PANAFEST visit to slave dungeons?Tears to flow again

The Graphic Showbiz, a weekly and a sister paper of the Daily Graphic, focuses on the celebration of this year?s Pan African Historical and Theatre Festival, (PANAFEST ?99).

The lead story traces the origin of the festival and highlights some of the activities lined for the festival.

The story takes readers into the past with a description of the dungeons in Cape Coast and Elmina, where most of the slaves were sent in readiness to be ?exported? to Europe and the Americas.

According to Grapic Showbiz, ??no brother or sister from the diaspora who makes a tour of the castles and enters the dungeons, comes out the same?.

Some come out more humbled others very angry and yet others come looking more knowledgeable with a look of understanding on their faces but on all occasions, the tears do not seize to flow. The paper says PANAFEST is a festival that provides the opportunity for "our brothers and sisters to visit these places".

It also allows them to participate in other activities during the festival. PANAFEST does not only involve programmes of music dance and drama, films, conferences on history and projections of the black race, but acts as an important bridge to link Africa to the wider community in the arts sciences technology commerce and tourism.

The Graphic Showbiz describes PANAFEST as homecoming, a sharing and a remembrance of the past and a joyful celebration of the future. It offers a forum to promote unity between Africans and their brothers and sisters in the diaspora.

The main theme for this year?s PANAFEST is the "Re-emergence of the African Civilisation - Uniting the African Family", with a sub theme: "Youth- the Agenda for the Millennium ". Some of the activities are an ?Akwaaba? ceremony, memorial and Remembrance Day, traditional get-together film shows masquerade procession, a float through the principal streets and a grand durbar of chiefs.