Voortrekkers can also refer to the historical mass migration of the Afrikaner

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...

 people: see Voortrekkers

Voortrekkers

The Voortrekkers were emigrants during the 1830s and 1840s who left the Cape Colony moving into the interior of what is now South Africa...

.

The Voortrekkers is an Afrikaans language youth organisation founded 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...

 in 1931.

Mission, values and principles

In the words of its mission statement, "Die Voortrekkers empowers the Afrikaner to be successful as positive citizens and dependable Christians."

Its Values are encapsulated in what they call the ABC:

• Afrikanerskap (modern Afrikanership)
• Burgerskap (positive citizenship)
• Christenskap (dependable Christianship).

The Seven Principles as guide its members are:

1. To embed the belief in the Triune God

2. To practice a Christian lifestyle

3. To pass on and cultivate the Afrikaner culture and to appreciate and protect our heritage

4. To take the good from the Afrikaner’s past and to build the future thereupon

5. To observe, appreciate and protect our environment

6. To develop contributing citizens and effective leaders

7. To nuture the positive habits of exploration, appreciation, sustainability, self discipline and voluntary service delivery

Origins

The founding of the Voortrekkers coincided with the growth of Afrikaner nationalism

Afrikaner nationalism

Afrikaner nationalism is a political ideology that was born in the late 19th century around the idea that Afrikaners 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...

 in South Africa, then a British colony. In some ways it was an Afrikaans language alternative to the largely English

English language

English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...

-speaking Boy Scout

Scouting in South Africa

The Scout and Guide movement in South Africa consists of two independent national organizations:* Girl Guides Association of South Africa* South African Scout Association-See also:* Voortrekkers...

 movement with its British heritage. However, the Voortrekker programme was substantially more race-conscious, nationalist and religious in tone and principles than the Scouting programme.

Organisation

Organisationally, the Voortrekkers are divided into a number of gebiede (areas) which correspond to the old pre-1994 South African provinces

Provinces of South Africa

South Africa is currently divided into nine provinces. On the eve of the 1994 general election, South Africa's former homelands, also known as Bantustans, were reintegrated and the four existing provinces were divided into nine. The twelfth, thirteenth and sixteenth amendments to the constitution...

 plus Namibia

Namibia

Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia , is a country in southern Africa whose western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and east. It gained independence from South Africa on 21 March...

, which in turn are subdivided into oorde (districts) and then kommandos (commandos). Each kommando consists of a number of spanne (teams).

Membership levels

At primary-school level (ages 5-12), members are known as Penkoppe (boys) and Drawwertijes (girls); the emphasis at this stage is to develop personal leadership qualities.

In high school (ages 13-17), members are referred to as Verkenners and its emphasis is to continue what was learned in the earlier primary-school phase by applying its lessons to developing general leadership skills.

Young adult members (ages 18-35) are known as Staatmakers, with the program emphasising training for leadership positions at its several levels of organisation.

External links

• The Voortrekkers youth movement official website