Tydskrif vir Geesteswetenskappe

Redakteursnota

The origin of everything: "And there was evening and there was morning"

Darwin se evolusieteorie wat in die 18e eeu gepubliseer is, was 'n elegante, sinvolle en logiese verklaring van waangenome data. Hierdie teorie is deur die destydse wetenskaplike gemeenskap aangegryp, omdat dit vir die eerste keer 'n alternatief gebied het vir die skeppingsverhaal in die Bybel. Voorstanders van die teorie was oortuig daarvan dat die ontstaan en verskeidenheid van lewe op aarde volledig deur evolusie en natuurlike seleksie verklaar kon word. Die evolusieteorie het mettertyd normatiewe status verwerf, wat daartoe gelei het dat die totaliteit van die menslike kennis deur 'n filter van ewekansige toeval geïnterpreteer is. Teenstanders van hierdie materialistiese praktyk is in baie gevalle gebrandmerk as randfigure. Sedertdien het die natuurwetenskap en die tegnologie egter dramaties ontwikkel en nuwe waarnemings op die makro-, sowel as op die mikrovlak, het gelei tot 'n groeiende aantal vrae wat nie deur 'n onbegeleide, willekeurige meganisme verklaar kan word nie. In hierdie artikel (die eerste van vier artikels oor hierdie onderwerp) word enkele voor-beelde van sodanige empiriese gegewens voorgehou. Die sentrale teoretiese uitgangspunt is dat kontemporêre waarnemings in alle dissiplines van die natuurwetenskap, die beste verklaar word deur die bestaan en betrokkenheid van God in die skepping. Akademiese integriteit verg dat daar afgewyk moet word van 'n normatiewe materialisme (wat by voorbaat enige metafisiese interpretasies uitsluit), wat tans nog wyd aangehang word. Die outeurs se vertrekpunt is 'n Reformatoriese4 verstaan van die werklikheid. Die vier artikels het almal dieselfde struktuur, naamlik 'n probleemstelling, 'n natuurwetenskaplike bespreking, 'n verkenning oor watter inligting die Bybel oor die verskillende onderwerpe aanbied, afgesluit deur 'n gevolgtrekking. Die artikelreeks is veronderstel om 'n breë, kritiese beskouing van die onderwerp van normatiewe materialisme in die natuurwetenskap te verskaf en geen nuwe navorsingsresultateper se word aangebied nie. Die insigte waartoe gekom word in die onderskeie gevolgtrekkings is egter wel uniek en die outeurs is van mening dat dit 'n bydrae lewer tot die bestaande kennis oor die verband tussen geloof en wetenskap.

Darwin's 18th century theory of evolution was an elegant, sensible, and logical explanation of observed data. It was embraced by the scientific community of the time since it offered an alternative to the creation narrative in the Bible. Proponents of the theory were convinced that the origin and multitude of life on earth could be fully explained by evolution and natural selection. Over time, the theory of evolution acquired normative status, which led to the totality of human knowledge being interpreted through a filter of random chance. Opponents of this materialistic view were in many cases branded as fringe figures. Subsequently, however, science and technology have developed dramatically, and new observations have led to a growing number of questions that cannot be explained by an unguided, random process. In this article (the first in a series of four on this topic), a few examples of such contemporary observations are presented. These include: • Origin of the universe Seminal work by scholars such as Slipher, Hubble, Lemaïtre, Einstein and others indicate that the universe came into being at a specific moment. This was contrary to the idea of a perpetual universe, as believed by e.g., classical Greek scholars. The implication ofa moment of creation is that there must have been a "cause of creation" (Creator) that is not bounded by, or subject to, matter, energy, space, or time, because none of these existed before the moment of creation. • Fine-tuning of the universe Since the 1950's, numerous scientific discoveries indicate that life depends on a highly unlikely combination of forces, characteristics, and balances in the universe, such as e.g., fundamental forces that have exactly the right magnitudes, contingent properties that exhibit exactly the right characteristics, as well as the initial configuration of matter and energy perfectly tuned to allow for anything to exist. These life-permitting properties of the universe fall within highly improbable, precise boundaries, commonly referred to as "anthropic contingencies" by materialist scientists. If any one of these properties were changed even in an infinitesimal way, the life-promoting conditions, found in the universe would not exist. Not only is the observed simultaneous, conditional accuracy highly improbable, but there appears to be no conceivable physical cause (reason) or philosophical necessity why these parameters exhibit the particular values they do. Contrary to scientists with a materialistic worldview, who attribute the fine-tuning to a happy accident (a random accident of physics), a growing number of scientists and philosophers conclude that the universe was designed with great care by a Creator who transcends time, matter, space, and energy in order to have achieved the fine-tuning of conditions before the moment of creation. • Age of the universe The age of the universe extends from the time of the Big Bang, which is currently calculated to have occurred 13.8 billion years ago (±0.020 billion years), according to the Lambda Cold Dark Matter (ACDM) model. Contemporary empirical evidence indicates that the universe consists of approximately 68% dark energy, 27% dark matter and only 5% matter. This means that although the ACDM theory has a thorough scientific basis, it still represents imperfect knowledge of only approximately 5% of everything that exists. • Origin of the earth The conditions necessary for the earth to form have been determined before the moment of creation. A literal understanding of the narrative in Genesis is problematic since the sun and the moon were only created on day four. To summarily interpret the first 3 "days" of creation as 24-hour days is therefore without any justification, because the heavenly bodies that are responsible for 24-hour days as we know them, did not yet exist. From this it can be deduced that a 24-hour-a-day interpretation of the days of creation, is at most a human construct and that the repeated use of the words, "and there was evening, and there was morning", should rather be seen as a delimitation of events. • Age of the earth Pre-scientific thinking about the age of the earth was dominated by a fundamentalist, biblical paradigm. This included calculating the age of the earth according to generations given in the Bible, which resulted in general consensus that the earth was created on "the entrance of the night preceding the 23rd day of October [...] the year before Christ 4004". Geological and paleontological evidence however made it clear that well over 6,000 years must have passed in the formation of the earth. This empirical evidence was ultimately the cause of the literal understanding of Genesis' six days of creation being openly questioned. Immanent scientists such as Newton (1687), Hutton (1788) and Lyell (1830-1833) took a uniformitarian paradigm as point of departure in their calculations about the age of the earth. Contemporary evidence indicates that the earth's age is approximately 4,6 billion years. • Origin and age of life The origin and age of humankind has been central in debates about evolution since the publication of the theory almost 200 years ago. Currently, however, sources of information such as genetics and genetically based studies (e.g., Ontogeny, Phylogeny and Evolutionary Biology) have, together with developments in deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) analysis since the early 1970's, substantially added to the knowledge obtained from the fossil record. A vast volume of data must have been generated to account for the multitude of life observed (including humankind). The visible range and depth of information, as well as the survival rate within the time available, make "coincidence" as a method of gathering the information, logically impossible. Only one out of every hundred species that could mutate survived, which means that to obtain the correct DNA information the mutation rate would have had to be 99% higher, or the period 99% longer than observed in natural science. The only plausible origin of such information is an intelligent designer. In conclusion, the central theoretical premise of this article series is that contemporary observations in all disciplines of natural science are best explained by the existence and involvement of God in creation. Academic integrity requires that scholars depart from a normative materialistic interpretation of empirical data (i.e., the a-priori exclusion of any metaphysical interpretations), which is currently still widely adhered to. The authors 'point of departure is a Reformed³ understanding of reality. The four articles all have the same structure, namely a problem statement, a natural science discussion, an exploration of what information the Bible offers on the various topics, closed by a conclusion. The article series is supposed to provide a broad, critical overview of the topic of normative materialism in the natural sciences and no new research results per se are presented. However, the insights reached in the respective conclusions are unique, and the authors are of the opinion that they contribute to the existing knowledge about the relationship between faith and science.

The origin of life: "In the beginning was the Word"

'n Groot aantal natuurwetenskaplike navorsers beweer dat biologiese lewe op aarde heel waarskynlik natuurlik ontstaan het, maar geeneen kan die presiese meganisme waardeur lewe ontstaan het, weergee nie. Talle eksperimente en waarnemings het bewyse gelewer dat die basiese boustene van lewe, soos aminosure, spontaan kan vorm onder die toestande wat op die vroeë aarde teenwoordig was. Daarbenewens dui die ontdekking van ekstremofiele (organismes wat floreer in uiterste toestande soos hoë temperature en druk) daarop dat lewe moontlik deur 'n onbegeleide, willekeurige meganisme in sulke omgewings kon ontstaan het. Alhoewel die meerderheid wetenskaplikes dus kontemporêre wetenskaplike gegewens aanvoer as bewyse dat lewe 'n natuurlike oorsprong gehad het, is daar 'n groeiende stem van gesaghebbende navorsers wat beweer dat die voorwaardelike toestande vir lewe, sowel as die kompleksiteit daarvan, dui op fyn beplande, begeleide meganismes. In teenstelling met 'n normatiewe materialistiese vertrekpunt, propageer sulke navorsers 'n openheid om die data te volg tot die mees waarskynlike, logiese gevolgtrekking. Hierdie gevolgtrekking behels die voortdurende betrokkenheid van 'n Skepper vanaf voor die beginmoment van die skepping, tot op hede.

