Inspiring Partnerships for the New Millenium
by Professor Amii Omara-Otunnu, D.Phil. (Oxon)

Any university that aspires to be a first-class institution in the new phase of globalization must act with deliberate foresight to chart its course. This is because the new globalization offers opportunities as well as challenges to bridge or widen the chasms brought about by ignorance; racial, gender, class and religious intolerance and prejudice; xenophobia; economic and environmental exploitation; and by various forms of oppression and discrimination. It is with the goal to build itself into a first-class world institution of learning and to make enlightened contribution in the "global village" that the University of Connecticut entered into historic international partnerships in 1999 and 2000 with the African National Congress and the University of Fort Hare, respectively, of South Africa. The relationships are predicated on the principle of reciprocal consultation, learning and empowerment.

Both of the history-setting institutions in South Africa that the University of Connecticut is privileged to engage in forging meaningful partnerships for the mutual benefits of South Africa and United States at large, have a long and distinguished history in the field of human rights. The African National Congress (ANC) was the organization that spearheaded the fight against apartheid and for human rights for all South Africans. Since coming to power it has developed by far the most liberal constitution in the world and has given a free reign to a robust democratic rule of law. Both for its vision while fighting institutionalized racism and for the policies it has pursued once in power, the ANC has legitimately become a beckon of hope and an inspiration for many people who yearn for a world of harmonious race relations and gender equity. Although it is recognized by most enlightened people that the ANC now carries high the torch of human rights and democracy and is setting new models of conflict resolution informed by the twin principles of truth and reconciliation, it is scarcely realized that since its inception in 1912 the ANC has always advocated for a non-racial society. This was during an era when the intellectual luminary, W. E. B. DuBois, for example, had in 1903 observed that "The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the colour-line." In fact, most of the ideals that have gained currency in the field of human rights and found expression in the 1948 standard-setting Universal Declaration of Human Rights, were anticipated by leaders of the ANC by almost a half a century. President Nelson Mandela is a shining example of these ANC ideals.

The auspicious role of the ANC owes a great deal to the political and moral calibre of its leaders, almost all of whom were educated at the University of Fort Hare. The University itself, which was founded in 1916 -- three years after the establishment of the ANC - boasts a unique history in the annuals of South Africa. Matching the vision of the ANC for a non-racial society, it was the first ecumenical university in the country in three ways. First, it was founded by African intellectuals and Scottish Christian missionaries. Second, it was the first institution of higher learning that admitted all racial and sexual groups. And third, its faculty from the beginning was multi-racial during a period and in a country whose rulers were wedded to the dogma of racial segregation.

The trilateral partnership did not just happen; it is based on a common understanding by the three institutions on a number of issues. First, that reciprocal sharing of information on the history of 20th century racial and ethnic conflicts will enable us to fashion strategies not only to ensure that the errors of the past are not repeated but also that peace and human rights are secured for all people, including equitable allocation of global resources. Second, that as South Africa undergoes an epoch-making democratic transformation, international institutions should extend hands of solidarity to ensure that the transformation does not falter. It is in this respect that the University has offered to assist with transfer of appropriate skills and to help train South Africans for the new era. Third, that international institutions and the world at large stand to learn and gain a great deal from the efforts at restructuring underway in South Africa and from the formulae of conflict resolution being developed there. Fourth, that intellectual cross-fertilization between the three institutions will enrich all, broadens academic horizons and add much to learning about issues of diversity. And fifth, that the exchange of people and ideas will foster international cooperation in the economic, political and social fields.

