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Periodical article Periodical article Leiden University catalogue Leiden University catalogue WorldCat catalogue WorldCat
Title:The Harmless People: From Stone-Age Hunter to Modern Soldier
Author:Erasmus, P.A.ISNI
Year:1997
Periodical:South African Journal of Ethnology
Volume:20
Issue:4
Period:December
Pages:165-169
Language:English
Geographic terms:South Africa
Namibia
Subjects:images
San
armed forces
Peoples of Africa (Ethnic Groups)
Military, Defense and Arms
Abstract:After the withdrawal of the Portuguese forces from Angola in 1974 the South African Defence Force (SADF) concentrated a number of Angolan Bushmen at the Omega base in the Western Caprivi. In the late 1970s, the SADF also extended recruitment to Bushmen living in Namibia. The Bushmen received basic military training so that they could be used as 'hunters' against SWAPO. Two possible reasons can be provided to explain why the Bushmen let themselves become involved in the Namibian war of liberation: issues of 'hate' (the Bushman is supposed to hate the black man more than the white man), and issues of 'upliftment' (the SADF regarded itself as a rescuer of the Bushman ethnos). In this period the SADF played a most decisive role in the construction of a Bushman context and image. They created and cultivated the image of the Bushmen as separate and distinct from other people. Secondly, they emphasized the 'remarkable' qualities of Bushman soldiers: their outstanding tracking abilities, for example, became legendary. Finally, there was the SADF's deliberate campaign to emphasize/exploit feelings of hate between the Bushmen and blacks (read SWAPO). Bibliogr., notes, ref., sum. in Afrikaans and English.
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