Many scientists and researchers agree that biological life on earth most likely arose naturally, but they cannot account for the exact method by which life arose. Numerous experiments and observations have provided evidence that the basic building blocks of life (amino acids) can form spontaneously under the conditions thought to be those present on ancient earth. The recent discovery of Extremophiles (organisms that thrive in extreme conditions such as high temperature and pressure) gave further impetus to the belief that it is possible for unguided, random mechanisms to produce life. However, contrary to scientists who present contemporary scientific evidence as proof of life having a natural origin, there is a growing number of authoritative scholars who claim that the a priori conditions for life to exist at all, as well as its complexity, are indicative of carefully planned, guided mechanisms. Contrary to a materialistic/atheistic view, these researchers advocate a willingness to follow contemporary data to its most likely, logical conclusion. This conclusion involves the continuous involvement of a Creator right from the moment of creation, to the present. The group of theories that centre around a belief that life was created by a supernatural force or deity is known as Creationism. It is based on religious beliefs that determine the way in which natural scientific data is interpreted. Creationists argue that the complexity of living organisms, as well as the existence of consciousness, cannot be explained by random, unguided processes and must have been designed by a higher power. One of the arguments for a supernatural origin of life, is the Anthropocentric principle (or the so-called "fine-tuning" argument), which claims that the universe has precise values for certain physical constants and laws that make it possible for life to exist. Proponents of this view argue that the universe's design could only have been orchestrated by a conscious, purposeful designer. Further evidence cited for supernatural involvement includes the Cambrian explosion and other discontinuities in the paleontological record, as well as the belief that the information in the DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) molecule must have had an intelligent author. Criticism of Creationism is that there is no scientific evidence that the universe was fine-tuned solely for the purpose of facilitating life, or that a conscious designer was responsible for it. Furthermore, the "Multiverse" hypothesis, which postulates that there can be many universes with different physical constants, offers a possible naturalistic explanation for why our universe possesses the properties that are observed. As for the paleontological discontinuities and the information in DNA, these are indeed interesting phenomena that have been and still are the subject of much scientific investigation. However, it is important to note that there is ongoing scientific debate about possible unguided mechanisms that could have caused the Cambrian explosion, and the information in DNA can, according to materialists, also be explained by natural processes such as evolution through natural selection. One of the Naturalistic theories about the origin of life on earth is Abiogenesis, which claims that life arose spontaneously from non-living matter through an optimal coincidence of chemical reactions under favourable conditions. This theory is based on the idea that the conditions on the early earth were perfect for the formation of simple organic molecules, which eventually gave rise to more complex structures capable of self-replication. The Miller-Urey experiment, for example, showed that simple organic molecules formed under conditions that, according to the knowledge at the time, were identical to those on early earth. However, this experiment was discredited over time because the researchers assumed that the primordial atmosphere consisted mainly of methane, ammonia, and water vapour, but later research showed that the early atmosphere more likely consisted of nitrogen, carbon dioxide and water vapour. In addition, some scientists have pointed out that the conditions simulated in the experiment were too reducing in nature (that is, too poor in oxygen), to accurately reflect the conditions on the early earth which had a more oxidizing atmosphere. Therefore, while the Miller-Urey experiment remains an important milestone in the history of origin of life research, it is widely recognised that its results should be viewed with caution and that its implications for the natural formation of life on earth should not be overstated. Another naturalistic theory is that life was brought to earth by comets or meteorites. This theory, known as Panspermia, suggests that life may have originated elsewhere in the universe and was transported to earth by comets or meteorites. Panspermia is supported by the discovery of organic molecules and microorganisms in some meteorites, as well as the presence of microbial life in extreme environments on earth that may be similar to conditions on other planets. Each of these theories has its own strengths and weaknesses and there is no consensus among scientists as to which theory is the most accurate. Abiogenesis, for example, is supported by the evidence of the formation of simple organic molecules under conditions, presumably like those on the early earth, but it is difficult to explain how these molecules gave rise to complex structures capable of self-replication. Panspermia is in turn supported by the discovery of organic molecules and microorganisms in some meteorites, but this does not explain the original origin of life itself. Creationism, on the other hand is not directly supported by scientific evidence but is based on the interpretation of empirical data from a religious paradigm. The origin of life on earth therefore remains a subject of scientific inquiry and naturalistic explanations, based on empirical evidence and well-established scientific theories are still considered in mainstream science to be the only valid basis of human understanding of this complex and interesting subject. However, this normative materialist interpretation is increasingly being questioned by a growing number of eminent scholars. This article focuses on the origin and complexity of information as found in life on earth. All forms of information known to man, whether hieroglyphs, radio signals, printed media or TV broadcasts have an intelligent author, and the question is why mainstream science insists on considering the most complex information observed by humankind to date (namely the code in the DNA molecule), as strictly materialistic in origin.

The origin of man: "Let us make humans"

Volgens materialiste kan die ontstaan van die mens verklaar word deur evolusie, waarvoor daar oortuigende bewyse is, soos bv. genetiese ooreenkomste, bewyse uit die fossielrekord sowel as anatomiese vergelykings. Daarteenoor stel die metafisiese siening dat mense deur 'n goddelike entiteit of 'n bonatuurlike krag geskep is. Hierdie siening word dikwels geassosieer met godsdienstige oortuigings en is (volgens die teenstanders daarvan) nie op empiriese bewyse gebaseer nie. As 'n spesie, toon menslike DNS (deoksiribonukleïensuur) 'n baie laer diversiteit as wat die genetiese teorie voorspel, hoofsaaklik as gevolg van die resentheid van die mens sowel as die voorkoms van 'n "bevolkingsbottelnek". Dit dui daarop dat die hele menslike bevolking minder as 160 000 jaar gelede uit 'n baie klein groepie ontwikkel het, waarskynlik in Afrika. Mense deel veel meer as net voorouers met die res van die skepping: ook boumateriaal, selle, organe en 'n groot deel van ons genoom. Dat mense uniek van aard is, is egter onbetwisbaar en kontemporêre wetenskap lewer vele empiriese waarnemings in hierdie verband, wat nie bevredigend verklaar kan word deur 'n onbegeleide, toevallige ontwikkelingsgeskiedenis nie. Die Bybelse narratief van Adam en Eva voldoen aan al die vereistes vir die drempelgebeurtenis in die menslike geskiedenis, wat wetenskaplik bewysbaar is. Die hipotese word daarom voorgehou dat die proto-mens geskep is deur begeleide ontwikkeling uit die stof van die aarde (koolstof, waterstof, stikstof, suurstof, fosfaat en swael). Later het 'n drempelgebeurtenis plaasgevind waartydens God die proto-mens "na Sy beeld" getransformeer het.

The origin of humans has been a subject of intense debate for many centuries. The two main approaches to this subject are materialistic and metaphysical. The materialist view suggests that humans evolved from non-human primates through the process of natural selection, while the metaphysical view suggests that humans were created by a divine entity or a supernatural force. According to materialists, their view is based on the scientific theory of evolution, which suggests that all living organisms, including humans, descend from a common ancestor. According to this theory, the process of natural selection drives the development of species over time and those individuals, with traits best suited to their environment, are more likely to survive and reproduce. Recent studies have provided convincing evidence for the descent with modification of humans from non-human primates, including genetic similarities, fossil evidence and anatomical comparisons. In contrast, the metaphysical view states that humans were created by a divine entity or a supernatural force. This view is often associated with religious beliefs and (according to its opponents) is not based on empirical evidence. For the origin of life there is a clear twofold requirement: firstly, a blueprint (plan) that determines how the organism will function (such as deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or ribonucleic acid (RNA)) and secondly a mechanism with a metabolic system to interpret the blueprint and functionally organise the proteins as described by the DNA or RNA. This is a classic "chicken-egg" situation, because for life to arise, a blueprint is needed according to which the first organism will be produced, while at the same time an organism is needed to produce the first blueprint. All living matter (biomolecules such as nucleic acids, proteins and lipids) consist of the same macro-nutrients, namely, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphate, and sulphur, of which carbon and water are the most essential. These shared building materials are signs of a common origin, which is confirmed in genetics by aspects such as shared cell design, genetic code, protein systems, as well as DNA, mRNA (messenger ribonucleic acid), and protein functions. The interconnectedness is especially clear where variations occur, such as changes through mutations which accumulate in the genome, especially in pseudogenes, where shared mutations then indicate shared ancestry; where retroviruses leave a copy (deactivated so-called "junk" genes) in the DNA of infected organisms, from which it is transmitted to the offspring to indicate relationships; and the sharing of parallel genes by some metazoa that indicate relationships. From a total of 6.1 billion prokaryotic protein-coding genes, 355 protein clusters have been identified that are shared by all prokaryotes. According to this, LUCA (last universal common ancestor) could successfully inhabit anaerobic hydrothermal vents on the sea floor in a H2, CO2 and iron-rich environment. This finding is consistent with the oldest evidence of life, namely microbial mats of bacteria and archaea that were the dominant life form during the earliest times of life on earth. Development and specialisation occurred during times of accelerated biodiversity, of which the Cambrian "explosion" was exceptional in scope and depth. DNA comparisons show that the phyla of the animal kingdom split into three groups, about 50 million years before the Cambrian period. The presence of complex DNA in all three groups that shared many characteristics, makes a complex ancestor a necessity. This indicates that the Cambrian biodiversification was driven by selection from the loaded genetic potential space of a single, shared ancestor. As a species, human DNA shows a much lower diversity than the genetic theory predicts, mainly due to its recency as well as the occurrence of a "population bottleneck", as indicated by the presence of a fusion chromosome. This fusion chromosome that once formed in a specific person, has become a shared chromosome of the entire human race. It is therefore currently generally accepted that the entire human population evolved from a very small group less than 160,000 years ago, possibly in Africa. Subsequently, through selection pressure, an identifiable gap, not only in form but especially in function, has arisen in modern humankind. The biblical narrative of Adam and Eve meets all the requirements for the threshold event that has been scientifically distinguished. In the Bible, it is said that God created man from the dust of the earth - in His image He created him. That humans have a common ancestor with monkeys seems to be true, just like with every organism on earth. We share much more than just ancestors with the rest of creation as was already stated, also building material, cells, organs, and a large part of our genome. That humans are unique in nature is, however, undeniable, and contemporary science cannot account for many empirical observations in this regard. It is therefore hypothesised that proto-man was created by guided development from the substance of the earth (carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphate and sulphur). Later, a threshold event occurred (as described in Genesis) during which God transformed the proto-man "in His image". God guided human's minds far beyond survival requirements to develop a language-processed, secondary memory, enabling humankind to receive and internalise love, wisdom, and morality. These are unique attributes of God that make humankind the image of God. Of the change of proto-man's mind and his behaviour to modern humankind during the threshold event, there is ample scientific evidence. This could confirm the paradise narrative as a verifiable reality, as does Eve's creation from Adam. Modern scientific observations regarding the origin of the universe, the development of life and the origin of humans can be best understood when they are interpreted within a religious paradigm. Arno Penzias, physicist, and Nobel laureate is one of many scientists who conclude that the scientific evidence is consistent with the expectations flowing from theism. He writes: "The best data we have is exactly what I would have predicted, had I nothing to go on but the five books of Moses, the Psalms, the Bible as a whole."

