Culture shock the differences between Chinese and South African students at the University of Port Elizabeth
- Authors: Wang, Hui Jingzi
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: University of Port Elizabeth -- Students , Students, Foreign -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Culture shock -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8378 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/366 , University of Port Elizabeth -- Students , Students, Foreign -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Culture shock -- South Africa
- Description: Introduction-Motivation: Living, studying, traveling and working abroad can be an incredible, challenging experience or a nightmare, depending on how you interact with the local culture. Many things bring on culture shock: different food and ways of eating, shops and prices, attitude of people, customs and language problems. It is the strangeness, uneasiness or even fear we experience when we move from our home country and familiar surroundings, to live in a new and different society. Culture shock is now considered to be a natural part of the adjustment to studying abroad (Carmen, 1998:3). Although it can be disconcerting and a little crazy, the shock gradually eases as you begin to understand the new culture. It is useful to realize that often the reactions and perceptions of others towards you - and you towards them - are not personal evaluations, but are based on a clash of cultural values. The more skilled you become in recognizing how and when cultural values and behaviours are likely to come in conflict, the easier it becomes to make adjustments that can help you avoid serious difficulties. This research is aimed at identifying the most common differences between local South African and Chinese culture, and will investigate the experiences of Chinese students at the University of Port Elizabeth (UPE), South Africa, as well as a local Chinese family in order to develop a strategy to minimize culture shock. Research Problem: Chinese students at UPE experience various difficulties in adjusting to local university life. These problems range from practical difficulties regarding transport, accommodation and finances to less easily defined issues related to language and culture. While the “practical” difficulties are often prioritized and solved (or at least alleviated), those relating to culture are not adequately addressed. Chinese students at UPE consequently find it difficult to socialize with local students; they find it difficult to interact during lectures, and they are unsure about forming student-teacher relationships. All of this impedes academic progress, increase worry/fear of failure, and lead to homesickness and ultimately depression. Local Chinese business people have, through trial and error, learnt to adapt to the idiosyncrasies of South African culture (in its diverse forms). This is apparent from interviews which were conducted with a local Chinese businessman and his family who have successfully adapted to the local environment in order to identify the major obstacles to cultural acclimatization, as well as useful strategies, communicational ones among others, that enabled them to adapt.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Wang, Hui Jingzi
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: University of Port Elizabeth -- Students , Students, Foreign -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Culture shock -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8378 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/366 , University of Port Elizabeth -- Students , Students, Foreign -- South Africa -- Port Elizabeth , Culture shock -- South Africa
- Description: Introduction-Motivation: Living, studying, traveling and working abroad can be an incredible, challenging experience or a nightmare, depending on how you interact with the local culture. Many things bring on culture shock: different food and ways of eating, shops and prices, attitude of people, customs and language problems. It is the strangeness, uneasiness or even fear we experience when we move from our home country and familiar surroundings, to live in a new and different society. Culture shock is now considered to be a natural part of the adjustment to studying abroad (Carmen, 1998:3). Although it can be disconcerting and a little crazy, the shock gradually eases as you begin to understand the new culture. It is useful to realize that often the reactions and perceptions of others towards you - and you towards them - are not personal evaluations, but are based on a clash of cultural values. The more skilled you become in recognizing how and when cultural values and behaviours are likely to come in conflict, the easier it becomes to make adjustments that can help you avoid serious difficulties. This research is aimed at identifying the most common differences between local South African and Chinese culture, and will investigate the experiences of Chinese students at the University of Port Elizabeth (UPE), South Africa, as well as a local Chinese family in order to develop a strategy to minimize culture shock. Research Problem: Chinese students at UPE experience various difficulties in adjusting to local university life. These problems range from practical difficulties regarding transport, accommodation and finances to less easily defined issues related to language and culture. While the “practical” difficulties are often prioritized and solved (or at least alleviated), those relating to culture are not adequately addressed. Chinese students at UPE consequently find it difficult to socialize with local students; they find it difficult to interact during lectures, and they are unsure about forming student-teacher relationships. All of this impedes academic progress, increase worry/fear of failure, and lead to homesickness and ultimately depression. Local Chinese business people have, through trial and error, learnt to adapt to the idiosyncrasies of South African culture (in its diverse forms). This is apparent from interviews which were conducted with a local Chinese businessman and his family who have successfully adapted to the local environment in order to identify the major obstacles to cultural acclimatization, as well as useful strategies, communicational ones among others, that enabled them to adapt.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Hijacking feminism: representations of the new woman in South African television advertising practice
