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The great disconnect
21/05/2008 10:05 - (SA)
Chris Roper
Three weeks ago, I was standing, with some pride, on the hot, sullen top of Mapungubwe Hill, one of the great cultural sites in South Africa. This towering sandstone kopje in the Limpopo Province is where archaeologists found the famously beautiful Mapungubwe gold rhino, and first evidence of the earliest civilisation in sub-Saharan Africa where a stratified social-hierarchy existed.
Basically, it's a monument to when our geographic ancestors first divided up into haves and have-nots. Archaeologists refer to this period as Early WaBenzi, or at least they ought to, and date it at 1220-1290 AD.
The rich folk lived on top of the hill, and the poor folk spent their days carrying up water, and even painstakingly carrying up tons of soil to make the hilltop habitable.
This morning, with no pride at all, I'm staring at pictures on News24 of South Africans setting alight their fellow Africans. I don't know whether the people of Mapungubwe set fire to their neighbours, but I do know that my guide for the day, Cedric, took us to the edge of a precipice and told us a story.
Here, he said, is where they pushed the women to their deaths when they refused to marry the men chosen for them. We stared in horror over the dizzying edge. Just kidding, he said, and chuckled richly.
Bad taste?
At the time, it struck me as a strange thing for a guide to make a joke about, but as entirely appropriate for a certain type of South African. Earlier, he'd showed us an untidy pile of rocks, where sangomas had reburied the bones of the ancestors in a heap, bones rescued from the archaeology department at Pretoria University.
It's a poignant sight, especially with a pair of Black Eagles wheeling in the distance, and heat waves rising off the baking earth. But this is South Africa, so we're not allowed simple poetic moments.
Cedric tells us that President Mbeki had been invited to preside over the reburial a few months ago, but after he cancelled once because he was too busy - probably overseas, Cedric jokes - they went ahead without him.
The bones are all in a mass grave because they can't decide what bones belong to which people. For the same reason, sangomas from the different tribes of the area jointly presided over the ceremony. They'd all like to claim Mapungubwe as their particular heritage, but unfortunately these bones aren't talking, unless it's to tell the universal story of death, the great leveller of political playing fields.
Mapungubwe National Park is wedged into the confluence between South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe. If you drive alongside the Limpopo River, you can see the barbed wire fences, and the holes dug underneath them by Zimbabweans trying to escape the disaster that is the Mugabe regime. Or maybe the holes are from returning Zimbabweans trying to escape the disaster that is South African hospitality.
How did we get here?
How did we get from a culture where people lovingly crafted tiny beads of gold to make life more beautiful, to one where we're smashing people in the head with bricks? It's not a question that has any easy answers. So I'll just tell another story about another type of South African.
I share a back seat in the Parks vehicle with Barry, 60-something, of Centurion. He tells me that, thirty years ago, he installed all the electricity wires and poles in Mapungubwe, back when it was an army base. He's back to see what's come of his handiwork. He tells me that he doesn't believe that Mapungubwe was built by our ancestors, or that the Golden Rhino could have been crafted by Africans. No, he says, it's like the Zimbabwe Ruins - Arab traders built it. Africans could never have done this. No way.
It's sad. Why do South Africans simultaneously want to own their history and give it away? Why do we desperately want to be African, but at the same time hate many of the things that are African? I guess it's because there's no such thing as African, and expecting there to be is as ludicrous as asking someone from some small Welsh town to describe themselves as European.
We really are a tribal people, and worse - we have tiny tribal minds. But take a look at a picture of the Mapungubwe golden rhino, still fragile and lovely after all these centuries. Something good is there somewhere.
Chris Roper's News24 blog is live. Click here to see more from Mapungubwe
Send your comments to Chris.
Disclaimer: News24 encourages freedom of speech and the expression of diverse views. The views of columnists published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24. News24 editors reserve the right to edit or delete any and all comments received.