Evil in humankind: "To dust you shall return"

Daar is oortuigende argumente waarom kontemporêre natuurwetenskaplike waarnemings die beste verklaar kan word as dit binne 'n paradigma van 'n almagtige Skepper geïnterpreteer word. Tog is daar wêreldwyd by die hoofstroomnatuurwetenskaplikes groot teenkanting daarteen. In hierdie artikel word die vraagstuk van normatiewe materialisme onder die loep geneem. 'n Analise van natuurwetenskaplike denkprosesse, sowel as wat die Bybel oor hierdie onderwerp sê, lei tot die gevolgtrekking dat die oorsprong van normatiewe materialisme in die mens se eiewillige aard geleë is. Om by voorbaat een van die moontlike verklarings vir empiriese waarnemings uit te sluit slegs omdat dit van 'n navorser se wereldbeeld verskil, verteenwoordig swak, ongeldige wetenskapsbeoefening. Ten spyte van die feit dat die natuur-wetenskap oorweldigend getuig van die teenwoordigheid en betrokkenheid van God, is daar steeds talle vraagstukke wat steeds nie deur óf natuurwetenskaplikes óf teoloë beantwoord kan word nie. Natuurwetenskaplikes wat strewe na integriteit in hul wetenskapsbeoefening, behoort alle moontlike verklarings vir empiriese data met 'n gelyke mate van respek en aandag te oorweeg in hul soeke na die waarheid.

In the first three articles of this series, convincing arguments were put forward as to why contemporary natural scientific observations can best be explained if they are interpreted within a paradigm of an all-powerful Creator. In line with this observation, a growing number of eminent scholars fundamentally differ from the materialistic position that metaphysical theories deal with concepts that are not empirically observable and testable. Instead, these scholars postulate that metaphysical theories can indeed be used to make predictions about the natural world and that they are therefore falsifiable. A few examples include the fact that a theistic cosmology expects that the universe had a moment of beginning, which presupposes that a transcendent Creator must already have accurately established the physical conditions for all empirical observations, before the moment of creation. Empirical observations of the universe confirm this theory, as described in the first article of this series. More examples of the predictive value of a metaphysical theory, are the origin of information contained in DNA, as described in article 2, as well as in empirical data on the origin of humans (see article 3). The reference to metaphysical theories as pseudo-science has therefore been repudiated by recent empirical evidence and a growing number of authoritative researchers, do recognise the fact that a "God hypothesis" would appear to be scientifically accountable. Yet, there remains great opposition among mainstream natural scientists to any hint of metaphysical explanations for contemporary observations. Materialist scientists accuse religious scientists of approaching the Enlightenment and Modernism in reverse - of wanting to take science back to the dark ages, where the church dictated to science what may be believed. However, it is ironic that the "God of the gaps"- argument is replaced by normative materialism with a "science of the gaps"- argument, where it is argued that sooner or later science will provide humanity with a "theory of everything". To decide in advance that a certain explanation for empirical evidence may not be considered, is unacceptable in natural science. Yet mainstream science takes exactly this position regarding cosmology and the origin of life. In this article, the issue of normative materialism is scrutinised. What is the deepest origin of the reluctance of many researchers, to put forward a metaphysical explanation for scientifically observed data? Even the mere consideration of such a hypothesis is rejected. Why don't people even consider the possibility that a Creator played (and still plays) a role in the universe? The main conclusion, based on an exposé of the scientific method, various ways of scientific reasoning and biblical evidence regarding creation and the origin of sin, is that the answer lies in mankind's sinful, self-willed nature. If a scientist, based on irrefutable evidence, admits that God exists and that His works are visible in creation, as well as that empirical observations can be reconciled with biblical descriptions of the cosmos, he/she must then also admit that the Bible represents the truth. The necessary consequence of such an admittance is that such a person must then live in submissive obedience to God. This giving up of the "own self" is, however, directly against the nature of sinful man - every person has the need to be master of his/her own salvation and to answer only to himself/herself; something that is embodied in the Postmodernist Zeitgeist in which we find ourselves. To rule out (and even formally forbid) one of the possible explanations for empirical observations in advance, only because it differs from a researcher's worldview, does not make that researcher a better scientist. On the contrary - normative materialism and the accompanying grasping at straws by formulating new, fantastic, and difficult-to-test theories as alternatives to the existence of God, simply represent poor, invalid scientific practice. Even though natural science overwhelmingly testifies to the presence and involvement of God in creation, there are still numerous questions that cannot be answered by natural scientists, or by theologians. Natural scientists should, however, consider all possible explanations for empirical data with an equal measure of respect and attention in order to practise science with integrity.

The National Party's Machiavellian strategies for democratisation in the 1980s and 1990s in South Africa

Hierdie artikel beoordeel die toepassing van "Machiavelliaanse" benaderings dat die doel die middele heilig, wat tussen 1980 en 1992 as redelik suksesvolle demokratiese politieke transformasie- en oorredingstrategieë deur die Nasionale Party (NP) regering in Suid-Afrika gevolg is. Dit het onder meer doelbewuste manipulasie van inligting en ondernemings wat nie gestand gedoen was nie, ingesluit. Die doel daarvan was om wit kiesers op verskillende wyses te probeer oorreed om op 'n vreedsame, demokratiese wyse afstand te doen van hul monopolie op politieke mag en gesag tot in daardie stadium. Die suksesvolle, vreedsame konstitusionele oorgang van apartheid na volle demokrasie in Suid-Afrika tussen 1990 en 1996 kan deels toegeskryf word aan hierdie "onetiese Machiavelliaanse" politieke oorredingsprosesse van die NP. Dit het egter ook uiters negatiewe beoordelings uitgelok by konserwatiewe wit kiesers wat die leier van die NP op daardie tydstip, FW de Klerk, van disinformasie, misleiding, bedrog en selfs verraad teenoor die wit gemeenskap in die land beskuldig het. Hierdie negatiewe beoordelings bestaan steeds in baie van daardie kringe. Dit het egter groot meerderhede wit kiesers in die 1989-verkiesing en die 1992-referendum oorreed om aan die Nasionale Party vae beginselmandate te gee om die finale tegniese besonderhede van 'n nuwe demokratiese politieke magsdelingsbedeling met swart bevrydingsbewegings te beding. Machiavelli se Renaissance-denke word vyf eeue ná sy advies oor hoe om meer stabiele, responsiewe en volhoubare regerings te bedryf, as aanvaarde politieke optrede toegepas. Hierdie en ander vermeende "immorele" beïnvloedingstegnieke en optrede deur staatsagente en staatsagentskappe word naamlik in hedendaagse demokrasieë paradoksaal steeds de facto as "normale" praktyke aanvaar.

This contribution summarises and assesses the applicability of and application to modern global democratic practices of Niccold Machiavelli's views about the theory and practice of political governance strategies during the Renaissance. Machiavelli focussed on how to promote transitions from feudal authoritarian and tyrannical governmental systems in his era to more stable, responsive and sustainable democratic governance systems. He developed a cogent and coherent governance approach during his career, from 1494 to 1512, as a senior strategic advisor, diplomat and official in the government of the "democratic" Republic of Florence. This approach was aimed at satisfying the main concerns and interests of the rulers as well as their subjects. His proposals combined strategies to satisfy the needs and desires of the population through responsive public services and facilities, supported by strong military back-up interventions to quell resistance to and uprisings against governments. His recommended strategies included morally and ethically doubtful propaganda, disinformation, deflection and even outright lies and, as a last resort, murdering perceived opponents where necessary. These "cynical" strategies afforded Machiavelli a very negative historical and modern reputation as an immoral, unethical power-hungry opportunist. Contemporary research into the driving forces behind different types of governance systems, however, is increasingly confirming the worldwide modern applicability and validity of these suspect practices of governments, including democratic governments. Machiavellian governance strategies remain "normal" democratic government practices today, although they are routinely disavowed. They include so-called "dirty hands" and "white lies" practices, which are not any different from behaviour alleged to be Machiavellian. Machiavelli's influence on contemporary political practice can be illustrated by various examples in virtually all modern democracies. It is also illustrated by a number of National Party (NP) persuasion strategies in South Africa's transition from apartheid to democracy in the 1980s and 1990s, inter alia through the work and advisory involvement of international intellectual thought leaders on transitions such as Samuel Huntington and Philippe Schmitter. NP leaders and government units under PW Botha and FW de Klerk used various Machiavellian double-speak persuasion strategies, deflection and deliberate disinformation campaigns aimed at white voter constituencies in particular in order to mobilise support for their respective transformation agendas. They also reneged on a number of political undertakings. These strategies contributed to bring about the end of apartheid and to manage a relatively peaceful transition to a more democratic post-apartheid political dispensation. Machiavelli's relevance to and influence on contemporary democratic politics have in fact been significantly underrated. Many of his views for which he has been ostracised in the past have proved to be "normal" democratic governance assumptions and practices to this day, despite the fact that their ethical nature may be questioned.

The most important cultural elements of Afrikaner attractions

Die doel van hierdie studie was om te bepaal watter kultuurelemente by 'n Afrikanerkultuur-besienswaardigheid in Suid-Afrika aangebied moet word. Die empiriese studie het 'n verkennende navorsingsontwerp gevolg en is uitgevoer deur die kwalitatiewe metode te volg, met 15 navorsingsdeelnemers. 'n Semi-gestruktureerde onderhoudskedule is gebruik om vrae aan die navorsingsdeelnemers te stel. Die onderhoudskedule het hoofsaaklik bestaan uit oop-einde vrae en het verband gehou met demografiese inligting, Afrikaner-kultuurelemente en kreatiewe beginsels van toerisme. Die resultate het getoon dat die navorsingsdeelnemers se belangrikste Afrikaner-kultuurelemente die volgende is: geskiedenis, taal, musiek en dans, kos en tradisionele leefwyse. Die aanbevelings van die studie is gemik op bemarkers en bestuurders van bestaande of voornemende Mrikanerkultuur-besienswaardighede, akademici en die algemene publiek, met 'n fokus op Afrikanerkultuurtoerisme.

