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Friday lessons with Sir Mwanyisa
Greetings learners, parents and guardians! Welcome to your Visual and Performing Arts weekly lessons brought to you by your favourite newspaper, The Manica Post.
Learners are expected to have exercise books and a pen to write the work given as exercises.
You are expected to be able to: (i) state at least five business ethics and (ii) to explain the importance of Ubuntu in business
Ubuntu/Unhu is part of African culture and it is what makes Africans unique.
Unhu is important in social life as well as in business.
Let us explore some of the business practices that relate to Unhu.
A business without Unhu practices is bound to fail.
Munhu, munhu ngeunhu and as such, artists are expected to demonstrate unhu in their business interactions.
The artist lives in a community where peace, love and harmony should be promoted.
Artist should live in harmony and encourage acceptable moral standards in the work they produce as well as in interacting with the audience.
Using their influence to engage in immoral activities is against Ubuntu.
Role models
Good morals such as use of language, dress and including personal life choices are important aspects of Ubuntu.
Artists such as actors and musicians have a great impact on the behaviour of others.
Respect for human dignity and privacy is important in arts. Some artists have lost followers due to immoral behaviour.
Honesty
The artists are expected to be honest to the customers.
If the artist demonstrates loyalty to the customers, the probability of customers turning a blind eye on the mistakes of the artist is greater.
Some artists are loyal to their customers to the extent of ignoring their own personal interests.
Honesty is important in building trust.
Ploughing back to the community
The responsibility towards the community in which the artist works in is not only a moral obligation but a principle of Ubuntu.
If artists are working for an organisation, it also implies that the organisation itself has a responsibility to the community.
This explains why some artists produce artworks based on themes that can promote unity, cooperation and fight against human rights abuses.
Copyrighted materials
A copyright is a form of legal protection which protects the original artworks from being used by others without lawful approval.
Copyright Act protects both the interests of the artists and the artwork.
Use of copyrighted work is a criminal offence that can lead to imprisonment if found guilty.
Use of other artists work and publishing them as if they were your own is an unethical practice in arts.
Task
We have covered some of the principles and practices of Unhu/ ubuntu/vumunhu that artists can engage in whilst doing business.
Unhu protects all the parties, the customers, the business and the artist.
Research on the importance of ubuntu/unhu/vumunhu is Visual and Performing Arts.
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