- Authors: Klokow, Nicole Ann
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Feminism and mass media -- South Africa , Television advertising -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8372 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/381 , Feminism and mass media -- South Africa , Television advertising -- South Africa
- Description: This study examines the extent to which feminism has been appropriated by the consumer culture. As the relationship between consumerism and patriarchy continues to dominate global economic and social practices, this appropriation points to a denial of the social and political importance of the feminist movement. An acknowledgement of our own complicity in the perpetuation of a sexist, racist and classist ideology – along with an understanding of the complicity of the media – is crucial in explaining relations of domination within our society (Thompson 1990). A study of television advertising practice allows us to “explore meaning as a social product, enmeshed in webs of power” (Jordan and Wheedon 1995:543). Consumer ‘freedom’ is the compulsory freedom (Slater 1997), as we buy as many symbols as products. This study shows that for all the ‘strides’ feminism has made, media images of women are largely traditional, prescriptive (although an ironic distance is often implied) or overtly sexualised. Feminism is never mentioned, as women’s gains are presented as ahistorical in a ‘post-feminist’ world. Third wave feminism is an attempt to embrace all feminisms and feminists, working to inject some substance and truth behind advertising’s feminist veneer.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Klokow, Nicole Ann
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Feminism and mass media -- South Africa , Television advertising -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8372 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/381 , Feminism and mass media -- South Africa , Television advertising -- South Africa
- Description: This study examines the extent to which feminism has been appropriated by the consumer culture. As the relationship between consumerism and patriarchy continues to dominate global economic and social practices, this appropriation points to a denial of the social and political importance of the feminist movement. An acknowledgement of our own complicity in the perpetuation of a sexist, racist and classist ideology – along with an understanding of the complicity of the media – is crucial in explaining relations of domination within our society (Thompson 1990). A study of television advertising practice allows us to “explore meaning as a social product, enmeshed in webs of power” (Jordan and Wheedon 1995:543). Consumer ‘freedom’ is the compulsory freedom (Slater 1997), as we buy as many symbols as products. This study shows that for all the ‘strides’ feminism has made, media images of women are largely traditional, prescriptive (although an ironic distance is often implied) or overtly sexualised. Feminism is never mentioned, as women’s gains are presented as ahistorical in a ‘post-feminist’ world. Third wave feminism is an attempt to embrace all feminisms and feminists, working to inject some substance and truth behind advertising’s feminist veneer.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
Rehabilitation and (dis-)empowerment a discourse analysis of interviews with subjects variously positioned within the South African Correctional Services system
- Authors: Storm, Lize-Mariè
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Criminals -- South Africa Interviews , Prison wardens -- South Africa Interviews , Criminals -- South Africa -- Rehabilitation , Discourse analysis
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8379 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/374 , Criminals -- South Africa Interviews , Prison wardens -- South Africa Interviews , Criminals -- South Africa -- Rehabilitation , Discourse analysis
- Description: The present treatise is an attempt to come to terms with the, by all accounts, dismal conditions that exist in present-day South African prisons by addressing these conditions as they are reflected in two interviews with individuals intimately acquainted with them, as well as by pertinent media-reports. The study is predicated on the belief that the most suitable methodological approach to a situation characterized by extreme conflicts and tensions in terms of power relations, is provided by (mainly Foucaultian) discourse-theory and the discourse-analysis that it makes possible. Consequently, after an introduction in which the present study is justified, followed by a theoretical section outlining the terrain of discourse theory and discourse-analysis, two chapters are devoted to specific discourse-analyses of interviews with an awaiting-trial prisoner in a South African prison and a warden employed at the same institution, with a view to uncovering the power-relations at stake here. While acknowledging that the implications of the insights thus afforded are not, strictly speaking, generalizable in a positivist manner, and that the power-relations brought to light by means of these discourse-analyses are highly specific, it is argued that various other studies pertaining to the South African prison system indicate that these powerrelations – more specifically the disempowerment of prisoners by the functioning of violently hierarchical discursive practices in South African prisons - are not restricted to the prison in question. In fact, given the SA Correctional Services’ stated policy of rehabilitation, it is striking that there is scant evidence of any such rehabilitation in the prisons concerned – at least in the sense of prisoners attaining a level of moral responsibility that would enable them to live as accountable citizens in a democratic society. In conclusion it is argued that the present state of affairs, far from being conducive to the stated goal of rehabilitation, actually undermines its realization, and that the social and economic inequalities in South Africa, exacerbated by the union between ‘democracy’ and global capitalism, are perpetuated and reinforced by the existing discursive practices in South African prisons.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Storm, Lize-Mariè