Culture and heritage contribute to South Africa S competitiveness as a tourism destination. By focusing on South Africa's cultural diversity as a unique competitive factor, more tourists can be reached, thereby increasing the impact of South Africa's attraction as a tourist destination. However, cultural tourism is challenging to manage because cultural attractions vary in popularity and attract different types of tourists who want to experience culture differently. Although research has already been done in South Africa to promote cultural tourism, a gap in the literature still needs to be bridged. There is a particular gap in the literature on Afrikaner culture tourism. This study intended to determine which cultural elements attract tourists to Afrikaner cultural attractions. Cultural elements can be depicted and presented at a cultural attraction to give a better understanding of the culture in question. Cultural elements can be evaluated according to the importance of the element within the culture and what contribution the element makes to the cultural attraction. Cultural elements can be divided between tangible and non-tangible cultural elements. Tangible cultural elements can be moving or static but can be physically touched, such as, for example, monuments and clothing. Non-tangible cultural elements cannot be handled but transmit cultures, such as music and language. This study aimed to perform an empirical analysis to determine which cultural elements should be presented at an Afrikaner cultural attraction in South Africa. The empirical study consisted of an exploratory research design. It was executed by employing the qualitative method, involving 15 research participants who were followers of six Afrikaner cultural attractions on Facebook websites. A semi-structured interview schedule was used to put questions to the research participants. The interview schedule comprised mainly open-ended questions on demographic information, Afrikaner cultural elements and creative principles of tourism. The results were captured via voice recordings, transcribed into Word and categorised in themes and sub-themes according to Creswell's six data analysis steps. With regard to the demographic profile, most participants were men, with an average age of 44. A high level of education was evident in the respondents. It was clear from the results that the 15 participants visited Afrikaner cultural attractions many times, while 80% of the participants recently visited the Voortrekker Monument. Orania is the most popular Afrikaner cultural attraction for the participants. From participants' answers, the term "cultural elements" can be seen as shared cultural goods with which individuals within a culture can relate and give meaning to the culture because it is essential and unique. The study filled a gap by determining that tourists want to experience the following cultural elements at an Afrikaner cultural attraction: history, language, music and dance, food, traditional way of life, faith, monuments, traditions, traditional clothing, cultural festivals, handicrafts, artefacts and archaeological remains, cultural values, art, heroes, architecture and traditional houses. Furthermore, the researchers determined the five most important Afrikaner cultural elements: history, language, music and dance, food and the traditional way of life. Within the history-culture element, tourists want to learn about Afrikaner history, from the European heritage to today, the Great Trek and how Afrikaners stand together, and the wars and battlefields of Afrikaner history. The language-culture element's presentation must teach tourists about the origins of Afrikaans; specific Afrikaans words, and Afrikaans literature and drama. The Music and Dance cultural element of the Afrikaner culture must focus on folk plays and folk songs and present contemporary "sokkie" and Afrikaans music for tourists. During their experience of the Afrikaner food culture element, tourists want to learn about traditional foods and ways of food preparation, such as biltong, chutney, koeksisters, bobotie and barbecued meat. According to the participants, the traditional way of life of the Afrikaner must, for tourists, showcase the social and community life, such as storytelling and togetherness around meals, as well as the outdoor life, such as farming activities. The study's recommendations are aimed at marketers and managers of existing or prospective Afrikaner cultural attractions, academics, and the general public, focusing on Afrikaner cultural tourism. The study filled a gap by determining the most important Afrikaner cultural elements for tourists to experience at an Afrikaner cultural attraction. The literature contribution can also be valuable in practice because it is the first study to offer guidelines as to which Afrikaner cultural elements should be the focus of destination and attraction managers and marketers. The study also recommends that cultural attractions use technology to attract and retain a younger market. It is also essential that attractions make a more significant investment in the training of their staff, seeing that the successful presentation of especially the non-tangible elements is largely linked to the quality training of staff. The study also emphasises that combining cultural and food experiences can give an attraction a competitive advantage. Furthermore, the study's contribution does not have to be limited to Afrikaner culture because unique cultural elements also exist within every other cultural context.

The last geographically inclusive cultural celebration of Afrikaans: The torch run of the Language Year 1975

Hierdie artikel fokus op die fakkelloop met "taalfakkels" wat op 10 Oktober 1975 by die Afrikaanse Taalmonument in die Paarl geëindig het om saam te val met die inwyding van die Monument. Terwyl die Afrikaanse Taalmonument en die Afrikaanse Taalmuseum (beide in die Paarl) heelwat aandag in die literatuur geniet, is daar, ondanks die wye geografiese en kulturele omvang van die fakkelloop, min gestruktureerde inligting daaroor beskikbaar. Die fakkelloop het deel uitgemaak van die Afrikaanse taalfeeste in 1975, 'n jaar wat deur die Suid-Afrikaanse regering tot Taaljaar verklaar is. Die oogmerk van die Taaljaar was onder meer die herdenking van die stigting 'n eeu vroeër, op 14 Augustus 1875, van die Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners (GRA) in die Paarl, die erkenning van Afrikaans as amptelike taal 50 jaar later in 1925, en die opening van die Museum en inwyding van die Monument in die Paarl gedurende die Taaljaar. Uit die navorsing wat vir hierdie artikel gedoen is, blyk die wye geografiese en kulturele effek van die fakkelloop, selfs buite die grense van Suid-Afrika. Voorts is taalfeeste in verskeie dorpe en stede in Suid-Afrika georganiseer, wat saamgeval het met die aankoms van taalfakkels by daardie feeste. Afrikaanse taalgedenkstrukture is ook op verskeie van die dorpe en stede waar die taalfakkels aangedoen het, onthul. Die fakkelloop was 'n groot sukses en het die verbeelding van mense aangegryp. Dit het op 14 Augustus 1975 simbolies by die Voortrekkermonument begin. By daardie geleentheid is agt taalfakkels aangesteek wat elk na een van die agt stigterslede van die GRA vernoem is. Die taalfakkels is oral deur Suid-Afrika gedra en het selfs besoeke aan die destydse Suidwes-Afrika (tans Namibië) en Rhodesië (tans Zimbabwe) ingesluit. Die fakkelloop was die laaste geografies omvattende kulturele viering van Afrikaans. In omvang staan dit gelyk met nasionale feeste soos die Simboliese Ossewatrek in 1938, wat die Groot Trek herdenk het, die hoeksteenlegging van die Voortrekkermonument (ook in 1938) en die inwyding van die Voortrekkermonument in 1949. Die Soweto-opstand van 1976 teen onderrig in Afrikaans het sentimente teenoor die taal aansienlik verander. Afrikaans het verpolitiseer geraak, en die koms van televisie in Suid-Afrika in 1976 het ook die aptyt van Afrikaanssprekendes vir taal- en kultuuraktiwiteite verander.

This paper views the torch run (fakkelloop) in 1975 that ended with the inauguration of the Afrikaans Language Monument in Paarl on 10 October 1975. While the Afrikaans Language Monument and the Afrikaans Language Museum receive considerable attention in the literature, scant information about the torch run is recorded in a structured manner, even though it was of wide cultural and geographical significance. The torch run was organised as part of the Afrikaans language festivities of 1975, the year having been declared Language Year (Taaljaar) by the South African government. The Language Year commemorated, inter alia, the founding a century earlier, on 14 August 1875, of the Genootskap van Regte Afrikaners (GRA, or Fellowship for True Afrikaners) in Paarl, the elevation of Afrikaans to the status of official language 50 years later in 1925, and the opening of the museum and inauguration of the Monument in Paarl in 1975. The torch run comprised people carrying torches, in commemoration of the Language Year, over long distances in South Africa and the then South-West Africa (today Namibia) and Rhodesia (today Zimbabwe). Eight language torches were lit at the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria on 14 August 1975. Each torch was carried on a different route through South Africa, South-West Africa and Rhodesia. The torches arrived at the Afrikaans Language Monument in Paarl on 10 October 1975 for the opening ceremony of the Monument on that day. While the Afrikaans Language Monument in Paarl is well-known, very little is known about other structures celebrating the Afrikaans language all over South Africa (and one in Namibia). These commemorative structures take the form of monuments, memorial plaques and even a primary school, but they (other than the primary school, which obviously is not in the form of a monument) are not comparable in scale with the Monument in Paarl. The oldest language monument in South Africa is in Burgersdorp and was erected in 1893 in commemoration of the acceptance of the Dutch language as a parliamentary language in the former Cape Colony. Two Afrikaans language monuments (in Kroonstad and Welkom) were erected as part of the celebrations in 1959 known as Die Wonder van Afrikaans (The Wonder of Afrikaans). Taaljaar Primary School (Laerskool Taaljaar) in Witbank (today eMalahleni) was opened in that year as well. The aim of Die Wonder van Afrikaans was the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the SA Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns (SA Academy for Science and Arts), founded in 1909, and the 30th anniversary of the Federasie van Afrikaanse Kultuurverenigings (FAK, or Federation of Afrikaans Cultural Societies), founded in 1929. As part of the Taaljaar 1975, a number of structures commemorating the Afrikaans language were erected throughout South Africa. The unveilings took place at language and cultural festivals when a Taaljaar torch was carried through the cities and towns concerned. These commemorative structures are scattered randomly throughout the country and take the form of monuments and memorial plaques. One monument celebrating Afrikaans was unveiled in 2014 in Namibia as well. There are records of commemorative structures in the form of plaques or monuments erected during the Taaljaar in Aberdeen, Belfast, Burgersfort, Delareyville, East London, Ermelo, Johannesburg, Lichtenburg, Makhado (Louis Trichardt), Montagu, Ohrigstad, Petrus Steyn, Reddersburg, Reitz, Riebeek-Kasteel, Springbok, Trompsburg, Touws River, Ventersdorp and Worcester. Some records are incomplete, but they do suggest that such structures may have been erected (or may have existed) in Ladismith (Western Cape), Meyerton, Milnerton, and Trompsburg. Many years after the Taaljaar, on 8 November 2014, an Afrikaans language monument was erected in Windhoek in Namibia. The FAK was instrumental in erecting this monument. The torch run was the last geographically comprehensive cultural commemoration of Afrikaans. In scope it is comparable with national festivals such as the 1938 Symbolic Great Trek, the laying of the cornerstone of the Voortrekker Monument (also in 1938) and the inauguration of the Voortrekker Monument in 1949. The history of the torches and the torch run is the focus of this research paper. The torch run is inextricably linked to the language memorials unveiled during the Taaljaar and the cultural language festivals arranged in many cities and towns. This was the last time that Afrikaans was celebrated on a national scale. The torch run itself was a major success, but after 1975 the domestic environment in the country changed considerably. The Soweto uprising of 1976 against the compulsory use of Afrikaans in schools in black communities drastically changed sentiments towards the language. Afrikaans became politicised, and, in addition, the introduction of television in South Africa in 1976 changed the appetite of Afrikaans speakers for language and cultural activities.

