Siyabonga Hadebe
Pretoria - There is an argument that the end of apartheid ushered in a “new” era that marked the end of colonialism and apartheid in South Africa. However, this perspective is not only inaccurate, it is also misleading.
The point that is often avoided concerns the so-called internal colonialism that shaped South Africa from its early days.
Referring to this phenomenon as “colonialism of a special type”, authors like Marxian scholar Harold Wolpe and American sociologist Robert Blauner describe it as a capitalist practice of oppression and exploitation of racial and ethnic minorities within the borders of the state.
Colonialism is widely understood to mean oppression and exploitation of others for massive capital gain.
South Africa has its own version of home-grown colonialism meant to benefit the white community by exploiting the indigenous black population.
The outcome is a very advanced side of the colony and the grossly underdeveloped black, Third World side, that is groomed to forever serve the white economy and its structures.
Sampie Terblanche concludes that the white community “lives in a wonderful oasis amid a large and impoverished African desert”.
Internal colonialism is often accompanied by segregation that is defined as the separation of racial or ethnic groups, and is characterised by relationships of domination, oppression and exploitation.
Thus, 1994 simply remodified what one can describe in the simplest terms as the rules of engagement between the white and black sides of the colony, without necessarily changing the form and texture of the oppression, exploitation and marginalisation of the subalterns (indigenous population).
In short, democracy did not look at all the aspects of internal colonialism in South Africa. Hence, the persisting uneven effects of economic development as well as economic and cultural dominance from centuries of exploitation of the majority black population.
Internal colonialism simply divided the territory into black and white spaces. This was not just geographical, but extend to abstract modes like the mind, culture, language, sense of belonging and wealth. The black majority forever occupies the base of this arrangement, and this remains true 30 years after the purported expiry date of apartheid.
Those who observe social relations within the colonial state would attest to the unequal relations and forceful assimilation that characterise the post-1994 South African state. This occurs through modes of economics, ideas, language, education and settlement.
Blacks and their communities form the annex of the white world that is dominating the identity of the “new” South Africa through capital, politics and social relations.
The white world owns industry, banking and determines the value of labour. It is expected to create jobs and wealth for the marginalised African majority. It controls the hierarchy of the language structure and economics of languages, where languages like English and Afrikaans hold the upper hand over African languages
Politics and democracy mask the deep side of internal colonialism. Things such as the vote and democratic speech placate the black majority into thinking they are part of one whole. However, the internal mechanics and systems of the colony are designed to keep them out of the mainstream.
A well behaved and mannered black is the one who knows his or her place in the colony. He acts not only as a spokesperson for the establishment, but behaves in a manner that shows that he or she is not as barbaric as the rest of the oppressed.
An enlightened black has to constantly prove that he or she is not like “them”. He adapts his twang and mannerisms to mirror the image of the white minority.
Assimilation into their territory and structures is the ultimate reward.
* Hadebe is an independent commentator on socio-economic, political and global matters based in Geneva. The views expressed here are his own.
** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media.