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Criminals -- South Africa Interviews , Prison wardens -- South Africa Interviews , Criminals -- South Africa -- Rehabilitation , Discourse analysis
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8379 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/374 , Criminals -- South Africa Interviews , Prison wardens -- South Africa Interviews , Criminals -- South Africa -- Rehabilitation , Discourse analysis
- Description: The present treatise is an attempt to come to terms with the, by all accounts, dismal conditions that exist in present-day South African prisons by addressing these conditions as they are reflected in two interviews with individuals intimately acquainted with them, as well as by pertinent media-reports. The study is predicated on the belief that the most suitable methodological approach to a situation characterized by extreme conflicts and tensions in terms of power relations, is provided by (mainly Foucaultian) discourse-theory and the discourse-analysis that it makes possible. Consequently, after an introduction in which the present study is justified, followed by a theoretical section outlining the terrain of discourse theory and discourse-analysis, two chapters are devoted to specific discourse-analyses of interviews with an awaiting-trial prisoner in a South African prison and a warden employed at the same institution, with a view to uncovering the power-relations at stake here. While acknowledging that the implications of the insights thus afforded are not, strictly speaking, generalizable in a positivist manner, and that the power-relations brought to light by means of these discourse-analyses are highly specific, it is argued that various other studies pertaining to the South African prison system indicate that these powerrelations – more specifically the disempowerment of prisoners by the functioning of violently hierarchical discursive practices in South African prisons - are not restricted to the prison in question. In fact, given the SA Correctional Services’ stated policy of rehabilitation, it is striking that there is scant evidence of any such rehabilitation in the prisons concerned – at least in the sense of prisoners attaining a level of moral responsibility that would enable them to live as accountable citizens in a democratic society. In conclusion it is argued that the present state of affairs, far from being conducive to the stated goal of rehabilitation, actually undermines its realization, and that the social and economic inequalities in South Africa, exacerbated by the union between ‘democracy’ and global capitalism, are perpetuated and reinforced by the existing discursive practices in South African prisons.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
The right to mother tongue education a multi-disciplinary, normative perspective
- Authors: Prinsloo, Dawn Lilian
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Native language and education -- Government policy -- South Africa , Language and education -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:10999 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/365 , Native language and education -- Government policy -- South Africa , Language and education -- South Africa
- Description: The post-apartheid South African Constitution guarantees the children of this country “the right to receive education in the official language or languages of their choice in public education institutions where that education is reasonably practicable” (The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act 108 of 1996, Section 29 (2)) (Juta’s Statutes 2003). Yet ten years into the new dispensation nothing significant has been done to alter a situation in which the majority of children are obliged to access their basic education largely through the medium of a second or even a third language — English. In contravention of both the intentions and the specific provisions of numerous legislative measures and policy statements, Government has made no serious or effective attempt to promote the use of any language other than English in South African schools nor to encourage language practices most conducive to the cognitive development and academic success of millions of non-English speaking pupils. To make matters worse, most of the children who enter the school system with very little knowledge of English and are expected to make an abrupt transition to that language as a medium of instruction after a totally inadequate three years are from impoverished households and communities still suffering the gravest effects of the discrimination and oppression of apartheid. They are often underprepared and seriously disadvantaged by their background circumstances when they enter the culturally strange and intimidating western-style education system. To heap on top of these disadvantages the burden of language practices in the classroom that hinder rather than facilitate their access to education is indefensible. When Macdonald asks, “ Are our children still swimming up the waterfall?” (Macdonald 2002: 111) she is not exaggerating. In these circumstances and if ineffective language teaching and inadequate use of the mother tongue as a medium of instruction can be shown to bar effective access to basic education of an acceptable standard, there are far more serious and far-reaching implications in terms of human rights than just the right