The suspense novel: A theoretical overview and discussion of three examples in Afrikaans

In hierdie artikel ondersoek ek spanning as literêr-teoretiese konsep. Spanning kan gedefinieer word as 'n benouende affektiewe respons wat in die leser tot stand kom na aanleiding van bepaalde tekstuele prikkels. Ek verskaf eerstens 'n aantal definisies en teorieë om sodoende 'n greep te kry op die tekstuele voorvereistes vir die totstandkoming van spanning. Ek steun veral op twee seminale bronne: Suspense: Conceptualisations, Theoretical Analyses, and Empirical Explorations (1996) en Suspense in the Formula Story (1989). Vervolgens bespreek ek drie onlangse bekroonde spanningsverhale in Afrikaans: Prooi (2018) deur Deon Meyer, Die versoeking van Thomas Maas (2020) deur Chris Karsten, en Hartedief (2021) deur Rudie van Rensburg. Ek wys ten slotte op die mees beduidende ooreenkomste en verskille tussen die drie voorbeeldtekste ten opsigte van die spanningsproses.

Suspense remains a prime source of readerly interest, especially for readers of popular fiction. Successful crime novels, detective stories and thrillers, in particular, are often characterised as "riveting", a "page-turner", or as possessing the power to keep the reader "hooked". In this article I set out to explore the notion of fictional suspense from a literary-narratological point of view. This article is therefore focused on the inner workings of the suspense text itself rather than a reception study or empirical study of reader responses. I begin by outlining several basic definitions and theories pertaining to suspense as a narratological construct in order to provide a conceptual framework within which specific novels can be discussed. Much has been written about fictional suspense over the years, but as a theoretical point of departure, I draw upon two seminal sources: Suspense: Conceptualisations, Theoretical Analyses, and Empirical Explorations (1996), compiled by Peter Vorderer, Hans J Wulff and Mike Friedrichsen (eds), and George N Dove's Suspense in the Formula Story (1989). While admittedly somewhat dated, these sources remain as relevant as ever and provide a useful framework when attempting to define a field as nebulous as that of suspense studies. In short, suspense may be defined as a noxious affective response to afictional or dispositive structure with two logically opposed outcomes, one of which is evil or immoral but probable or likely, and the other of which is moral but improbable or unlikely (Carroll, 1996). This noxious affective response is elicited in the reader to the extent that he/she is concerned about the existence of some credible endangerment to the welfare of aprotagonist(s) with whom he/ she has formed a dispositionally mediated connection. Suspense is evaluated not only in moral terms (good or bad) but also in terms of subjective certainty. Suspense intensifies a) the more the reader cares for a particular protagonist(s), b) the more terrible the perceived threat, and c) the higher the relative probability of an undesirable outcome (Zillmann, 1996). Suspense is therefore an affective response suffused with implicit moral judgements. Inevitably, questions arise around readerly involvement: How exactly could readers be prompted to care about entirely fictional events and entities as if they were, in fact, real? To address this issue, I go on to discuss several theories of readerly involvement including identification, scenic comprehension, vicarious witnessing, empathic distress, and affective perspective taking. Next, I discuss George Dove's approach to popular suspense fiction - an approach which he calls process criticism. For Dove, reader readiness is key i.e., the extent to which a reader has been conditioned by previous encounters with a particular generic or conventional form such as the suspense thriller or detective novel. Implicitly embedded in the popular suspense story are, according to Dove, two axiomatic truths: 1) nothing in the suspense tale is entirely irrelevant, and 2) there will always be (some sort of) resolution in the end (Dove, 1989:18). I also find Dove's explanatory analogies useful. One is the analogy of the author as "Lecturer Beside the Screen" (1989:23), who is continually pointing out things to the reader by way of textual cues. The other is his analogy of two dialogically opposed voices, the so-called "Voice of the Novel" and the "Voice of Cognition" (1989:28), which produce yet another source of metatextual tension for the reader of suspense fiction. Having concluded the theoretical section of the article, I dive into a discussion of three Afrikaans example texts: Prooi (2018) by Deon Meyer, Die versoeking van Thomas Maas (2020) by Chris Karsten, and Hartedief (2021) by Rudie van Rensburg. These three novels were selected because they were each awarded the ATKV-Woordveertjie vir Spanningslektuur (currently the most prominent literary prize for suspense fiction in Afrikaans). Prooi is essentially a political drama with the two major suspense arcs centred on the theme of state capture. While the protagonists are, respectively, an assassin-with-a-conscience and two honest policemen, it is ultimately the fate of South Africa that is on the line. The heroes' struggle is therefore rooted in a deeper historical battle against injustice. The stakes could hardly be higher. In terms of the suspense process, Prooi makes ample use of the conventions of the spy thriller and the hard-boiled police procedural, and culminates in a gripping double-barrel finale. Die versoeking van Thomas Maas chiefly concerns adultery and may be regarded as domestic noir. In this novel, it is the idealised fantasy of the happy, suburban family life that threatens to be destroyed by a femme fatale. The novel is presented as a retelling of Ella Neser's private investigation (Ella being a well-known sleuth in many of Karsten's previous novels). Erotic tension plays a pivotal role in the elicitation of suspense, but in the end Die versoeking van Thomas Maas resembles a Shakespearian tragedy - as suggested by many of the intertextual references in the novel - since the truth proves to be elusive and complicated. Hartedief is a psychological thriller. The association between the serial killer's bloodlust and inclement weather (what may be termed atmospheric suspense), alongside the many macabre and often grisly descriptions of murder victims, contribute strongly to the suspense in Hartedief. A secondary suspense arc - that of corrupt policemen and ruthless gangsters - fuels the primary storyline in that the conspirators represent an additional obstacle to the two honourable detective-protagonists' cause. In all three novels, we find recurring serial characters that are expected to influence readers' moral dispositions from the outset. Furthermore, the strategic use of narrative focalisation and reader privilege (also known as dramatic irony) play a significant role in the evocation of suspense. In all three cases, Prooi, Die versoeking van Thomas Maas and Hartedief, moral valence turned out to be more ambiguous and nuanced than the theory outlined in section 2 of the article suggests. Characters are mostly portrayed as polyvalent, with both "good" and "evil" traits.

"Gaan loop speel!": The inchoative auxiliary verbs gaan and loop in Afrikaans

Aspektuele betekenis is dikwels meerduidig in Afrikaans, omdat die werkwoord nie verpligtend gemerk word vir aspek nie. Die inchoatiefaspek is 'n grammatikaalaspektuele betekenis wat die moment direk voor die aanvang, die aanvangsmoment self, of die moment direk ná die aanvang van 'n handeling of faseverandering uitlig. 'n Verskeidenheid strategies kan in Afrikaans gebruik word om die inchoatiefaspek uit te druk - een só 'n strategie is die gebruik van niehoofwerkwoordelike konstruksies. In hierdie artikel word gebruik gemaak van die Watkykjy!'-korpus, Taalkommissiekorpus en NWU-Kommentaarkorpus om die frekwensies en gebruikspatrone van gaan en loop as direkteskakelwerkwoorde in inchoatiefkonstruksies na te gaan. Die resultate van die korpusondersoek toon dat hierdie gaan- en loop-inchoatiefkonstruksies vormlik en struktureel ooreenkomstig is, maar dat daar semantiese nuanses is wat bewerkstellig word deur die keuse om gaan of loop te gebruik.

Aspectual meaning is often ambiguous in Afrikaans because the verb is not compulsorily marked for aspect. The inchoative aspect is a grammatical aspectual meaning that highlights the moment directly before the onset, the onset itself, or the moment directly after the onset of an action or change of state. A variety of strategies can be used in Afrikaans to express the inchoative aspect, one of which being auxiliary verb constructions. Ten auxiliary verbs can occur in inchoative constructions in Afrikaans, namely: begin ('begin'), gaan ('go'), kom ('come'), loop ('walk), raak ('become'), sit ('sit'), slaan ('hif), spring ('jump'), steek ('stab) and val ('fall'). These auxiliary verbs function as inchoative aspectual markers in two kinds of constructions: as direct linking verbs in inchoative constructions or as indirect linking verbs (either with or without progressive periphrastic constructions). All of the auxiliary verbs that can express inchoative meaning do not occur in all of the possible constructions. For instance, slaan ('hit') exclusively occurs as an inchoative marker in auxiliary constructions with the progressive periphrastic construction aan die ('on the') together with the main verb collocate brand ('to burn'). This article, therefore, does not investigate all ten auxiliary verbs that can occur in inchoative constructions but solely focuses on the direct linking verb constructions in which gaan and loop occur as cognate inchoative auxiliaries. In this article, the Watkykjy! corpus, Taalkommissie corpus and NWU Commentary corpus are used to investigate the frequencies and usage patterns of gaan and loop as direct linking verbs in inchoative constructions. Construction Grammar (CxG) and Grammaticalisa-tion Theory are used as theoretical frameworks to describe the similarities and differences in use of loop and gaan as direct linking verbs in inchoative constructions. CxG provides a useful theoretical framework for the identification of the constructions and descriptions of the nuances between the two constructions, should any be present. Grammaticalisation Theory provides a framework in which the main verb collocates for gaan and loop in these inchoative constructions can be used to establish the degree to which these verbs have evolved to express additional meanings or perform additional functions. The results of the corpus study indicate that these gaan and loop inchoative constructions are formally and structurally similar, but that there are semantic nuances expressed by using one rather than the other. Collostruction analyses indicate both gaan and loop retain some of their lexical meaning in certain contexts where they are used to express inchoative aspectual meaning. However, gaan can be used in a larger variety of linguistic contexts and with a larger variety of main verb collocates. Gaan is, therefore, more grammaticalised and less constricted in its uses than loop. This result was expected because gaan has grammaticalised to function as a future tense marker and modal marker expressing epistemic modality in Afrikaans, which correlate with the grammaticalisation route for verbs like gaan in other languages. Whilst it was expected that loop would be less grammaticalised than gaan because loop is not commonly considered to function as a future tense marker in Afrikaans, it is, however, noteworthy that loop seems to have evolved to denote some kind of modal meaning. The loop inchoative construction is more frequently used in imperatives, occurs with a smaller variety of main verb collocates and tends to be used in contexts where the speaker is expressing a dislike for or disapproval of the situation being expressed by the main verb, or aims to evoke a negative emotional response from the receiver of the utterance towards the situation expressed by the main verb. This is indicative of loop being more specialised for imperatives, pejoratives and cases where the speaker expresses their own dislike or disapproval, or hopes to evoke these feelings in the receiver of the utterance, towards the situation expressed by the main verb. It, therefore, seems that loop has evolved to function as a kind of deontic modal marker. This supports the findings of other researchers who note that loop expresses modality in progressive constructions.

