Bathabile Dlamini's dress, why fashion at the SONA matters

Got this from a friend? Click here and join up . No Images? [Click here]( Dear {NAME}, In a few days, the Parliament of South Africa will welcome round two of the 2019 State of the Nation Address: following the presidential elections, President Cyril Ramaphosa is due to deliver his speech on the 20th of June. National Assembly Speaker, Thandi Modise, said in an interview with eNCA: “In line with government austerity measures, there will be no frills at this year’s second State of the Nation Address.” No frills?? If previous state events are anything to go by, excessive frills (ruffles, trains, Louboutin shoes and dapper hats) seem to be SONA’s staple dress code. Year after year, austerity deepens but the caravan of bold – and not always pretty – frocks goes on. What’s up with SONA 2.0? For a start, it will be President Ramaphosa’s first as South Africa’s officially democratically elected president (his first as President was following what Daily Maverick’s Professional Parliamentary Connoisseur, Marianne Merten, dubbed the 2018's [‘political hyper-drama’]( around Jacob Zuma’s resignation and SONA postponement for over a week). Just so I can diarise, what’s the date again? Thursday, 20 June 2019 at 7pm, although dignitaries are expected to walk the red carpet from 5pm. Remind me, did we always have a SONA? No, in fact, the first State of the Nation Address was held on 24th of May 1994, when Nelson Mandela became South Africa’s first democratically elected president; the event was held at 11am, it was called the Opening of Parliament, and journalists were briefed about the content of the address the day before. So, no red carpet then? Oh yes, red carpet then and red carpet now! Says Parliamentary Whiz, Merten: “Since 1994, it was always there: the red carpet, the fashion show around it, the pomp and the ceremony, the 21-gun salute, the marching of the presidential guard… But in those days, the staff of Parliament and everybody who worked there, used to be around; I still remember Mandela or Thabo Mbeki walking up the red carpet, and then people cheered and waved and clapped from the windows of the buildings that stand along Parliament avenue, and people would crowd into spaces and it was really quite joyous and loud and jubilant…” When did it become an evening affair? President [Jacob Zuma](, in “a break from tradition”, delivered the SONA for the first time at 7pm in February 2010. The idea? “To give more South Africans an opportunity to view the proceedings and to listen to the address. It is a simple logic: if the address is about the nation – the target audience – then the nation must be listening or watching. And what better time than 7pm when all South Africans, especially workers, students and school children, are at home to watch the proceedings live on television.” Who will be there this time? A LOT of people: the 1,200 guests will include the 28 ministers; 33 deputy ministers; no civil guard but the judiciary, provincial speakers, directors-general of state departments, guests from the President and the ministers, diplomats and civil society; the last survivors of the Rivonia Treason Trial, Andrew Mlangeni and Denis Goldberg; Gertrude Shope and Sophie de Bruyn who participated in the 1956 Women's March; and then, the odd celebrities like Mrs Africa Globe 2019, who attended SONA in February 2019 (in case you’re wondering, [Mrs. Globe]( is an international beauty pageant held annually, “open to women aged over 25, or who are married, or are parents”. Not kidding.). And the way everyone dresses for SONA often reflects the mood within the government; from the EFF's punchy – literally – red overalls, to a rather subdued but powerful two-piece all-black suit worn by Mmusi Maimane in 2015, it’s about making a (fashion) statement. Long Live the Red Carpet There have been some interesting fashion moments on Parliament’s red carpet. Here are few of our favourite picks… 1994: Mandela always wore a three-piece suit when addressing the nation. But for his entry into parliament in 1994, he chose the now iconic batik shirt, which later became the “Madiba shirt”. 14 February 2013: Cope MP Graham MacIntosh got permission to wear a Sgian Dubh, the traditional knife that goes in the top of the knee length socks, worn with a kilt for that year’s opening of Parliament. IFP leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi brought flowers for women ministers. “Buthelezi was years ahead of President Cyril Ramaphosa, who on Valentine’s Day 2019, brought roses for his reply to the parliamentary debate on SONA,” adds Merten. 