to choice of language medium. Linguistic research into medium of instruction has tended to be isolated from evaluative legal approaches to minority language rights, children’s rights, education rights or other fundamental human rights. Insufficient attention has been given to the interrelationship between the various rights and the importance of local conditions and circumstances in any assessment of their relative weight and enforceability. Human rights cannot be seen out of context, and theory from various disciplines, such as politics, economics and linguistics may be invaluable in forming a fresh perspective on the right to mother tongue education and, indeed, to basic education in general. The principle of non-discrimination in education is generally recognised, to be sure, as is the importance of ensuring access to and quality of education (Strydom 1992/93:139), but the dependence of these factors on the most appropriate medium of instruction within the education system does not merit much attention in the literature. The right to basic education tends to be seen as separate from any possible right to choice of medium of instruction and the latter often merely as a question of convenience or preference, at best a qualified right (Oosthuizen and Rossouw 2001: 666), dependent on feasibility, numbers and available finance (Motata and Lemmer 2002: 111). In fact, the case for regarding the right to mother tongue education as a strong positive right in many contexts and countries does not appear yet to have been made. This study is theoretical in nature and constitutes an attempt to fill this gap by examining the findings and views of experts from various disciplines within the framework of current thinking on human rights issues. The development of a coherent framework within which to view the right to mother tongue education and government obligations in connection therewith might be of some value to policy makers in their efforts to plan improvements within the education system. The synthesis and possibly, to a limited extent, the development of theory from the relevant disciplines will be undertaken by means of a survey of the relevant literature, an analysis of not only local but also international legislation and policy documents and the weighing and balancing of conflicting evidence and contrasting viewpoints. Sources and contributions in each area will be discussed under the headings outlined in Chapter 3. First, however, I should like to provide an overview of the educational, political and economic context in which mother tongue education must be considered.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Prinsloo, Dawn Lilian
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Native language and education -- Government policy -- South Africa , Language and education -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:10999 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/365 , Native language and education -- Government policy -- South Africa , Language and education -- South Africa
- Description: The post-apartheid South African Constitution guarantees the children of this country “the right to receive education in the official language or languages of their choice in public education institutions where that education is reasonably practicable” (The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, Act 108 of 1996, Section 29 (2)) (Juta’s Statutes 2003). Yet ten years into the new dispensation nothing significant has been done to alter a situation in which the majority of children are obliged to access their basic education largely through the medium of a second or even a third language — English. In contravention of both the intentions and the specific provisions of numerous legislative measures and policy statements, Government has made no serious or effective attempt to promote the use of any language other than English in South African schools nor to encourage language practices most conducive to the cognitive development and academic success of millions of non-English speaking pupils. To make matters worse, most of the children who enter the school system with very little knowledge of English and are expected to make an abrupt transition to that language as a medium of instruction after a totally inadequate three years are from impoverished households and communities still suffering the gravest effects of the discrimination and oppression of apartheid. They are often underprepared and seriously disadvantaged by their background circumstances when they enter the culturally strange and intimidating western-style education system. To heap on top of these disadvantages the burden of language practices in the classroom that hinder rather than facilitate their access to education is indefensible. When Macdonald asks, “ Are our children still swimming up the waterfall?” (Macdonald 2002: 111) she is not exaggerating. In these circumstances and if ineffective language teaching and inadequate use of the mother tongue as a medium of instruction can be shown to bar effective access to basic education of an acceptable standard, there are far more serious and far-reaching implications in terms of human rights than just the right to choice of language medium. Linguistic research into medium of instruction has tended to be isolated from evaluative legal approaches to minority language rights, children’s rights, education rights or other fundamental human rights. Insufficient attention has been given to the interrelationship between the various rights and the importance of local conditions and circumstances in any assessment of their relative weight and enforceability. Human rights cannot be seen out of context, and theory from various disciplines, such as politics, economics and linguistics may be invaluable in forming a fresh perspective on the right to mother tongue education and, indeed, to basic education in general. The principle of non-discrimination in education is generally recognised, to be sure, as is the importance of ensuring access to and quality of education (Strydom 1992/93:139), but the dependence