SA unity: A nationalist perspective against Cape secession - Marius Roodt - Biznews

Marius Roodt
In a conversation the other night the topic of Cape independence came up. I’d always thought I was relatively agnostic on it, but as I formulated my answer I realised why I was opposed to it.

When I told my interlocutor I was opposed to it and he asked why, a ready-made answer sprang forth – “Because I am a South African nationalist.”

I had never been able to articulate why I felt an instinctive opposition to Cape independence, but this answer made sense to me.

A person’s relationship with their country is often a complicated one, and South Africa will be no different (I don’t want to fall into the trap of assuming South African exceptionalism and that the relationship South Africans have with this piece of ground at the southern tip of Africa is more complex than the one that people from elsewhere in the world have with their countries).

This country is in equal parts infuriating and inspiring, but the South African project is one that is worth trying to make a success of.

Considering that the country is barely over a century old, and given its geographical, linguistic, and ethnic diversity, there have been remarkably few regional secessionist movements. There have been rumblings from the Natalians over the decades – first, among the descendants of British settlers who felt that their more-British-than-the-British province should not have to suffer under Pretoria’s yoke. During the transition of the early 1990s there was probably a more concerted and serious effort to make KwaZulu-Natal a separate country but cool heads prevailed and the province became – and remains – an integral part of South Africa.

Homogeneity

Some countries which are more homogenous and have a longer history of unity than South Africa have more serious secessionist movements, some of which have come close to succeeding in the past. Scotland and Quebec, to name two, come to mind.

And while it is a quality that is difficult to measure, it does feel like there is a common South Africanism, which is all the more remarkable given the country’s history.

I know that other people will have had different experiences, but in my day-to-day interactions, I find people of different races, and different income and social backgrounds in this country are friendly and respectful. It really does not feel as if South Africa is on the brink of some class or race war.

The only time I have felt truly excluded by another South African was when I met a friend for a drink in London a few years ago, and we were joined by someone he had known at university. This person, who had been to Bishops in Cape Town, and was working as an investment banker in London, barely acknowledged my existence, and when it was time to top up our rounds only bought a beer for himself and my friend, completely ignoring me. My friend was so embarrassed he went to the bar himself to order a beer for me, so that I wouldn’t feel excluded.

I presumably did not have the right private school or moneyed credentials to be considered worthy of having a beer with this fellow. But this is the only time I felt another South African excluded me on the basis of my background.

On other occasions travelling abroad I have bumped into black South Africans who I have felt I had more in common with than, for example, a white Australian. And the common thread is our nationality.

Polls

Polls from various organisations, including the IRR, show that South Africans overall get on with one another and believe that the country needs the various race and ethnic groups to work together.

While some may consider this a silly way of viewing the world, I truly felt like a South African nationalist a few weeks ago when the Proteas won their first ICC trophy in nearly 30 years, beating Australia at Lords in the final of the World Test Championship. Here were a group of South Africans from all backgrounds and all corners of the country who had united for a common purpose, and succeeded. And they are not the only South African sports team to make one emotional – whenever one of our teams does well, whether it be the Springboks or the 4x100m relay Olympics team, one does get a real feeling of pride.

Of course, I have had no hand in the successes of these teams − but we are all united in being from South Africa.

It is true that sentimentality can look quite silly against the backdrop of the serious problems that South Africa faces. The economy is crumbling, with all that means for ordinary South Africans who cannot find work. Crime is rampant, with many South Africans, no matter their background, feeling unsafe in their own homes.

But this country means something and we shouldn’t give up on that. Something truly great can come from this corner of the world.

To paraphrase Ernest Hemingway, South Africa is a fine place, and worth fighting for.

Marius Roodt is currently deputy editor of the Daily Friend and also consults on IRR campaigns. This is his second stint at the Institute, having returned after spells working at the Centre for Development and Enterprise and a Johannesburg-based management consultancy. He has also previously worked as a journalist, an analyst for a number of foreign governments, and spent most of 2005 and 2006 driving a scooter around London. Roodt holds an honours degree from the Rand Afrikaans University (now the University of Johannesburg) and an MA in Political Studies from the University of the Witwatersrand

https://www.biznews.com/rational-perspective/nationalist-against-cape-secession-roodt

This article was first published on the Daily Friend.