Factors determining brand loyalty in a pandemic business environment

Handelsmerklojaliteit is 'n kernkomponent van moderne bemarkingstrategie. Lojale verbruikers is nie net deel van die aanvanklike aankoopinteraksie nie, maar ook lojaal aan die handelsmerk. Gevolglik word die bekende aankoopreis omskep in 'n lojaliteitsreis waar die lojale ondersteuning van die verbruiker 'n verhouding konstateer met die betrokke handelsmerk. Sodoende word die handelsmerk se lojaliteit in die mark verbeter en groei die handelsmerk as gevolg van die onafgebroke verbruikersondersteuning. Hierdie studie het ten doel om die verhouding tussen verskillende faktore van handelsmerklojaliteit en handelsmerklojaliteit per se te bepaal. Die studie ondersoek vyf gevestigde kernfaktore van handelsmerklojaliteit, naamlik 1) handelsmerkreputasie, 2) sosiale media, 3) mondelinge kommunikasie, 4) kliëntervaring en 5) tentoonstelling van handelsware. Dit is egter belangrik om kennis te neem daarvan dat die faktore dateer uit teoretiese studies voordat die Covid-19-pandemie toegeslaan het. Hierdie studie beoog dus om te bepaal of die faktore steeds geldig en betroubaar is sedert die Covid-19-pandemie. In die kwantitatiewe navorsingsontwerp word 'n self-ontwikkelde vraelys gebruik, waardeur data van 135 sosiale media-respondente ingesamel is. Die waarde van hierdie studie is gesetel in die spesifieke verhouding wat elke faktor met handelsmerklojaliteit in 'n veranderende besigheidsomgewing het. Die studie ontwikkel voorts 'n model wat handelsmerklojaliteit meet, en waardeur die relatiewe belangrikheid van elke faktor volgens die meting bepaal kan word. Hierdie bevindinge kan handelsmerke se bemarkingsbegrotings beïnvloed, 'n spesifieke fokus op individuele faktore plaas, of 'n gesamentlike evaluasie van die verbruikers se lojaliteit teenoor 'n spesifieke handelsmerk meet. Die ontwikkelde model stel die navorser ook in staat om die spesifieke handelsmerk se onderskeie faktore afsonderlik te meet in die verskillende marksegmente waar die handelsmerk voorkom. Die sosialemediaplatform Instagram is gebruik om respondente te werf. Die uitnodiging om deel te neem aan die studie is op Instagram versprei waar respondente 'n Internet-skakel na die vraelys in Google Forms ontvang het. Nadat voornemende respondente die kwalifiserende vrae korrek beantwoord het, is die vraelys outomaties beskikbaar gestel om te voltooi. 135 respondente het die vraelys voltooi. Die data is getoets vir betroubaarheid deur die Cronbach alfa-koëffisiënt te gebruik (α>0.70) en om te bepaal of daar genoegsame response gedokumenteer is, is met behulp van die toets van Kaiser, Meyer en Olkin bevind dat voldoende respondente deelgeneem het (KMO>0.70). Die aanvanklike veelvuldige regressie het betekenisvolle positiewe verwant-skappe vir vier van die vyf teoreties gefundeerde faktore gevind. Die faktor "kliënte-ervaring" het vreemd genoeg nie 'n betekenisvolle verwantskap met handelsmerklojaliteit nie. Hierdie bevinding is bevraagteken, en die vermoede dat die inperkingsmaatsreëls die kliënte se ervaring met handelsmerke beïnvloed, kon nie bevestig word nie. Gevolglik is die data verder ontleed deur verkennende faktoranalise. Agt faktore is geïdentifiseer wat verbruikers se handelsmerklojaliteit beïnvloed. Hierdie faktore is die sigbaarheid van die handelsware, handelsmerkreputasie, handelsmerkvertroue, verwysings (nie winkelverwant nie), advies (in die winkel), inkopie-ervaring (in die winkel), 'n handelsmerkambassadeur se invloed, en persoonlike keuses. Gesamentlik verklaar die faktore 63% van die variansie. Die agt nuut geïdentifiseerde faktore maak meer sin as die aanvanklike vyf faktore en maatskappye behoort eerder op hierdie faktore te fokus om handelsmerklojaliteit te bestuur.

Customer loyalty has significantly evolved over the last decade, specifically with social media platforms. Marketers engage customers regularly with an omnichannel approach, which allows brands to interact with their customers, whether person-to-person or person-to-community. Customer loyalty is characterised in the literature as a psychological process whereby a customer's loyalty attaches towards a specific service or brand. Over time, customer loyalty contributes to consumers'behaviour and preference for a specific brand or service. Therefore, a company should consider formulating or developing an appropriate business intelligence strategy to drive customers towards loyalty and increase their engagement with its brand. Furthermore, psychological shopper behaviour might expand and improve current research towards a customer perspective by distinguishing how customers are incentivised during their brand activity ventures, suggesting that customer loyalty and customers' judgements of businesses have a notable positive impact. As such, brands should identify what their businesses centre their attention on or what their attraction is. For a brand to understand and identify the best loyalty strategies for its target customers, the business must use the opportunity to enable the brand to develop new innovative approaches. These approaches continuously drive brand loyalty through sales by creating a competitive advantage in the market. Customer loyalty has become more than just a strategy for business or marketing. It empowers the consumer to be engaged throughout their initial interaction and purchase journey and become loyal to the brand. This engagement journey can help a brand to establish and grow due to the continuous support from consumers. The general aim of this study was to determine the nature of the relationship between customer engagement factors and brand loyalty. The study identified five customer engagement factors from the literature (brand reputation, social media, word-of-mouth, customer experience, and merchandising) with a view to investigating their role in brand loyalty. It is noteworthy that these factors are well-documented in a pre-Covid-19 environment; the question remains, however, whether these factors will still be valid and reliable in a Covid-19 business environment? This study aims to determine a response to precisely that question. In a quantitative research design a self-developed questionnaire was used to measure each one of these factors on a five-point Likert scale. All these factors and their respective measuring criteria were validated empirically using exploratory factor analysis. The social media platform Instagram was used to initiate a snowball sample, and a total of 135 social media participants responded by completing the online Google Forms questionnaire. The respondent profile shows that brands' social media page is the most preferred method of brand communication. This is followed by email, SMS and telephonic communication methods, with the latter being, in fact, clearly disliked. It was found that respondents prefer email, followed by SMS or the social media platform to receive brand communication; however, communication via telephone conversations is disliked. As consumers, respondents find brand advertisements memorable once they have seen them on different platforms or channels of communication. The most memorable channel is social media (having a recall rate of 62.2%). A total of 71.9% of participants first read the reviews of a new product that was launched. After that, they find a way through word-of-mouth or a brand community to make an informed discussion before purchasing the product and listening to what other consumers share on review platforms. The data are reliable (α>0.70) and the sample was deemed adequate (KMO>0.70). Multiple regression analysis was used to determine the relationships between customer engagement factors and brand loyalty. The results indicated that there are significant (p<.05) positive relationships for the factors brand reputation (r=.262; p<.05), social media (r=.430; p<.05), word-of-mouth (r=.309; p<.05), and visibility (r=.340; p<.05). The model explains a satisfactory cumulative variance of 65.1% (R²=0.651). The factor, customer experience, however, should be reconsidered because this antecedent did not significantly influence a consumer's loyalty to a brand. As such, exploratory factor analysis was used to determine whether there are other factors that determine brand loyalty. Eight factors were identified, explaining 63% of the variance cumulatively. These factors are visibility of merchandise, brand reputation, brand trust, brand references (outside the shop), advice (inside the shop), brand ambassador, the purchase experience, and personal choice. The eight new factors make more sense as factors to manage brand loyalty. Management should rather focus on these factors than concentrate on the initial five factors indicated in the literature. Possible areas for future research are to investigate the age and demographic areas with regard to how the participants could have viewed their opinions. A more centralised focus towards different ages, groups or generations such as Gen Z, Millennials, Gen X, Boomers, and the Silent Generation can also be investigated to compare or illustrate which engagement strategy is most influential towards their brand loyalty.