of these factors on the most appropriate medium of instruction within the education system does not merit much attention in the literature. The right to basic education tends to be seen as separate from any possible right to choice of medium of instruction and the latter often merely as a question of convenience or preference, at best a qualified right (Oosthuizen and Rossouw 2001: 666), dependent on feasibility, numbers and available finance (Motata and Lemmer 2002: 111). In fact, the case for regarding the right to mother tongue education as a strong positive right in many contexts and countries does not appear yet to have been made. This study is theoretical in nature and constitutes an attempt to fill this gap by examining the findings and views of experts from various disciplines within the framework of current thinking on human rights issues. The development of a coherent framework within which to view the right to mother tongue education and government obligations in connection therewith might be of some value to policy makers in their efforts to plan improvements within the education system. The synthesis and possibly, to a limited extent, the development of theory from the relevant disciplines will be undertaken by means of a survey of the relevant literature, an analysis of not only local but also international legislation and policy documents and the weighing and balancing of conflicting evidence and contrasting viewpoints. Sources and contributions in each area will be discussed under the headings outlined in Chapter 3. First, however, I should like to provide an overview of the educational, political and economic context in which mother tongue education must be considered.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
The role of traditional leadership institutions in the development of their communities with specific reference to the Rharhabe kingdom, Mngqesha Great Place, King William's Town
- Mahlangeni, Bethwell Mzikalanga
- Authors: Mahlangeni, Bethwell Mzikalanga
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Public administration -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Tribal government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8169 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/395 , Public administration -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Tribal government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: It is the objective of this treatise to highlight and demonstrate the role that can be played by Traditional Leadership Institutions in the development of their communities, demonstrate and advance the extent to which they can enhance their image and restore their dignity by embarking on community development projects that will improve the quality of life of their subjects in their jurisdictional areas. However, as the number of Traditional Leadership Institutions that can be investigated and researched was so large, it became necessary to focus attention primarily on the Rharhabe Kingdom with its seat and headquarters at Mngqesha Great Place in King William’s Town. The Mngqesha Great Place, the seat of the Rharhabe Kingdom is a typical example of a Traditional Leadership Institution selected from the six existing Eastern Cape Provincial Kingdoms. Attention is invited to the following fields which had to be explored since they serve the basis for the evolution of Traditional Leadership Institutions in South Africa. A historical background to Traditional Leadership and Governance in South Africa and the Eastern Cape provides some key issues of governance, management and administration, position, place and status of the institution during the pre- colonial and colonial periods, the period under apartheid rule, the independence period of the former homelands of Ciskei and Transkei territories with reflections on Tribal and Regional Authorities and Local Government Bureaux. A synoptic perspective of the effect of changes on the functioning of the Institution of Traditional Leadership is provided in some detail. This part is concluded with a brief history of the Rharhabe Kingdom. An overview of Traditional Leadership and Governance in the new South Africa since 1994 to date indicates the recognition and important role that Traditional Leadership Institutions can play. In this regard, there is policy and legislation that is in place on Traditional Leadership and Governance with a clear vision for implementation. Since 1994, there are many initiatives that have been undertaken by government in creating and maintaining an enabling environment for the efficient management and administration of the institution, transfer payments for different projects like funding the building of various Great Places and Provincial Policy Initiatives on Traditional Leadership and Governance. Institutional arrangements for Traditional Leadership Institutions reflect on the hierarchy of Traditional Leadership, for example, the position of the King as head of a Regional Authority (Ikomkhulu), the Chiefs under Kings as Heads of Traditional Authorities (Inqila) and Headmen as heads of the various Administrative Areas (locations). In order to give meaning to Government’s recognition of the Institution of Traditional Leadership, to enhance the institution and give it a role at the National, Provincial and Local levels, the government has established a National and Provincial Houses of Traditional Leaders with clear roles and responsibilities and provision for accountability of Traditional Leaders and structures. Regarding the role of Traditional Leadership Institutions in Governance and Development, it is clear that over many years, these institutions performed various governance functions. The policy framework on Traditional Leadership and Governance besides legislation specifies the duties and functions of these entities. With regard to the King Sandile Development Trust and its role in community development, the research reveals visionary leadership on the part of the Kingdom, with the Trust, since its establishment in 1999 being at the centre of all development