2014: The red sea; as [Rebecca Davis]( said it at the time: “And there are uniforms – at least for the EFF, who won the lion’s share of media attention by holding true to their promise to turn up in red workers’ overalls and hard hats, with some female MPs wearing domestic worker uniforms. Rival politicians may dismiss it as a gimmicky piece of political theatre. Some social media commentators saw it as disrespectful to the Parliamentary process. The EFF says it’s a way of signalling their commitment both to Parliamentary work, and to the workers they represent. However you choose to interpret it, it’s an undeniably effective way of making a statement, and ensuring that the party’s representatives are instantly identifiable in a sea of National Assembly faces.” 2014: Disgraced former Minister of Communications, [Dina Pule](, infamous for often walking on the wild side on Christian Louboutin red soles, wore high heels sandals by… Salvatore Ferragamo. Shocking. 2014: At the time the Public Enterprises Minister, Malusi Gigaba wore an SA Airways pilot uniform (going for the captain’s gear, complete with epaulettes and a combination cap with gold insignia) to SONA. If you can’t judge a book by its cover, you surely can judge SA Airways fiasco by its fake pilot. 2105: Following a rather anarchic protest inside Parliament, leader of the EFF, Julius Malema and consorts are dragged out of the assembly by SAPS-trained security. Outside, Malema poses for posterity and fashion drama, the white T-shirt under his red jumpsuit ripped off, naked skin exposed. Fans rushed over. 2017: [Cyril Ramaphosa]( and Jacob Zuma both wore similar outfits, a dark two-piece suit with a white shirt and a red tie. 2017: The DA, led by Helen Zille, all dressed in black. “They all left the building and they were all dressed in black and they marched together and when they were sitting in the house, they had little flags about Life Esidimeni. The occasion, and the dress, became a political statement,” notes Merten. Is fashion at the President’s address to the nation a ‘thing’? Oh yes, it is! And not just locally, where garments often are silent commentary of the government’s mood. Internationally, politicians are wearing their mood on their sleeves and fashion at national events is a powerful reminder of someone’s – or the parties’ – state of mind. Tell me more… Remember the sea of white at this year’s US State of the Union Address? The House Democratic Women’s Working Group invited female leaders of both political parties to wear white in [honour of the 100th anniversary of the women's suffrage](. It was a striking statement, even more noticeable against both Melania Trump’s and Ivanka Trump’s pitch black outfits (and President Trump’s consistent misogynist approach to life and the world in general). That was powerful! Indeed, and so was Michelle Obama’s 2016 marigold Narciso Rodriguez midi-length wool crepe dress for her husband’s final speech at the State of the Union Address (the dress sold out within minutes of her appearing on screen). The bright yellow was meant to match Barack Obama’s optimism for the future of the nation. We were young and naïve back then, okay? Mighty Words [(]([from SONA 2019 1.0]([)]( “I’m a dresser.” Professor Nhlanhla Khubisa, former secretary-general of the NFP. “I’m so glad that when it comes to this, he always submits. Things change!” Dr Lydia Meshoe on dressing her husband, Reverend Kenneth Meshoe for the event. “It was made by two young women… They have their home… A sewing place… They are seamstresses! And you just buy the material or they buy the material for you and er… At some stage, they were assisted by government, when they were still growing but now, I think they are self-sufficient, but also I brought them for other ministers, because other ministers also depend on them.” Bathabile Dlamini on how government might or might not have been involved in the making of her dress. SABC’s Sakina Kamwendo: “Who made this?” Philisiwe Buthelezi: “It’s Oscar.” SK: “Er… Oscar… Where from?” PB: “Oscar de la Renta!” SK: “You know we have Oscars in South Africa, we need to be clear!” Not so much into SONA and want to read something different? 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