Afrikaner nationalism
Encyclopedia
Afrikaner nationalism is a political ideology that was born in the late 19th century around the idea that Afrikaner
s in South Africa
were a "chosen people"; it was also strongly influenced by anti-British sentiments that grew strong among the Afrikaners, especially because of the Boer Wars. Afrikaner nationalism emphasized the unity of all Afrikaans
speaking white people, the Volk (nation), against such "foreign" elements as Blacks, Jews and English-speaking South Africans.
According to historian T. Dunbar Moodie, Afrikaner nationalism could be described as a kind of civil religion
that combined the history of the Afrikaners, their language and the Afrikaner Calvinism
as key symbols. A major proponent of the ideology was the secret Broederbond organization and the National Party
that ruled the country from 1948 to 1994. Other organisations aligned with the Afrikaner nationalistic ideology were the Federation of Afrikaans Cultural Organisations (Federasie van Afrikaanse Kultuurvereniginge , FAK), the Institute for Christian National Education and the White Workers' Protection Association.
, who was also one of the founding members of the Broederbond as well as the publisher of Die Afrikaanse Patriot newspaper. In his writings, Du Toit put forward the notion that Afrikaners were a distinct nationality with a fatherland (South Africa) and their own language (Afrikaans) and that the volks destiny was to rule South Africa.
Religion, especially Afrikaner Calvinism, played an instrumental role in the development of Afrikaner nationalism and consequently the apartheid ideology. The Dutch Reformed Churches of South Africa were involved throughout the 18th century in a constant battle against modernism
and modernity
. They aligned with the conservative views of Abraham Kuyper
, who emphasized God's authority over separate spheres
of creation. These spheres, for example historical nations, had to be preserved and protected from liberalism and revolutionary ideologies. Kuyper also rejected the Enlightenment
with its emphasis on human rationality and individuality and thought that it had led to the ideals of equality, fraternity and freedom of the French Revolution
. In his view, all these ideas challenged God's authority. Afrikaner theologians worked from this foundation and defined a number of political, economic and cultural spheres that had their separate, independent destinies. The Afrikaner history was also reinterpreted through a Christian-nationalistic ideology. Already Paul Kruger
, president of Transvaal
and a founding member of the Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk, referred to it as "sacred history" with volk as the chosen people, where the Great Trek
was seen as the Exodus
from the British rule in Cape
to the Promised Land of the Boer Republics.
, who later became South Africa's president
, formulated the Afrikaner nationalistic ideology in his book "Nationalism as a Worldview and Its Relationship to Internationalism" through Kuyperian theology. According to Diederichs, God created nations and these nations had God-ordained right to exist
as separate entities. Therefore Afrikaners could refuse a "British-designed" South Africa in which they would co-exist with other ethnic groups as a minority. Geoffrey Cronje developed these ideas further and argued, that as long as the Afrikaner existed as a minority in a racially and culturally different environment, they could not allow the black majority to develop economically or politically, since this would lead to black domination. He acknowledged this as unjust and unchristian and as a solution offered total segregation, that is apartheid, between the blacks and the whites.
The Afrikaner nationalist intelligentsia, along with the National Party and the Broederbond, ended up formulating a radical nationalistic policy which rejected British hegemony in economics and politics as well as ethnic mengelmoes ("mess") induced by the transportation of black migrant workers around the country. Their solution was a drastic reordering of the South African demographic map with a dominant Afrikaner Republic not influenced by British imperialism. However, because of the opposition of the urban middle class they did not propose a return to conservative, pre-modern Boer
pastoralism
.
The Afrikaner state as a Christian civilization thus had a divine right to stay separate and rule the surrounding "heathen" nations.
had common roots in religio-nationalism and Pan Germanism and therefore the racist elements of the former were easily assimilated into the earlier. For example, Afrikaner criticism of the capitalistic system inter-war period was quite anti-Semitic. Many Afrikaner nationalists also viewed a Nazi German style strong government as necessary in order to protect the volk. Just before, and during the Second World War, these sentiments led to the appearance of a number of pro-Nazi Afrikaner nationalistic organisations, such as the Ossewabrandwag
and its paramilitary wing Stormjaers.
J. B. M. Hertzog led the National Party to the 1915 and 1920 elections under the slogan "South Africa first" in order to create a South Africa independent from the British influence. In the 1924 elections he defeated the South African Party led by Jan Smuts
, after Smuts had used force to end the Rand Revolt of white miners in 1922, and stayed in power for 15 years in a coalition government with the Labour Party. During his reign, he steadily promoted Afrikaner nationalism while deepening the racial segregation in the country.
