Article Written By:

Cheynne Folkard

cheyneyf@gmail.com

The KZN regional finals of the Lover and Another poetry competition took place on the 31^st of August 2011 in the Pietermaritzburg campus Students Union hall. The innovative poetry competition is aimed at encouraging young people to talk openly and creatively about relationships, intimacy, sex, HIV and AIDS. All participants wrote unique pieces and performed their work in front of an appreciative crowd. The judges were tasked with scoring competitors on the content of their poem and the manner in which it was presented.

After many rounds, eight finalists were selected from Durban to compete against the eight best poets from PMB. They may have looked, acted and spoken differently, but what the sixteen finalists had in common was their ability to engage and incite the crowd gathered in the hall. The messages were profound and undoubtedly taken to heart. Once the poets had performed, the judges left the room to deliberate. Upon their return Ewok (South African Hip Hop icon) announced the winners.

First place went to Ntatheli from the ‘033’ who deservedly won R1500. Second place went to Lerato from Durban, who was given R1000 and Bongeka, who is also from PMB received R500 for coming third. These three stars will now move on to the national finals, at WITS University on the 2^nd of September, to compete against winners from other regions like Gauteng and Cape Town.