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Gold is infallable
21/05/2008 10:41
Our collective history is not.South Africas ancient history has not been recorded in a written language excepting for symbolic graffiti in caves.The rest is myth or fable.Just like the so called holy grail.Is it a chalice or does it symbolise the blood line of Jesus Christ?.If the addage that history repeats itself is true then clobbering people with bricks and sticks was happening in 1220-1290 too.Great article Chris. - psycobabble |
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i still believe
21/05/2008 10:43
I still believe, one day we will have another great leader, not unlike Madiba, that can reach across the tribal barriers and unite us as one South Africa. Devoid of racism, sexism and connected instead with a sense of patriotism. That so far fetched? - Andrew |
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great, thought-provoking piece
21/05/2008 10:52
"Tiny tribal minds"? Pffft. It's all about people vying for limited resources. It always has been, and it always will be. Lamenting some idealistic reality where everybody just gets along and shares stuff and helps each other is pointless. At best, what we need is a benevolent dictator who will FORCE us to be nice to each other. - biobot |
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Genocide
21/05/2008 11:00
This is not xenofobia it is genocide and criminal, and our government supports it by not doing something about it. Thabo "PW" Mbeki, not much different from the old regime. Gov=Useless. - BigBang |
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Nothing NEW
21/05/2008 11:02
Mr. Roper your article does not attend to all the details of our history in South and Southern Africa for you to asked the question ?How did we get from a culture where people lovingly crafted tiny beads of gold to make life more beautiful, to one where we're smashing people in the head with bricks?? - we need to go back to the 13th century but need to look at what have happened the last 2 centuries in our country and the atrocities inflicted on all African people. For us to understand what is happening today in our country we need to understand our history and be honest about the past and own up to the part we and the part our forefathers played in the atrocities inflicted on our people today and in the past. South Africa have always been a violent country with both Brittan and the Afrikaner killing Africans for there own advancement and also the violence between the Zulu and Xhosa tribes which is proof of that. Xenophobia has been part of our country for the last two centuries - this is nothing new - colin |
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Contributions
21/05/2008 11:06
SA people will have to realize that what we have came through contributions of extremely diverce influences. Much of this had negative strings attached & some things still do, but there are so much to be grateful for. Once reality is thought over and we realize that we have to use what we have and people need to stand together to accomplich great things, only then can our nation prosper. Foreigners should then realize that they have to be on their toes when thinking of joining our SA family. - ElectroMan |
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Answers?
21/05/2008 11:09
You ask, 'How did we get from a culture where people lovingly crafted tiny beads of gold to make life more beautiful, to one where we're smashing people in the head with bricks?', lamenting that there are no easy answers.
I think there may be. You simply cannot spend 40 years sowing injustice, hatred, fear, inequality, and extreme poverty and not expect to reap the consequences. It's that simple. - Rossmc |
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The best solution....
21/05/2008 11:18
Become a reborn Christian and all these ways of trying to justify our existence and heritage and whatever believes people have, will not matter so much anymore. And believe me, many other more important things will matter, like your brother or sister right next to you!! - mvv |
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Shut the hostels
21/05/2008 11:20
Can I just ask that the hostels are closed. We do not want these people in Gauteng. Let them do what they want to impose on everyone else and go home. They do not belong here and we do not want them. They were also the tools used in the last burnings ands killings in the townships, all the necklacing then. Purge Gauteng of these tinder boxes. - Peter |
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colin
21/05/2008 11:26
colin you are just trying to market your own painful philosohy. Why don't you, instead of trying to twist everything to poor old downtrodden african, conveniently leaving out gaping holes of facts, to suit yourself, rather just point to mankind and the ways of humans since time began.This is why democracy and law and order are so very important,to control the human being who are ALL the same and colour is only an illusion.People like you enjoy fanning the flames, which puts you in which category? - Eden |
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Culture
21/05/2008 11:37
The country has been culturally diverse for hundreds of years, there have been wars, injustices and all manner of evils. We had a brief moment of future with Madiba to bridge these but it passed too quickly. our culture....want a vigin.. rape, a car.. hijack,goods..rob, attention.. gather a mob. - shaun |
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Who knows?
21/05/2008 11:41
That's the duality of human nature, it seems. The majesty of the pyramids was bought with the blood of slaves. The magnificence of the Roman Empire was built upon one bloody conquest after another. The list goes on. Somehow, we're ALL able to accept a hundred self-contradictory principles as part of our daily lives. - Warren |
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Excuses
21/05/2008 11:43
The fact that we still entrenched in what happened in the past is the reason why we fail to move onto the next level. Just about every single country on this planet has either been invaded or severe human atrocities inflicted on its inhabitants yet it is only Africa which seem to savour rolling in their own despair. That is a direct result of greed, tribalism, power and education or the lack thereof. I can see a shift, albeit slow, but it is happening. People are slowly waking up and the sooner The fact that we still entrenched in what happened in the past is the reason why we fail to move onto the next level. Just about every single country on this planet has either been invaded or severe human atrocities inflicted on its inhabitants yet it is only Africa which seem to savour rolling in their own despair. That is a direct result of greed, tribalism, power and education or the lack thereof. I can see a shift, albeit slow, but it is happening. People are slowly waking up and the sooner we educate more people the more they will understand the need to progress. - Point Blank |
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not the real issue!
21/05/2008 11:49
The real issue is the vacume of real leadership in our elected party. The IFP have seen a gap and are taking it. There is no real power in the ANC, the Zulu party is not in power and if a Zulu is to come to power, it must be through the right channel... not by a fluke of politics, but through typical Zulu means - struggle! It's not about xenophobia, it's about putting a zulu in the pound seat, a zulu from the zulu stable! - Majase |
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mvv!!!