Social service professionals'knowledge of and attitudes towards older persons: Implications for continuing professional development

Die bejaardebevolking neem wêreldwyd toe. Gevolglik vergroot die vraag na geskikte mediese sorg, maatskaplike bystand, maatskaplike dienste en versorging. In Suid-Afrika word maatskaplike dienste aan ouer persone hoofsaaklik deur twee maatskaplike diensberoepe gelewer, naamlik maatskaplike werkers en maatskaplike hulpwerkers. Hierdie praktisyns moet oor die nodige kennis van en gepaste houding teenoor ouer persone beskik ten einde effektiewe gerontologiese dienste te lewer. Internasionaal, maar ook in Suid-Afrika, is 'n leemte geïdentifiseer met betrekking tot 'n studie wat praktisyns se kennis van en houding teenoor ouer persone verken en beskryf. Hierdie artikel poog om die volgende navorsingsvraag te beantwoord: "Wat is professionele persone in maatskaplike diensberoepe se kennis van en houding teenoor ouer persone?" 'n Deursnit opnameprosedure is gevolg met praktisyns (N=140) verbonde aan een private welsynsorganisasie. Drie-en-sestig respondente (N=63) het die aanlyn vraelys voltooi. Respondente se kennis van veroudering is verken met Palmore 's First Facts on Aging Quiz in multiple-choice format. Houding teenoor ouer persone is ooreenkomstig Fraboni's Scale of Ageism beskryf. Respondente het swak gevaar in hul oorhoofse kennis van veroudering met 'n gemiddelde punt van 9.4 uit 25 (s=2.6). Met 'n teoretiese reikwydte van 29 tot 145, het ouderdomsdiskriminasie laag gemeet (x=80.6; s=11.8). Voorts is die impak van nege faktore op respondente se gemiddelde kennis van en houding teenoor ouer persone bepaal met behulp van parametriese toetse. Beide voortgesette professionele ontwikkelings-inisiatiewe en supervisie is bekende kontekste in maatskaplike diensberoepe. Aanbevelings word gedoen om praktisyns se kennis van en houding teenoor ouer persone te verbeter met die oog op effektiewe gerontologiese dienste.

Worldwide the population of older persons is growing. Relatedly, there is an increasing demand for suitable medical care, social security (e.g. government grants), social services and care. In South Africa, the focus of this study, social services to older persons are mainly provided by two social service professional groups, namely social workers and social auxiliary workers. This paper argues that practitioners in the social service professions must have appropriate knowledge and a fitting attitude towards older persons to provide effective gerontological services. This argument is aligned with an international commitment by signatories to the UN Decade of Healthy Aging 2021-2030 to change the way people think, feel and act towards age and ageing in order to ensure the delivery of integrated person-centred gerontological services. In South Africa, older persons are considered a vulnerable group on which social services must focus (cf. Framework for Social Welfare Services, 2013). There is also specific legislation in this regard, namely the Older Persons Act 13 of 2006, as amended. After consultation of various international and national databases, it was confirmed that, in contrast to various surveys among students in the helping professions, there is still a lack of studies that explore and describe professionals' knowledge of and attitude towards older persons. According to the available literature, there is only one study within the South African context that dealt with the attitude of medical practitioners towards older persons (Ntusi & Ferreira, 2004). With this knowledge gap in mind, the research question that this study seeks to answer is as follows: "What are professionals in social service professions' knowledge of and attitude towards older persons?" This study was undertaken within the ambit of the modernisation theory. A cross-sectional survey was implemented with social service professionals in the employ of a private South African welfare organisation with a footprint over five of the nine provinces. The total population of 140 professionals was invited to complete a web-based survey. Sixty-three respondents (N=63) responded to the invitation and answered the questionnaire in full via QualtricsXM, a web-based programme. Section 1 comprised a holistic profile of the respondents. In Section 2, the knowledge of respondents pertaining to older persons and ageing was determined by means of Palmore's First Facts on Aging Quiz in multiple-choice format. Incorrect answers determine positive or negative bias towards ageing. Section 3 determined the respondents'attitudes towards older persons, using Fraboni's Scale of Ageism. The scale measures overall attitude/ageism, and three sub-scales, namely antilocution, avoidance and discrimination. More specifically, this study determined the impact of nine factors (i.e. age, area of childhood residence, growing up with an older person, qualification, completed course in gerontology, working exclusively with older persons, considering working with older persons, province of employment, and task description) on the knowledge and attitudes of respondents by calculating either the independent T-test or the one-way ANOVA. Both scales were found to be valid and reliable within the South African context. After written permission from the management of the welfare organisation, the research ethics committee of the university provided ethical approval for the study. Based on the profile of the respondents, this study mainly offers a glimpse of female persons in their middle years, with an average of 15 years of experience as social workers and practising in family-centred services. The results show that the respondents have poor overall knowledge of ageing with a mean of 9.4 out of 25 (SD=2.6). In answering the quiz, incorrect answers tended toward negative bias towards older persons. Overall the respondents hold positive attitudes toward older persons with a mean of 80.6 out of 145 (SD=11.8) for ageism. Furthermore, the sub-scales antilocution (x=25.2) and avoidance (x=24.9) scored around the midpoint, while discrimination scored high (x=30.4). Three factors were identified as having a statistically significant impact on the respondents' overall knowledge of ageing: "Age group" (p=0.02), "Qualification" (p=0.03) and "Taskdescription" (p=0.03). Furthermore, "Growing up with an older person in the household" had a statistically significant impact on the subscale "positive bias" (p=0.02). In addition, "Currently working exclusively with older persons" showed a statistically significant impact on both the overall attitude/ageism (p=0.04) and antilocution (p=0.04) measured among the respondents. With reference to the factors that showed a statistically significant impact (p<0.05) on respondents' knowledge of ageing and attitudes towards older persons, recommendations for continuing professional development (CPD) are delineated. As per the policy of the South African Council for Social Service Professions (SACSSP, 2021), registered social workers must achieve at least 20 CPD points each year (or 40 spread over two years) and registered social auxiliary workers 10 points (20 over two years). The policy of the SACSSP makes provision for a variety of group and individual activities whose award of points varies between two and twenty. All professionals also carry out their tasks under a supervisor. Both CPD and supervision offer a familiar context within which social services to older persons can be dealt with. The field of service of professionals should determine the extent to which the focus on older persons should be. In connection with the aforementioned policy and supervision, some recommendations are offered to improve professionals'knowledge of and attitude towards older persons. For example, expert lectures focusing on different aspects of ageing and the completion of professional online development courses. Attitudes could be addressed during individual supervision and with creative activities such as role plays.

The reform of apartheid in the 1980's: The political approach of PW Botha and the ecclesiastical contribution by JA Heyns

Reeds in sy nooienstoespraak op die trappies van die Parlement op 18 September 1978, het PW Botha, pas verkose eerste minister (1978-1984 ) en latere president (1984-1989) van Suid-Afrika, te kenne gegee dat hy apartheid Suid-Afrika wou hervorm. Vir Botha was dit deel van sy Christelike lewensbeskouing om die staatstrukture, verhoudinge tussen groepe en apartheid in Suid-Afrika te hervorm. Teen die middel van die 1980's was hy oortuig daarvan dat die oorhoofse doel van apartheid, naamlik afsonderlik maar gelyk, misluk het. Hy het sommige apartheidswette geskrap soos wette wat rasgemengde huwelike verbied, swart instroming na die sogenaamde wit gebiede beheer en vakbondlidmaatskap vir swart, gekleurd en Asiër uitskakel. Botha het ook 'n driekamerparlement geïnisieer vir Blankes, Kleurlinge en Asiërs sonder om die mag uit die hande van die Blankes te laat gaan. Blanke heheer was vir hom die waarborg vir 'n stabiele Suid-Afrika wat ruimte skep vir die omvattende hervorming van apartheid. Johan Heyns was professor in Teologie (Dogmatiek en Etiek) aan die Universiteit van Pretoria en vanaf 1986 tot 1990 moderator van die NG Kerk. Hy wou apartheid vanuit die hoek van die kerk hervorm sonder om die kerklike karakter van sy optrede prys te gee. Vir hom was hervorming 'n metode van ewolusionêre verandering wat uit die Kerkhervorming van die 16e eeu gekom het en in alle fasette van die samelewing tot 'n beter gemeenskap lei. Daarom moes die norme van liefde, geregtigheid en menswaardigheid in 'n gemeenskap van mense wat na die beeld van God geskep is in samelewingstrukture gestalte kry. Met hierdie benadering het Heyns 'n groot aandeel in die opstel van dokumente van die Algemene Sinode van die NG Kerk van 1986 en 1990 gehad, naamlik Kerk en Samelewing-1986 en 1990 (KS 1986 en KS 1990) met hulle kritiek op apartheid. Heyns het Botha se breë idee van politieke hervorming vanuit sy teologiese hoek gesteun. Botha se besluit om by genoemde uitgangspunte te bly laat sy inisiatiewe teen 1989 egter vasloop. Uit sy kerklike hoek wou Heyns egter nie stagneer rondom die aftakeling van apartheid nie. Hy sterf aan die hand van 'n sluipmoordenaar in 1994.