) that tried to take control from the "British" or "Jewish" foreign economic system and to adapt it to Afrikaner's national character. Volkskapitalisme strived to improve the economic conditions of the Afrikaners who in general at the time were less well-off than the English-speaking whites in South Africa. In practice the program consisted of utilizing the Afrikaner capital into new and existing Afrikaner businesses. Although volkskapitalisme managed to develop some Afrikaner businesses, such as Sanlam
and Volkskas into corporate giants that still have a central role in South African economy
, in the end the economic benefits for the majority of the poor Afrikaners were slim.
Despite the efforts of the Broederbond activists to "Afrikanerise" South Africa, the uptake of this new Christian-nationalistic Afrikaner identity was slow and unenthusiastic. According to electoral studies, the majority of the target group (white, Afrikaans speaking South Africans) did not vote for the Afrikaner nationalistic National Party until early 1960s.
, Transvaler and Volksblad
. The usage of Afrikaans instead of Dutch
was aggressively promoted throughout the 1920s especially in white schools. The Bible
was translated into Afrikans by J. D. du Toit
, E. E. van Rooyen, J. D. Kestell, H. C. M. Fourie, and BB Keet
in 1933.
led to the National Party's rise to power in the 1948 elections, to the implementation of the apartheid politics in the country and finally to the culmination of Afrikaner nationalistic mobilization in 1961 when the country resigned from the British Commonwealth and became a republic. The National Party government implemented, alongside apartheid, a program of social conservatism
. Pornography, gambling and other such vices were banned because they were thought to be elements contrary to the "Afrikaner way of life". Even adultery and attempted adultery were banned (by the Immorality Amendment Act, Act No 23 of 1957).
, got 3.59 % of the vote compared to the National Party's 54,86 %. The gulf widened further during the 1980s partly because of the international pressure against apartheid.
One notable Afrikaner nationalist organisation was the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging
(AWB), a political and former paramilitary group. The group had the support of an estimated 5-7 percent of white South Africans in 1988. The organisation was beset by personal and militant scandals in the late 1980s and early 1990s that led to diminished support. This organisation was however never able to garner substantial Afrikaner support, which was held by the National Party until its dissolution.
In the 1990s the National Party acknowledged the failure of its ethnic project and under the leadership of F. W. De Klerk dismantled the political system set up from 1948. After apartheid, Afrikaner nationalism has lost most of its support.
for the protection of cultural, linguistic and religious rights of people around the world. Also some marginal right wing political parties, such as the Herstigte Nasionale Party, still declare their goal to be the "unashamed promotion of Afrikaner nationalism".
The tradition of Christian-national education is continued by the Movement for Christian-National Education
which educates the youth of the Boere-Afrikaner volk in the Afrikaner Calvinist tradition, Boer culture and history as well as in Afrikaans language. The AWB
had been largely inactive in South Africa since the demise of apartheid, although in 2008, the organisation was reactivated and is actively seeking an Afrikaner secessionist state within South Africa. On 3 April 2010, Eugene Terre'Blanche
, leader of the AWB, was murdered on his farm.
In a similar vein is the movement to establish an Afrikaner Volkstaat
within the boundaries of South Africa, with Die Volkstaat Orania being perhaps the most dominant and open example thereof; the Balfour Declaration, as established the doctrine that Jews had the right to a "national home" in Mandate Palestine
, is frequently cited as precedent for the movement's argument that the Afrikaner has a "natural right" to a "national home."
Afrikaner
Afrikaners are an ethnic group in Southern Africa descended from almost equal numbers of Dutch, French and German settlers whose native tongue is Afrikaans: a Germanic language which derives primarily from 17th century Dutch, and a variety of other languages.-Related ethno-linguistic groups:The...
s in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
were a "chosen people"; it was also strongly influenced by anti-British sentiments that grew strong among the Afrikaners, especially because of the Boer Wars. Afrikaner nationalism emphasized the unity of all Afrikaans
Afrikaans
Afrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...
speaking white people, the Volk (nation), against such "foreign" elements as Blacks, Jews and English-speaking South Africans.