21/05/2008 12:06
I can see where u coming from, and maybe its not such a bad idea.I mean after all killing people in the name of religion sounds a lot more sweeter than killing over something as stupid as xenophobia.Come on,people have been dying for centuries for religion,and now u want people to revert back to that... - nWo |
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Majase
21/05/2008 12:12
And that is where things become so sad. The ANC is not, as is so often claimed, a Xhosa party. Chief Luthuli would have had something to say about that. You're right, and these things are often just current manifestations of old tribal prejudices that go nowhere. - Warren |
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Zim ruins
21/05/2008 12:12
The reason why Barry said what he said is because of the lack of other sites such as the Zim ruins in the rest of southern africa.Had it been built by a culture indigenous to the area, many such sites should exist(compare South America).Also no proof can be found at the site that it was built by the indigenous population. In fact, due to the technology present, evidently beyond that of the local population,it is logical to assume that it was built by a culture in posession of the technology - Bridget |
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Triblog
21/05/2008 12:20
Now there's a new tribe on the blog... - Theresa |
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Well done Tabo..again...
21/05/2008 12:38
Could not agree more with this article - all this is indirectly the result of our wonderful Mr Mbeki with his 'quiet diplomacy' policy on Zimbabwe - if action was taken in 2002 most of the Zimbo's would still be living in their homeland - more so his sluggish implementation and control of emmigration policies through our borders have contributed hugely to this absolute barbaric behaviour !!!!
- Dave |
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Violence
21/05/2008 12:41
This country (and many other through the world) was bred through violence. I think that it's time that everybody in this country has a good look in the mirror and decide whether they want a country that is great or whether they want just another violent stuff up. The world as a whole has become a very sad and violent place, and in my opinion I think that greed is the major contributor to this violence. Nobody cares about their neighbour any more, all they care about are their own lives. - Carl |
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Essop's in the soup
21/05/2008 13:28
Did you see what baggy eyes Essop said about the attacks? The ANC has achieved more in 14 years than anyone ever had. HOHOHO! Yes, you rode on the back of giants Mr. Pahad. The government cannot and will not act in any kind of crises. It's because of denail that those black folks are trampling our doorsteps. I savour the day the ANC eats itself up and show the world they are nothing more than terrorists. What did they bring? Freedom? Of what? Racism? The ANC approves of the anarchy in SA. - pieter |
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Where is Mbeki?
21/05/2008 13:34
Where is our president and what is he doing about this? Or is he in another country helping them with their problems, when his own country is in turmoil? As far as I am concerned, Mbeki's quiet diplomacy stance against Mugabe is the root of all these problems. He did not intervene there resulting in our country being flooded by refugees, resulting in anger and hatred against them by South Africans. My fear is that this is just the beginning and could escalate into local tribal violence. - RS |
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Worse could come!
21/05/2008 13:40
The government needs to do something about this now with senior leaders getting involved, as this could escalate into tribal violence between South Africans. The problem could escalate to such a point where we could end up like Kenya. If this happens, imagine the impact on foreign investment and tourism? We need to portray a politically stable country that can handle its problems with the leadership to do it. - RS |
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Chris..
21/05/2008 13:42
.."an untidy pile of rocks where Sangomas had reburied the bones of the ancestors in a heap". Is this not indicative of how we have lost our respect for the old cultures? Respect of culture and a pride in self is replaced with barbaric behaviour. From golden works of art to the horror of necklacing. - Lloyd Macklin |
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Xenophobia
21/05/2008 13:45
This civil war has nothing to do with Xenophobia, it seems to be more political than anything else. It amazes me that Africa with all its resources and riches has the poorest residents in the world. If we were to pursue the United States of Africa and zealously develop our continent and begin to have our riches work for us, we'll be able to take care of each other instead of begging. For as long as we "smash each other's heads with bricks" the rest of the world is making use of our resorces. - Hlengz |
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Zulu
21/05/2008 13:51
If you look at history - and im not being derogatory in anyway just weighing up the facts!
The Zulu people were a tribe of warriors. The males did nothing except plunder and enjoy the spoils. The kids where left to tend the cattle and the woman with the other household duties. Every other nation on earth - Indians, English, Chinease, French etc have created civilisations and the Africans - Nothing (in over 3000 years)This raises the question of - What the hell did the Zulu male do? Nothing! - David |
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Early visitors
21/05/2008 13:53
Chris, Why don't you visit the many worship sites in Mpumalanga to get an idea of Southern Africa's first visitors? One site is very easily accessible as it stands in the Nelspruit Nature Reserve. Could be an eye-opener!!! - Ronnie |
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