Affirmative Action versus Nonracialism in the New South Africa

2003 ◽  
Vol 32 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Nicholas L. Waddy
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
New South ◽  
Way Of Life ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Local Newspaper ◽  
Family Tradition ◽  
The Family ◽  
Real Value ◽  
The Government ◽  
Apartheid Regime

Last year, a distant cousin, who also happens to be a white South African, sent me a fascinating article from her local newspaper. The article was about her husband’s family, the Moores, and specifically about a claim the family made recently with South Africa’s Commission on Restitution of Land Rights (see Segar 2003). The claim is remarkable, because it has been one of the few lodged by white South Africans to obtain compensation for land that was taken from them under the apartheid regime. It seems that in 1965, several trading stores that had been owned by the Moores since the 1880s were confiscated by the South African Bantu Trust because they stood on land that was to become part of the independent black homeland known as the Transkei. The confiscation and the family’s eviction from the area were deeply traumatic—they were uprooted from their home, separated from friends and loyal customers (including Xhosa), and forced to witness the end of a family tradition. But the Moores had no choice, and the government offered them only one-third of the real value of the property as compensation. Today the family is seeking restitution, but as with most of the injustices perpetrated under apartheid, there is little that can be done to restore a way of life that was destroyed long ago.

scholarly journals Tribalism: Thorny issue towards reconciliation in South Africa – A practical theological appraisal

2018 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elijah M. Baloyi
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Ethnic Groups ◽  
South African ◽  
African Government ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Black South Africans ◽  
Theological Perspective ◽  
The Government ◽  
Apartheid Regime ◽  
Practical Theological

The apartheid regime used various strategies to ensure that South Africans formed a divided nation. It was through the differences between ethnic groups and tribes, among other things, that the government of the time managed to manipulate and entrench hatred and a lack of trust among most black South Africans. Tribalism, which existed even before apartheid, became instrumental in inflicting those divisions as perpetuated by the formation of homelands. The various ethnic groups had been turned against one other, and it had become a norm. Nepotism, which is part and parcel of the South African government, is just an extension of tribalism. It is the objective of this article to uncover how tribalism is still rearing its ugly head. From a practical theological perspective, it is important to deal with tribalism as a tool that plays a part in delaying tribal reconciliation, which was orchestrated by apartheid policies in South Africa.

PERCEPTIONS OF SOUTH AFRICAN YOUTH OF LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES: A CASE IN THE LEPELLE-NKUMPI MUNICIPAL AREA

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-89
Author(s):  
Matshidiso Kanjere
Keyword(s):  
Leadership Development ◽  
Young People ◽  
South African ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Practical Applications ◽  
South Africans ◽  
African Youth ◽  
Multiple Challenges ◽  
The Government

The South African youth faces multiple challenges that range from illiteracy, drug and alcohol abuse, crime and HIV/AIDS, to unemployment. These challenges and many other ills in society have led to interventions by government, and private and other civil societies. The government has established and initiated a number of programmes that aim at building capacity and helping the youth to cope with these multiple challenges. Some of the programmes are aimed at building leadership capacity among the impoverished youth in rural communities. A lot of money is being invested in these programmes, which are meant to develop young South Africans. However, there are some young people who do not participate in these programmes. They are also not in the formal education system, self-employed or employed elsewhere. And they are despondent. The government, private sector and non-governmental organisations are trying hard to bring these youths and others into the developmental arena, so that they can be active participants in the economy of the country in the near future. However, little research has been conducted to assess the broad impact of the various programmes in the country. The contribution that these programmes are making toward improving the livelihoods of young people has to be determined on a larger scale. Nevertheless, this article reports on an investigation that was conducted on a smaller scale, at the Lepelle-Nkumpi Local Municipality. The aim of the research was to explore the perceptions young South Africans have of the leadership development programmes that they have participated in. A mixed research approach was used to collect data and the key findings indicated that knowledge accumulated through participation in the programmes does not always translate into practical applications. However, the programmes were deemed to be valuable in instilling a positive life-view. The study recommends that support systems be established in the rural areas to assist young people with life challenges.

scholarly journals APARTHEID NOSTALGIA: Personal security concerns in South African townships

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary Kynoch
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
National Party ◽  
Police Custody ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Personal Security ◽  
Black South Africans ◽  
Iconic Images ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Apartheid Regime ◽  
The Relationship

Iconic images, such as the photograph of Hector Petersen, the thirteen year old boy shot by police in 1976 at the onset of the Soweto uprising, serve as powerful reminders of the brutality of apartheid. The National Party regime marked a time of great suffering for black South Africans. Televised images of white police beating and shooting black protestors exposed the racist violence of apartheid to the world. Steve Biko’s murder in police custody, popularised in the west by the movie Cry Freedom, was further emblematic of the apartheid regime. As a student in Canada at the time, the writer of this article was greatly influenced by these events and images, and subsequently spent several years in South Africa conducting research on crime, social conflict and policing. This article concentrates on the relationship between personal security and the concept of ‘apartheid nostalgia’, not among white diehards, but among residents of Soweto.