According to historian T. Dunbar Moodie, Afrikaner nationalism could be described as a kind of civil religion
Civil religion
The intended meaning of the term civil religion often varies according to whether one is a sociologist of religion or a professional political commentator...
that combined the history of the Afrikaners, their language and the Afrikaner Calvinism
Afrikaner Calvinism
Afrikaner Calvinism is, according to theory, a unique cultural development that combined the Calvinist religion with the political aspirations of the white Afrikaans speaking people of South Africa....
as key symbols. A major proponent of the ideology was the secret Broederbond organization and the National Party
National Party (South Africa)
The National Party is a former political party in South Africa. Founded in 1914, it was the governing party of the country from 4 June 1948 until 9 May 1994. Members of the National Party were sometimes known as Nationalists or Nats. Its policies included apartheid, the establishment of a...
that ruled the country from 1948 to 1994. Other organisations aligned with the Afrikaner nationalistic ideology were the Federation of Afrikaans Cultural Organisations (Federasie van Afrikaanse Kultuurvereniginge , FAK), the Institute for Christian National Education and the White Workers' Protection Association.
Formulating the ideology
One of the first champions of the Afrikaner nationalism was ordained minister Stephen Du Toit of the Dutch Reformed ChurchNederduits Gereformeerde Kerk
The Nederduits Gereformeerde Kerk is a Reformed Christian denomination in South Africa. It also has a presence in neighboring countries, such as Namibia, Swaziland, and parts of Botswana and Zimbabwe...
, who was also one of the founding members of the Broederbond as well as the publisher of Die Afrikaanse Patriot newspaper. In his writings, Du Toit put forward the notion that Afrikaners were a distinct nationality with a fatherland (South Africa) and their own language (Afrikaans) and that the volks destiny was to rule South Africa.
Dutch Reformed Church
Modernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
and modernity
Modernity
Modernity typically refers to a post-traditional, post-medieval historical period, one marked by the move from feudalism toward capitalism, industrialization, secularization, rationalization, the nation-state and its constituent institutions and forms of surveillance...
. They aligned with the conservative views of Abraham Kuyper
Abraham Kuyper
Abraham Kuijper generally known as Abraham Kuyper, was a Dutch politician, journalist, statesman and theologian...
, who emphasized God's authority over separate spheres
Sphere sovereignty
In Neo-Calvinism, sphere sovereignty is the concept that each sphere of life has its own distinct responsibilities and authority or competence, and stands equal to other spheres of life. Sphere sovereignty involves the idea of an all encompassing created order, designed and governed by God...
of creation. These spheres, for example historical nations, had to be preserved and protected from liberalism and revolutionary ideologies. Kuyper also rejected the Enlightenment
Age of Enlightenment
The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...
with its emphasis on human rationality and individuality and thought that it had led to the ideals of equality, fraternity and freedom of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
. In his view, all these ideas challenged God's authority. Afrikaner theologians worked from this foundation and defined a number of political, economic and cultural spheres that had their separate, independent destinies. The Afrikaner history was also reinterpreted through a Christian-nationalistic ideology. Already Paul Kruger
Paul Kruger
Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger , better known as Paul Kruger and affectionately known as Uncle Paul was State President of the South African Republic...
, president of Transvaal
South African Republic
The South African Republic , often informally known as the Transvaal Republic, was an independent Boer-ruled country in Southern Africa during the second half of the 19th century. Not to be confused with the present-day Republic of South Africa, it occupied the area later known as the South African...
and a founding member of the Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk, referred to it as "sacred history" with volk as the chosen people, where the Great Trek
Great Trek
The Great Trek was an eastward and north-eastward migration away from British control in the Cape Colony during the 1830s and 1840s by Boers . The migrants were descended from settlers from western mainland Europe, most notably from the Netherlands, northwest Germany and French Huguenots...
was seen as the Exodus
The Exodus
The Exodus is the story of the departure of the Israelites from ancient Egypt described in the Hebrew Bible.Narrowly defined, the term refers only to the departure from Egypt described in the Book of Exodus; more widely, it takes in the subsequent law-givings and wanderings in the wilderness...
from the British rule in Cape
Cape Colony
The Cape Colony, part of modern South Africa, was established by the Dutch East India Company in 1652, with the founding of Cape Town. It was subsequently occupied by the British in 1795 when the Netherlands were occupied by revolutionary France, so that the French revolutionaries could not take...
to the Promised Land of the Boer Republics.
Secular Afrikaner nationalism
During the 1930s and 1940s many intellectuals partook in the theoretical formulation of the Afrikaner nationalism. Nicolaas Johannes DiederichsNicolaas Johannes Diederichs
Nicolaas Diederichs served as the third State President of South Africa from 1975 to 1978.An economist, Diederichs obtained a doctorate from the University of Leiden. During the 1930s and 1940s he became a prominent figure in Afrikaner nationalist circles...