initiatives at the Great Place besides government initiatives. The King Sandile Development Trust is therefore a legal entity established and funded in terms of law. It has its constitution, vision and clear objectives, procedural arrangements on administration, management and financial arrangements. The development role of the trust is reflected in the Queen’s Programme of Action and Implementation, headed by the Queen mother, Queen Noloyiso Sandile, the wife of His Majesty King Maxhobayakhawuleza Sandile. Besides, there are established tourism chalets providing not only revenue but also employment opportunities to many local subjects of the Kingdom. Finally, the treatise concludes with some general conclusion and recommendations and challenges that demand that traditional leaders be appropriately trained, its institutions adequately resourced, appropriately run and administered based on the need to account publicly on their performance.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- Authors: Mahlangeni, Bethwell Mzikalanga
- Date: 2005
- Subjects: Public administration -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Tribal government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:8169 , http://hdl.handle.net/10948/395 , Public administration -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape , Tribal government -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: It is the objective of this treatise to highlight and demonstrate the role that can be played by Traditional Leadership Institutions in the development of their communities, demonstrate and advance the extent to which they can enhance their image and restore their dignity by embarking on community development projects that will improve the quality of life of their subjects in their jurisdictional areas. However, as the number of Traditional Leadership Institutions that can be investigated and researched was so large, it became necessary to focus attention primarily on the Rharhabe Kingdom with its seat and headquarters at Mngqesha Great Place in King William’s Town. The Mngqesha Great Place, the seat of the Rharhabe Kingdom is a typical example of a Traditional Leadership Institution selected from the six existing Eastern Cape Provincial Kingdoms. Attention is invited to the following fields which had to be explored since they serve the basis for the evolution of Traditional Leadership Institutions in South Africa. A historical background to Traditional Leadership and Governance in South Africa and the Eastern Cape provides some key issues of governance, management and administration, position, place and status of the institution during the pre- colonial and colonial periods, the period under apartheid rule, the independence period of the former homelands of Ciskei and Transkei territories with reflections on Tribal and Regional Authorities and Local Government Bureaux. A synoptic perspective of the effect of changes on the functioning of the Institution of Traditional Leadership is provided in some detail. This part is concluded with a brief history of the Rharhabe Kingdom. An overview of Traditional Leadership and Governance in the new South Africa since 1994 to date indicates the recognition and important role that Traditional Leadership Institutions can play. In this regard, there is policy and legislation that is in place on Traditional Leadership and Governance with a clear vision for implementation. Since 1994, there are many initiatives that have been undertaken by government in creating and maintaining an enabling environment for the efficient management and administration of the institution, transfer payments for different projects like funding the building of various Great Places and Provincial Policy Initiatives on Traditional Leadership and Governance. Institutional arrangements for Traditional Leadership Institutions reflect on the hierarchy of Traditional Leadership, for example, the position of the King as head of a Regional Authority (Ikomkhulu), the Chiefs under Kings as Heads of Traditional Authorities (Inqila) and Headmen as heads of the various Administrative Areas (locations). In order to give meaning to Government’s recognition of the Institution of Traditional Leadership, to enhance the institution and give it a role at the National, Provincial and Local levels, the government has established a National and Provincial Houses of Traditional Leaders with clear roles and responsibilities and provision for accountability of Traditional Leaders and structures. Regarding the role of Traditional Leadership Institutions in Governance and Development, it is clear that over many years, these institutions performed various governance functions. The policy framework on Traditional Leadership and Governance besides legislation specifies the duties and functions of these entities. With regard to the King Sandile Development Trust and its role in community development, the research reveals visionary leadership on the part of the Kingdom, with the Trust, since its establishment in 1999 being at the centre of all development initiatives at the Great Place besides government initiatives. The King Sandile Development Trust is therefore a legal entity established and funded in terms of law. It has its constitution, vision and clear objectives, procedural arrangements on administration, management and financial arrangements. The development role of the trust is reflected in the Queen’s Programme of Action and Implementation, headed by the Queen mother, Queen Noloyiso Sandile, the wife of His Majesty King Maxhobayakhawuleza Sandile. Besides, there are established tourism chalets providing not only revenue but also employment opportunities to many local subjects of the Kingdom. Finally, the treatise concludes with some general conclusion and recommendations and challenges that demand that traditional leaders be appropriately trained, its institutions adequately resourced, appropriately run and administered based on the need to account publicly on their performance.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2005
- «
- ‹
- 1
- ›
- »