Creating a ‘socialist way of life’: family and reproduction policies in Bulgaria, 1944–1989

2004 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 283-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
ULF BRUNNBAUER ◽  
KARIN TAYLOR
Keyword(s):  
Birth Rate ◽  
Family Policy ◽  
Female Employment ◽  
Way Of Life ◽  
Rapid Urbanization ◽  
Patriarchal Family ◽  
Official Discourse ◽  
Dramatic Decline ◽  
The Family ◽  
The Government

This article explores the policies of the Bulgarian socialist regime (1944–1989) towards the family. Initially, the Bulgarian Communist Party focussed on the abolition of the patriarchal family, the emancipation of women and the struggle against ‘bourgeois residues’ in family life. However, the dramatic decline of the birth rate – a result of rapid urbanization and increasing female employment – led to a re-direction of official discourse. Reproduction became heavily politicized, as the 1968 ban on abortion makes evident. Despite pro-natalist measures, the government was unable to stop the fertility decline. This article demonstrates how socialist family policy was gradually modified through negotiation between the Party and the population.

Saints or Sinners: Public Evaluations of Post-Apartheid South African Presidents

Politeia ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamy Felton
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Performance Evaluation ◽  
South African ◽  
Multivariate Analyses ◽  
Identity Performance ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Current Affairs ◽  
Cognitive Awareness ◽  
The Government

This study investigates the nature of public evaluations of the presidents of post-apartheid South Africa. It consists of multivariate analyses which tests competing theories. Using IDASA (Institute for Democracy in South Africa) and Afrobarometer data from 1997, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2011 and 2015, the article tests identity, performance evaluation and cognitive awareness theories to determine which factors predict approval levels of the president. Findings indicate that South Africans are more likely to make use of performance evaluation when ascribing support than to use their cognitive awareness of current affairs. There is an indication that South Africans who share an identity with the president are more likely to approve of the president -- especially in recent years. However, South Africans are rational people who are more likely to base their approval of the president on how the government performs and how they perceive the economy.

scholarly journals Opinions of South African optometry students about working in rural areas after graduation

2015 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Khathutshelo P. Mashige ◽  
Olalekan A. Oduntan ◽  
Rekha Hansraj
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Financial Incentives ◽  
Living Conditions ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Care Services ◽  
The Government ◽  
Optometry Students

Background: Eye and vision problems have been reported to be more prevalent in rural than urban areas; and a large proportion of South Africans live in the rural areas.Aim: To investigate the opinions of South African optometry students about working in rural areas after completion of their training and to identify factors that may influence theirdecisions.Method: This was a cross-sectional quantitative study using a survey instrument containing both closed and open-ended, semi-structured questions.Results: Four hundred and thirty-eight students responded to the questionnaire (85.4% response rate). Overall, many of the respondents did not want to open their first (66%) or second practices (64.6%) in the rural areas. However, most respondents from rural backgrounds reported that they would open their first (77.2%) or second (79.4%) practice in the rural areas. The main reasons cited by the respondents for their unwillingness to work in the rural areaswere financial concerns (81.2%), personal safety (80.1%) and poor living conditions (75.3%), with a significantly higher number (p < 0.05) being from urban respondents for the latter twoissues only.Conclusion: Many students were not in favour of opening practices in rural areas, but were willing to work for the government or a non-governmental organisation after graduation. Efforts should be made to address financial incentives, safety and living conditions in the rural areas. The results of this study have implications for the future of availability and accessibility of eye care services to those living in the rural and remoteareas of the country.

Minority Monopoly in Transition: Recent Policy Shifts of the South African State

1980 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 611-626 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heribert Adam
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Southern Africa ◽  
African State ◽  
Political Leadership ◽  
The Real ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Black South Africans ◽  
The Government ◽  
Policy Shifts ◽  
Recent Policy

Does Zimbabwe provide the model for the likely transformation of white minority rule in the industrial heart of Southern Africa? With their morale boosted, the expectations of many black South Africans have been raised. Likewise many outside commentators predict the inevitable downfall of the white bastion along similar lines of escalating military confrontation after the last buffer state but Namibia has gone. Even Nationalist newspapers draw the lessons by admonishing the Government to pay attention to the ‘real leaders’ of the subordinates instead of unrepresentative collaborators. The Afrikaner political leadership uses the Rhodesian example to drum home its message of ‘adapt or die’ to a bewildered electorate.

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