, who later became South Africa's president
State President of South Africa
State President, or Staatspresident in Afrikaans, was the title of South Africa's head of state from 1961 to 1994. The office was established when the country became a republic in 1961, and Queen Elizabeth II ceased to be head of state...
, formulated the Afrikaner nationalistic ideology in his book "Nationalism as a Worldview and Its Relationship to Internationalism" through Kuyperian theology. According to Diederichs, God created nations and these nations had God-ordained right to exist
Right to exist
The right to exist is said to be an attribute of nations. According to an essay by the nineteenth century French philosopher Ernest Renan, a state has the right to exist when individuals are willing to sacrifice their own interests for the community it represents. Unlike self-determination, the...
as separate entities. Therefore Afrikaners could refuse a "British-designed" South Africa in which they would co-exist with other ethnic groups as a minority. Geoffrey Cronje developed these ideas further and argued, that as long as the Afrikaner existed as a minority in a racially and culturally different environment, they could not allow the black majority to develop economically or politically, since this would lead to black domination. He acknowledged this as unjust and unchristian and as a solution offered total segregation, that is apartheid, between the blacks and the whites.
The Afrikaner nationalist intelligentsia, along with the National Party and the Broederbond, ended up formulating a radical nationalistic policy which rejected British hegemony in economics and politics as well as ethnic mengelmoes ("mess") induced by the transportation of black migrant workers around the country. Their solution was a drastic reordering of the South African demographic map with a dominant Afrikaner Republic not influenced by British imperialism. However, because of the opposition of the urban middle class they did not propose a return to conservative, pre-modern Boer
Boer
Boer is the Dutch and Afrikaans word for farmer, which came to denote the descendants of the Dutch-speaking settlers of the eastern Cape frontier in Southern Africa during the 18th century, as well as those who left the Cape Colony during the 19th century to settle in the Orange Free State,...
pastoralism
Pastoralism
Pastoralism or pastoral farming is the branch of agriculture concerned with the raising of livestock. It is animal husbandry: the care, tending and use of animals such as camels, goats, cattle, yaks, llamas, and sheep. It may have a mobile aspect, moving the herds in search of fresh pasture and...
.
Afrikaner nationalism and race
Initially during the 19th century, the position of the Dutch Reformed Church on the nationalistic issue was more pragmatic than ideological and, for example, in South Africa, racial segregation was accepted as a harmonious way of administering heterogeneous community. The economic depression in 1905-09 changed this attitude when a new group of "poor whites", mostly Afrikaners, emerged. By 1939 the racial segregation had been made into a church dogma: "- The policy of segregation as advocated by the Afrikaner and his church is the holy calling of the Church to see to the thousands of poor whites in the cities who fight a losing battle in the present economic world...The application of segregation will furthermore lead to the creation of separate healthy cities for the non-whites where they will be in a position to develop along their own lines, establish their own institutions and later on govern themselves under the guardianship of the whites"
The Afrikaner state as a Christian civilization thus had a divine right to stay separate and rule the surrounding "heathen" nations.
Afrikaner nationalism and national socialism
Afrikaner nationalism and NazismNazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
had common roots in religio-nationalism and Pan Germanism and therefore the racist elements of the former were easily assimilated into the earlier. For example, Afrikaner criticism of the capitalistic system inter-war period was quite anti-Semitic. Many Afrikaner nationalists also viewed a Nazi German style strong government as necessary in order to protect the volk. Just before, and during the Second World War, these sentiments led to the appearance of a number of pro-Nazi Afrikaner nationalistic organisations, such as the Ossewabrandwag
Ossewabrandwag
The Ossewabrandwag was an anti-British and pro-German organization in South Africa during World War II, which opposed South African participation in the war...
and its paramilitary wing Stormjaers.
Afrikaner nationalistic politics
Jan Smuts
Jan Christiaan Smuts, OM, CH, ED, KC, FRS, PC was a prominent South African and British Commonwealth statesman, military leader and philosopher. In addition to holding various cabinet posts, he served as Prime Minister of the Union of South Africa from 1919 until 1924 and from 1939 until 1948...
, after Smuts had used force to end the Rand Revolt of white miners in 1922, and stayed in power for 15 years in a coalition government with the Labour Party. During his reign, he steadily promoted Afrikaner nationalism while deepening the racial segregation in the country.
