRAGE
AND CONDEMNATION OF THE THEN
APARTHEID GOVERNMENT AND
PLACED INCREASED PRESSURE FOR
DEMOCRACY IN THE COUNTRY.
“South Africa belongs to all who live in it, black and white.”
– Thabo Mbeki

10. THE BUNNY CHOW –THIS DISH
CONSISTS OF HOLLOWED OUT BREAD
FILLED WITH CURRY AND HAS EARNED
ITSELF A WELL-DESERVED SPOT ON
THE LIST OF AUTHENTIC SOUTH
AFRICAN FOOD.
BILTONG –ANOTHER AUTHENTIC SOUTH
AFRICAN DISH THAT REFERS TO
DIFFERENT TYPES OF DRIED MEAT AND IS
VERY MUCH ENTRENCHED IN SOUTH
AFRICAN CULTURE.
“There is no sincerer love than the love of food..”
– George Bernard Shaw

11. THE 1995 RUGBY WORLD CUP – THIS
WAS THE FIRST INTERNATIONAL
SPORTING EVENT THAT SOUTH AFRICA
HOSTED (AND WENT ON TO WIN) UNDER
DEMOCRATIC RULE. THE GREATER
SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS EVENT IS THE
STORY OF THE EVENTS PRECEDING THE
WORLD CUP WHEN PRESIDENT NELSON
MANDELA APPROACHED SOUTH
AFRICAN RUGBY CAPTAIN, FRANCOIS
PIENAAR; TO WORK TOGETHER TO
ENSURE THAT THE LOCAL RUGBY TEAM
WON THE WORLD CUP AS MANDELA HAD
THE INGENIOUS IDEA OF USING SPORT
AS A WAY TO UNITE A COUNTRY THAT
WAS SO DESPERATELY IN NEED OF
UNITY.
“It always seems impossible until it’s
done.”
–Nelson Mandela

12. THE MARIKANA MASSACRE – THE
MARIKANA INCIDENT OF 2012 BEGAN AS A
LABOUR STRIKE AGAINST A PLATINUM MINE
OWNED BY LONMIN IN RUSTENBURG. IT
ENDED AS A BLOODY MASSACRE AS A
SHOWDOWN BETWEEN STRIKING MINERS
AND POLICE ENSUED, RESULTING IN THE
DEATH OF 44 PEOPLE. THE MARIKANA
MASSACRE IS SYMBOLIC OF THE ONGOING
SEGREGATION IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN
ECONOMY AND HIGHLIGHTS THE PLIGHT OF
THE MAJORITY OF THE POPULATION. IT IS
AN INCIDENT THAT SHOULD BE
REMEMBERED, NOT JUST IN MEMORY OF
THOSE WHO HAVE PASSED ON, BUT ALSO
FOR THE LIGHT IT HAS SHED ON THE
GROWING PAINS IN THE SOUTH AFRICAN
LABOUR MARKET. THESE HEROIC PEOPLE
HAVE OPENED THE WAY FOR FAIRER PAY
FOR ALL MINERS, AS WELL AS OTHER
LABOURERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
“Cry, the beloved country, for the unborn child that is the inheritor of our fear. Let him not love the earth too deeply... For
fear will rob him of all if he gives too much.”
–Alan Paton

13. THE ORIGIN OF SOUTH AFRICAN WINE DATES BACK TO OVER
350 YEARS AGO, WITH THE COUNTRY BOASTING SOME OF
THE MOST OUTSTANDING VINEYARDS IN THE WORLD. SOUTH
AFRICA'S WINE HAS BECOME WORLD-RENOWNED SINCE THE
ABOLITION OF APARTHEID, AND SATISFIES THE MOST
DISCERNING OF PALATES.
“Wine is constant proof that God loves us and loves to see us happy.”
– Benjamin Franklin

14. STATUE OF MAHATMA GANDHI – AFTER BEING THROWN OFF A TRAIN IN 1893 IN
PIETERMARITZBURG, MAHATMA GANDHI MADE THE DECISION TO STAY ON IN SOUTH
AFRICA AND FIGHT THE RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AGAINST THE GROWING INDIAN
POPULATION IN THE COUNTRY. A HUNDRED YEARS LATER, A BRONZE STATUE OF GANDHI
WAS ERECTED ON CHURCH STREET IN PIETERMARITZBURG. AS A SOUTH AFRICAN
INDIAN FROM THE SURROUNDS OF PIETERMARITZBURG, THIS STATUE HOLDS GREAT
MEANING FOR ME AND IS SYMBOLIC OF MY CULTURAL HERITAGE IN SOUTH AFRICA IN A
NUMBER OF WAYS. SOUTH AFRICA BOASTS ONE OF THE LARGEST INDIAN POPULATIONS
OUTSIDE OF INDIA ITSELF AND THE OPPORTUNITIES INDIAN PEOPLE HAVE IN THIS
COUNTRY WOULD HAVE NOT BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE SELFLESS DEEDS OF
MAHATMA GANDHI.
“If there are dreams about a beautiful South Africa, there are also roads that lead to their goal. Two of these roads could
be named Goodness and Forgiveness.”
– Nelson Mandela

15. ROBBEN ISLAND IS A SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL
HERITAGE SITE AND A UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE
SITE. THE GREATEST SIGNIFICANCE OF ROBBEN
ISLAND FOR SOUTH AFRICANS IS THE FACT THAT
SOME OF THE GREATEST POLITICAL ACTIVISTS IN THE
HISTORY OF THE COUNTRY WERE IMPRISONED HERE
DURING APARTHEID. NELSON MANDELA SPENT
EIGHTEEN OF HIS TWENTY SEVEN YEARS OF
IMPRISONMENT AT ROBBEN ISLAND.
If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner..”
– Nelson Mandela

16. TABLE MOUNTAIN – THIS NATURAL BEAUTY NEEDS NO INTRODUCTION, THE PICTURES
WILL SPEAK A THOUSAND WORDS.
“To love beauty is to see light.”
–Victor Hugo