At the heart of the trilateral partnership are twin objectives. These are, first, to assist in the preservation of materials in the fight against apartheid in particular and racism in general; and to advance understanding of human rights globally. To realize these two fundamental goals, the partnership provides for collaboration in five areas. The first is the comparative human rights program. Its main task is public and academic education on human rights issues through lectures, seminars, conferences, symposia, internships, dissemination of information, journal and research on comparative human rights. The second is oral history. The principal purpose is for the University of Connecticut to assist and train South Africans to record their own history. The third is archives management and preservation. Here, the University of Connecticut is committed to assisting with the cataloguing and processing of ANC archives as well as training South Africans in the science of archival management. The partnership agreement designates the University of Connecticut as the official repository of ANC archival materials in North America. However, the designation neither mandates the University of Connecticut to create a mirror archives in Storrs nor for it not to respect what is legitimately the national heritage of South Africa. Fourth is identification and possible retrieval of ANC archival materials in North Africa to South Africa. And fifth, is the exchange of faculty, staff and students between the University of Fort Hare and University of Connecticut. Although this is supposed to help capacity-building in Fort Hare, UConn counterparts have already discovered what a misnomer the notion of "capacity building" is. For it is evident that the University of Connecticut has gained and will gain equally much from our relationship with the University of Fort Hare. It should also be mentioned that the fifth component involves building reciprocal political and business ties between the State of Connecticut and the region where Fort Hare is located and which played a leading role in the defeat of apartheid, the Province of the Eastern Cape.

The Partnership Office would like to appeal to all people of good will who have the means and share the above stated goals, to contribute financial and moral support to help translate the objectives of the partnership into practical reality. Without financial support in particular, our vision will remain a pipe dream. We would therefore like to acknowledge with gratitude the generosity of the Mellon Foundation for its award of a large grant to enable the Partnership begin to embark on implementation of the oral history and archives projects. We are equally deeply appreciative of the money given to the University by the United Negro College Fund, which has allowed the Partnership to put in place building blocks for an enduring relationship with the University of Fort Hare.

To date, the Partnership has recorded notable success in all the areas mentioned above. Last February, the Comparative Human Rights Programme hosted an extraordinarily successful international conference under the banner of "Building Upon Legacies: Children of Human Rights Struggle." The one-day conference was attended by well over 600 people from South Africa, the States, and Britain. A sequel to the conference which will bring participants from United Nations, UNESCO, South Africa, the Middle East, Asia, United States, and Latin America, will take place on October 16th, 2001; the topic is "Education for Human Rights: Global Perspectives." In July 2000, a high level team consisting of eleven members of the faculty and staff went to the University of Fort Hare to discuss with their counterparts areas of collaboration and priorities. This was followed by another visit led by Chancellor John Petersen in February 2001. The team that included Vice Provost for Multi-Cultural Affairs, Professor Ronald Taylor; Executive Director of Partnership, Professor Amii Omara-Otunnu; Director of University Communications and of Governmental Relations, Scott Brohinsky; Associate Executive Director, Professor Timothy Weinland; Director of Athletics, Lewis Perkins; Director of the Dodd Research Center, Thomas Wilsted; and Law School professor, Laura Dickinson, were honoured while in Cape Town to attend the annual opening of Parliament as guests of Speaker Dr. Frene Ginwala and Chair of Council of Provinces, Ms. Naledi Pandor. The delegation was also privileged to meet with various leaders of South Africa, including President Thabo Mbeki and former President Nelson Mandela. This set the stage for an April visit by a team from the University of Fort Hare led by Vice Chancellor, Professor Derrick Swartz, as well as a July visit by a delegation from the Eastern Cape Province led by Premier Makhenkesi Stofile. In the area of oral history, work that is now continuing apace began in September with a training session in Cape Town led by Professor Bruce Stave. The other project, archives, has now hired Razia Saleh as a full-time coordinator in South Africa and is now poised to kick off.. The identification and retrieval project will, however, not begin in any meaningful fashion until the Partnership secures some funding.

It is fair to say that the University of Connecticut, in this era of a new globalization, in partnering with the two most arguably illustrious institutions in South Africa, is not only privileged to participate in history-making but is also contributing to building relationships to the mutual benefits of people from both South Africa and the United States. Already, the relationship is a concrete demonstration of international solidarity. It has and will certainly continue to inspire all sides to greater heights of achievements. It also has the distinctive potential to transform the University of Connecticut into a truly first-class world institution. This is an exciting challenge for which we ask all the people who care about the cause of human rights and democracy and those who would like to cure any provincial mentality, to join us, in spirit or by financial contribution. Together we can achieve excellence and build a first-class university, by combining the best of both countries.