Broederbond
During the 1930s a group of Broederbond members shaped the Afrikaner nationalistic ideology, by trying to create a common "Christian-nationalistic" identity for all white, Afrikaans speaking South Africans as well as introducing the idea of Volkskapitalisme (people's capitalismCapitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
) that tried to take control from the "British" or "Jewish" foreign economic system and to adapt it to Afrikaner's national character. Volkskapitalisme strived to improve the economic conditions of the Afrikaners who in general at the time were less well-off than the English-speaking whites in South Africa. In practice the program consisted of utilizing the Afrikaner capital into new and existing Afrikaner businesses. Although volkskapitalisme managed to develop some Afrikaner businesses, such as Sanlam
Sanlam
Sanlam Limited is a financial services group in South Africa with its head office in Bellville in the Western Cape. Established in 1918, the Group demutualised in 1998 and Sanlam Limited then listed on the JSE Limited in Johannesburg and the Namibian Stock Exchange. The Sanlam Group conducts its...
and Volkskas into corporate giants that still have a central role in South African economy
Economy of South Africa
The economy of South Africa is the largest in Africa, accounts for 24% of its Gross Domestic Product in terms of PPP, and is ranked as an upper-middle income economy by the World Bank, which makes the country one of only four countries in Africa represented in this category...
, in the end the economic benefits for the majority of the poor Afrikaners were slim.
Despite the efforts of the Broederbond activists to "Afrikanerise" South Africa, the uptake of this new Christian-nationalistic Afrikaner identity was slow and unenthusiastic. According to electoral studies, the majority of the target group (white, Afrikaans speaking South Africans) did not vote for the Afrikaner nationalistic National Party until early 1960s.
Popular media
During the 1930s and '40s Afrikaner nationalists constructed an "imagined community" of the Afrikaner with maps and narratives of its heroic past, moral purpose and a place among other nations. These ideas were spread through new emerging Afrikaner print media, such as the Christian-nationalistic journal Koers (Direction) and a more popularized Inspan, magazines such as Huisgenoot, books published by the Burger Boekhandel publishing house and the newspapers Die BurgerDie Burger
Die Burger is a daily Afrikaans language newspaper, published by Naspers. By 2008, it had a circulation of 91,665 in the Western and Eastern Cape Provinces of South Africa...
, Transvaler and Volksblad
Volksblad
The Volksblad is an Afrikaans language daily newspaper published in Bloemfontein, South Africa, and distributed in the Free State and Northern Cape provinces, where it is the largest Afrikaans daily. It is South Africa's oldest Afrikaans newspaper...
. The usage of Afrikaans instead of Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
was aggressively promoted throughout the 1920s especially in white schools. The Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
was translated into Afrikans by J. D. du Toit
Totius
Totius was the pen name of the Afrikaner poet Jacob Daniël du Toit .-Life:...
, E. E. van Rooyen, J. D. Kestell, H. C. M. Fourie, and BB Keet
BB Keet
B B Keet was one of the few Afrikaner theologians that rejected the theological basis of separate development and apartheid policies. The others included Ben Marais and C F Beyers Naudé.- History :...
in 1933.
Rise to power
The South African opposition during the Second World War of the country's involvement in the war against Nazi GermanyNazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
led to the National Party's rise to power in the 1948 elections, to the implementation of the apartheid politics in the country and finally to the culmination of Afrikaner nationalistic mobilization in 1961 when the country resigned from the British Commonwealth and became a republic. The National Party government implemented, alongside apartheid, a program of social conservatism
Conservatism
Conservatism is a political and social philosophy that promotes the maintenance of traditional institutions and supports, at the most, minimal and gradual change in society. Some conservatives seek to preserve things as they are, emphasizing stability and continuity, while others oppose modernism...
. Pornography, gambling and other such vices were banned because they were thought to be elements contrary to the "Afrikaner way of life". Even adultery and attempted adultery were banned (by the Immorality Amendment Act, Act No 23 of 1957).
Emerging conflicts
During the 1960s a split emerged in the Afrikaner electorate over the issue of how to preserve a distinct identity in a multi-ethnic society: one faction insisted on preserving the national identity through strict isolation, while others thought that such barriers needed to be relaxed. As a sign of this, in the 1970 election a radical splinter group from the National Party, Herstigte Nasionale PartyHerstigte Nasionale Party
The Herstigte Nasionale Party van Suid-Afrika was formed as a right-wing splinter group of the South African National Party.-Formation:...