This article takes a closer look at ways in which the apartheid policy of the National Party in South Africa was increasingly being questioned by prominent political as well as clerical leaders in the 1980's. In particular, the views of two well-known leaders, namely those of Mr. PW Botha, prime minister and later president of the Republic of South Africa and prof. Johan (JA) Heyns, moderator of the Dutch Reformed Church, are considered. Both men opted for reform as a method with which to bring about change in apartheid South Africa: For Botha political reform was on the cards, while Heyns tried to contribute in a theological and ecclesiastical way. This article investigates and compares the opinions and proposals of both men, be it from an ethical political and an ecclesiastical angle respectively. The effect of such initiatives within the South African community is also attended to. It is argued that in Botha's support for political reform as opposed to a revolutionary stance, he was theologically supported by Heyns. In the acceptance of the document Church and Society 1986 by the General Synod of the Dutch Reformed Church, a document in which Heyns had played a decisive role with his critique against apartheid, the latter propagated the reform of this policy from an ecclesiastical angle - he did so both locally in South Africa and abroad for the benefit of an international audience. As a result, critics started to refer to him as "the priest of the court of the president of South Africa". One may well ask: To what end must the views of both a political and a clerical leader be comparatively analysed? The answer would be that it is hoped that the points of departure of a relevant "ethics of reform" may gradually emerge from such a scrutiny. As illustrated in the initiatives of both Botha and Heyns, it is shown that a politician and theologian have something to tell each other when it comes to the reform of apartheid. Pieter Willem Botha (often referred to simply as "PW") was the prime minister of South Africa from 1978 to 1984, before becoming president from 1984 to 1989. Already in his speech of acceptance on 28 September 1978, he succinctly articulated his intention to reform apartheid. Ten years after this introductory speech the well-known journalist and author, JJJ Scholtz, deemed it fit to collect some political remarks in Botha's speeches in a book titled Vegter en hervormer ("fighter and reformer"). Similarly, in outlining the main issues of Botha's time as the leader of the government, the historian Pieter Kapp emphasised Botha's most important reforms. He regarded his attempts at reform as the flag which defined Botha's leadership. In Botha's view transforming apartheid South Africa was integral to his Christian beliefs. Such transformation entailed improving the country's structures of state, as well as the relationships between groups in the population in general. By the mid 1980's he was convinced that the holistic aim of apartheid to restructure state and country in such a way as to ensure separate but equal rights for the entire population, had failed. He therefore got rid of laws that prohibited racially mixed marriages, or controlled the influx of blacks in so-called white urban areas, the latter making it impossible for blacks to obtain membership of trade unions and ownership of property. Instead, Botha initiated a Three Room Government (legislative) for respectively the whites, coloureds and Asians without, in practice, sharing political power with them. Botha was willing to open up South Africa to all without letting political power slip from white hands. It would appear that apartheid as a method to achieve justice and equality had failed in the eyes of the majority. It was, in fact, a method which the National Party as the government had failed to implement successfully. As a result the positive spirit in the Party as a governing party started to decline. According to Botha's view a government should aim at justice and human dignity for all, listen to the political aspirations of all members of the population and create and support the spiritual, physical and human development of everybody. In his opinion, as he thought to have learned from his mentor, the late former Prime Minister DF Malan (1948-1954), reform was a method to achieve or implement principles such as justice, human dignity and the total development of the entire population. Hence the method of reform, like the failed political method of apartheid, should never become an unchangeable principle which - in the end -could derail a country. Unlike some critics of apartheid, Botha did not use his reform to abolish every aspect of apartheid in South Africa. He continued to aim at consultations with all, and human dignity and justice for everybody, but was not prepared to accept that whites should share their political power with other populations or racial groups. Botha saw reform as a method to achieve goals like justice and dignity and not to destabilise the country. And as far as he was concerned, white power was a condition for stability: a stability that was necessary for a successful implementation of reform. In his opinion the ideal of justice and dignity for everybody would be in jeopardy in a destabilised South Africa. It should be clear that Botha did not want to destroy the community, but to lead it to higher levels. He openly resisted signs of a revolutionary approach in political methods that could destabilise the country, but also resisted a negative approach to any change. In his view reform was synonymous with effective change. Johan (JA) Heyns was professor of Theology at the University of Pretoria in the time of Botha's rule. As a leader in the Dutch Reformed Church, he was an advocate of reform. He chose reform in South Africa because he was a spiritual heir of the Reformation of the 1500's with reform as, in principle, the method used for change in life as a whole. He saw in a revolutionary approach the same danger of destabilisation as his prime minister and strongly advocated the Bible as the foundation or first norm for acceptable change. To Heyns and Botha, both Reformed Christians, reform was a continuing, evolutionary change. A preferred change for improving the circumstances of black, white and coloured in South Africa. Heyns chose to remain a prophet of God or being bound by the Bible as the norm for his contribution and as a spokesman of the church as a spiritual body of the Reformation. Being a reformer who criticises apartheid, not from a political stance, but from the viewpoint of the Christian faith, Heyns's viewpoint was eagerly picked up by the media and had to be taken note of. PW Botha, in fact, had noticed the viewpoints propagated by Heyns before the latter became the moderator of his church in 1986. Already in 1985 Botha asked Heyns to form a small informal advisory committee of theologians to advise the president himself. Heyns reached out to well-known reformers like himself: Tjaart van der Walt from Potchefstroom and Willie Jonker from Stellenbosch. Botha thus contacted Heyns personally for his help rather than the Dutch Reformed Church officially. At that stage Botha was a member of a Dutch Reformed congregation. Round about 1985 -1988 Botha's initiatives for reform seemed to peter out and led to a perception that a new initiative, not that by PW Botha, was needed in South Africa. Botha's so-called Rubicon speech in August 1985 in which he did not announce an expected radical reform, in the view of many commentators, underlined this. From an ecclesiastical angle Heyns broadly supported these critics. To summarise, this article investigates and compares attempts to reform apartheid South Africa as propagated by PW Botha in his political and JA Heyns in his ecclesiastical approach respectively. The focus is on reform as their method for change from their accepted angles. Such an analysis remains relevant in an historical look at and study of these issues.

Historical perspective: Reasons for and consequences of the involvement by great powers in the Suez Canal (Egypt), in particular before 1956 (Part I)

In hierdie eerste van drie artikels word die geopolitieke belangrikheid van Egipte en die geostrategiese ligging van die landengte van Suez (Ismus) en daarná die kanaal self bespreek. Ook word gefokus op die bou van die kanaal en die noodsaaklikheid om beheer daaroor te verkry en te behou. In die laat 1700s en dwarsdeur die 19de eeu tot die middel van 1956 het Europese moondhede om verskeie redes in Egipte en dus ook die kanaal belanggestel. Intriges en konflik het by tye hoogty gevier. Baie was op die spel, gegewe die feit dat hierdie landengte en waar die kanaal later gebou sou word 'n besonder strategiese rol speel as verbindingslinie tussen Europa en die Ooste en ook die Indiese Oseaan. Dit het toenemend belangriker geword vir Brittanje om oor hierdie verbinding te beskik. Frankryk se betrokkenheid in Egipte begin in 1798 met Napoleon Bonaparte en later met Ferdinand de Lesseps wat die vergunning bekom het om die Suezkanaal te bou. Dit is in 1869 geopen en het 'n omwenteling in die verskeping van goedere tussen Brittanje en sy kolonies teweeggebring. Nadat Brittanje aanvanklik teen die bou van die kanaal gekant was, het hulle tog later 'n aandeel daarin verkry. In die toepassing van sy buitelandse beleid het Otto von Bismarck van Duitsland weinig belangstelling in Egipte getoon. Britse troepe word in 1882 in Egipte ontplooi om 'n nasionalistiese opstand te onderdruk. Die troepe bly aan tot na die Eerste Wereldoorlog. Die Entente Cordiale wat 40 jaar van bitter mededinging tussen Brittanje en Frankryk beëindig, het ook vir Brittanje 'n vrye hand in Egipte en vir Frankryk een in Marokko gegee. In 1922 het Egipte onafhanklik geword, maar Britse magte het aangebly om die Suezkanaal steeds te beskerm. Ná die Tweede Wereldoorlog het Brittanje sy militêre teenwoordigheid in die omstreke van die Suezkanaal aansienlik verhoog - iets wat Egiptenare geensins aangestaan het. Brittanje het min van die voordele wat uit die gebruik van die kanaal voortgespruit het aan Egipte oorgedra. 'n Reeks mislukkings in Brittanje se toepassing van sy buitelandse beleid het die basis vir die steeds groeiende en veelvlakkige konflik tussen Brittanje en Egipte aangevuur. Op 23 Julie 1952 word koning Faroek onttroon in 'n militêre staatsgreep waarin die jong kolonel Gamal Abdul Nasser die leidende rol speel. Daarná is Egipte nie meer dieselfde nie. Nasser het homself as 'n besondere leier nie net in Egipte nie, maar ook internasionaal gevestig, met een van die uitvloeisels van sy leierskap die nasionalisering van die Suezkanaal op 26 Julie 1956. Die gevolg hiervan strek vêr en wyd. In die tweede artikel word meer breedvoerig hierop ingegaan, terwyl die derde artikel oor die gevolge van die kanaalsluiting vir Suid-Afrika handel. Daar word gelet op die internasionale aandag wat op die seeroete om die Kaap gevestig is; die hersluiting van die kanaal in 1967 en Brittanje se oordrag van die vlootbasis by Simonstad in die laat 1950's aan Suid-Afrika.

This first of three articles discusses the geopolitical importance of Egypt, the geostrategic location of the Isthmus of Suez and the channel itself. It also focuses on the construction of the canal and the imperatives to both control and retain possession of it. In the late 1700s and throughout the 19th century, up until mid-1956, European powers were interested in Egypt for various reasons, including the canal. Intermittent intrigues and conflict occurred from time to time. Much was at stake, given the fact that this Isthmus and where the canal would later be constructed, has a particular strategic significance in connecting Europe and the East and also the Indian Ocean. It became increasingly more important for Britain to control this link. France's involvement in Egypt began in 1798 with Napoleon Bonaparte and later with Ferdinand de Lesseps who was granted permission to build the Suez Canal. It was opened in 1869 and it revolutionised the shipment of goods between Britain and its colonies. Initially, Britain was opposed to the construction of the canal, but later acquired a share in it. Given the execution of his foreign policy, Germany's Otto von Bismarck showed little interest in Egypt. In 1882, British troops were deployed in Egypt to suppress a nationalist uprising. The troops stayed on until after World War I. The Entente Cordiale ended 40 years of bitter rivalry between Britain and France. It granted Britain a free hand in Egypt and France the same in Morocco. In 1922, Egypt became independent, but British forces still stayed on to protect the Suez Canal. After the Second World War, Britain increased its military presence in the vicinity of the Suez Canal considerably, but Egyptians were dissatisfied about that arrangement. Britain transferred few of the advantages derived from the use of the canal to Egypt. A series of failures by Britain in the application of its foreign policy fuelled the ever growing and multifaceted conflict between Britain and Egypt. On 23 July 1952, King Farouk was dethroned in a military coup d'état in which the young Colonel Gamal Abdul Nasser played the leading role. After that Egypt was not the same anymore. Nasser established himself as an exceptional leader, not only in Egypt, but also internationally, and as one of the outcomes of his leadership, the canal was nationalised on 26 July 1956. The consequences stretched far and wide. The second article addresses such consequences in general, while the third focuses, in particular, on the effect(s) closure of the canal has had for South Africa. Attention is paid to the sea route around the Cape, as well as the closure of the canal in 1967, bearing in mind Britain's transference of its naval base, Simonstown to South Africa in the late 1950s.

**Om te ge- of nie te ge- nie**

Jagters, Slagters en Wildwagters in Suidwes-Afrika: Kroniek van Mens en Wild: Die verhaal tot 1960

Petra Müller: Die skerpgevylde oomblik: 'n Huldiging