, got 3.59 % of the vote compared to the National Party's 54,86 %. The gulf widened further during the 1980s partly because of the international pressure against apartheid.
One notable Afrikaner nationalist organisation was the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging
Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging
The Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging is a South African far right separatist political and former paramilitary organization, since its creation dedicated to secessionist Afrikaner nationalism and the creation of an independent Boer-Afrikaner republic or "" in part of South Africa...
(AWB), a political and former paramilitary group. The group had the support of an estimated 5-7 percent of white South Africans in 1988. The organisation was beset by personal and militant scandals in the late 1980s and early 1990s that led to diminished support. This organisation was however never able to garner substantial Afrikaner support, which was held by the National Party until its dissolution.
In the 1990s the National Party acknowledged the failure of its ethnic project and under the leadership of F. W. De Klerk dismantled the political system set up from 1948. After apartheid, Afrikaner nationalism has lost most of its support.
After apartheid
Although it has mostly disappeared from publicity, Afrikaner nationalism is kept alive through such political initiatives as the Cyber Republic of the Boer Nation, which claims to be "the only white indigenous tribe in Southern Africa" and has tried to appeal to the UN Working Group on Indigenous PopulationsWorking Group on Indigenous Populations
The Working Group on Indigenous Populations was a subsidiary body within the structure of the United Nations. It was established in 1982, and was one of the six working groups overseen by the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, the main subsidiary body of the United...
for the protection of cultural, linguistic and religious rights of people around the world. Also some marginal right wing political parties, such as the Herstigte Nasionale Party, still declare their goal to be the "unashamed promotion of Afrikaner nationalism".
The tradition of Christian-national education is continued by the Movement for Christian-National Education
BCVO
The BCVO is an educational organisation in South Africa, committed to providing primary and secondary education in the Calvinist tradition and Afrikaans language...
which educates the youth of the Boere-Afrikaner volk in the Afrikaner Calvinist tradition, Boer culture and history as well as in Afrikaans language. The AWB
Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging
The Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging is a South African far right separatist political and former paramilitary organization, since its creation dedicated to secessionist Afrikaner nationalism and the creation of an independent Boer-Afrikaner republic or "" in part of South Africa...
had been largely inactive in South Africa since the demise of apartheid, although in 2008, the organisation was reactivated and is actively seeking an Afrikaner secessionist state within South Africa. On 3 April 2010, Eugene Terre'Blanche
Eugène Terre'Blanche
Eugène Ney Terre'Blanche was a former member of South Africa's Herstigte Nasionale Party who founded the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging during the apartheid era...
, leader of the AWB, was murdered on his farm.
In a similar vein is the movement to establish an Afrikaner Volkstaat
Volkstaat
Volkstaat is a proposal for the establishment of self determination for the Boer and Afrikaners minority in South Africa according to federal principles, alluding to full independence in the form of a homeland for Boer and Afrikaners....
within the boundaries of South Africa, with Die Volkstaat Orania being perhaps the most dominant and open example thereof; the Balfour Declaration, as established the doctrine that Jews had the right to a "national home" in Mandate Palestine
Mandate Palestine
Mandate Palestine existed while the British Mandate for Palestine, which formally began in September 1923 and terminated in May 1948, was in effect...
, is frequently cited as precedent for the movement's argument that the Afrikaner has a "natural right" to a "national home."
See also
- VolkstaatVolkstaatVolkstaat is a proposal for the establishment of self determination for the Boer and Afrikaners minority in South Africa according to federal principles, alluding to full independence in the form of a homeland for Boer and Afrikaners....
- Ethnic nationalismEthnic nationalismEthnic nationalism is a form of nationalism wherein the "nation" is defined in terms of ethnicity. Whatever specific ethnicity is involved, ethnic nationalism always includes some element of descent from previous generations and the implied claim of ethnic essentialism, i.e...
- White nationalismWhite nationalismWhite nationalism is a political ideology which advocates a racial definition of national identity for white people. White separatism and white supremacism are subgroups within white nationalism. The former seek a separate white nation state, while the latter add ideas from social Darwinism and...
- Orania
- AfrikanerAfrikanerAfrikaners are an ethnic group in Southern Africa descended from almost equal numbers of Dutch, French and German settlers whose native tongue is Afrikaans: a Germanic language which derives primarily from 17th century Dutch, and a variety of other languages.-Related ethno-linguistic groups:The...
- White South African