State, civil society and apartheid in South Africa : an examination of Dutch Reformed Church - state relations

An examination of the role played by civil society in the legitimisation of South Africa's apartheid regime and its racial policy. This book focuses on the interaction of dominant groups within the Dutch Reformed Church and the South African state over the development of race policy within the broader context of state-civil society relations. This allows a theoretical examination and typology of the variety of state-civil society relations. Additionally, the particular case study demonstrates that civil society's existence in and authoritarian situations can deter the establishment of democracy when components of civil society identify themselves with exclusive, ethnic interests. Preface nature, role, and purpose of civil society in a society committed to genuine pluralism, one that is basically constructed along liberal democratic lines, it has not explained extensively the role. nature, and purpose of civil society in an authoritarian regime or a limited democracy. The comparative, historical examination of state-NGK relations from 1934 to 1994 allows for the analysis of the operation of a civil society institution in a limited, race-based democracy, and it reveals that some of the active, above-ground civil society institutions resisted the development of widespread democracy because they were committed to the narrow, ethnic interests of white South Africans. Second, South African state-NGK relations will be analyzed with respect to the variety of factions contained within the NGK and state that held unique and divergent perspectives concerning race policy formation and political reform. It was the politicking among the divergent factions over material, social and politieal issues that explains nuanced state-NGK relations from 1934 to 1994. Finally, a survey of state-civil society relations in South Africaor any other country for that matter -shows that state-civil society relations extend far beyond the outcomes of conftict or cooperation. In Chapter 1, I posit a typology of state-civil society relations which begins to unravel the rich variety of state-civil society relations. According to the typology, state-civil society relations can be described in terms of cooperation, conflict, or some mix of the two. Six dominant state-civil society interactions result, which include collaboration, mutual engagement, balanced pluralism, coexisting conflict, conflictual resistance, and enforced disengagement. The six interactions are measured by policy collusion/conflict and official/unofficial interaction among leaders and groups ruling state and civil society institutions. This continuum of state-civil society relations helps explain the different civil society organizations' interactions with the groups dominating the white minority government within the South African state over time, including the Christian Institute, Black Sash, and the Congress of South African Trade Unions. The latter interactions were basically conftictual, but what of the civil society institutions that engaged with groups dominating the white minority government within the South African state during the last 50 or 60 years? My research addresses one such civil society institution: the Nederduitse Gerefonneerde Kerk (NGK). Although the NGK existed primarily to meet the spiritual needs of the Afrikaner people, this church also helped legitimate the state XlV Preface of race policy. The dominant factions within the NGK supported strict segregation, or apartheid, based on ideological and material factors, while the group dominating the state supported partial segregation, based on the interests and political concerns of pragmatists. Chapters 4 and 5 focus on the era of NGK-state relations during the majority of the apartheid years. From 1948 to 1961 the NGK and the state exhibited a relationship of mutual engagement in which the leaders within each entity held similar opinions on the majority of policy issues. Church and state officials interacted closely and even held the same goal of Afrikaner supremacy in political and economic spheres, but they formulated independent policies on how to achieve this goal. The reason for discrepancies between NGK-state strategies lies in the factions that existed within Afrikanerdom which developed in relation to the politicakconomic environment. From 1962 to 1978. during the era of collaboration, the focus of Chapter 5, the NP-dominated state and the NGK collaborated with each other to promote the idea of separate development as a morally just racial solution for South Africa. In the final phase of apartheid reform and democratization (1979-94), the focus of Chapter 6, NGK-state relations can again be described as mutual engagement. Most of the time, NGK leaders continued to give their unequivocal support to the state: however. situations arose periodically when the groups dominating the state and the NGK arrived at different opinions concerning policy directions and strategies. During these years, the NP-dominated state took the lead in promoting the attainment of white survival and economic prosperity through political reform while the NGK lagged behind, supporting the goals of white, but more specifically Afrikaner, survival and economic prosperity through a slower implementation of reform. Portions of Chapter I and Chapter 6 were previously published in the iOlll1lal o( Church and State, for which reproduction permission was obtained. Chapter 7 provides a summary of the book's findings. It begins with a review of the different eras of NGK-state relations. discusses the NGK's role in a post-apartheid South Africa. and concludes with broader theoretical findings. Regarding the latter point. an examination of state-civil society interactions in South Africa. other African countries, or different regions can expand and refine our understanding of civil society's impact on regime change and political-economic development. These areas of research should be pursued as civil society becomes more and more relevant to our understanding: of an inclusive democracy. lowe much to the colleagues, friends, and family members who helped me complete this book project which began as my dissertation. The dissertation fieldwork undertaken in 1992-3 was funded through a MacArthur Foundation grant awarded through the ACDIS Program at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign and a Foreign Language Area Studies fellowship through the Center for African Studies at the University of Illinois. I am particularly grateful to the administrators at Gordon College who graciously awarded me a grant that included release time during the 1997-8 academic year which allowed me to complete the revisions to this book. My colleagues at Gordon College also offered helpful advice and provided a nurturing environment. Finally, I would like to thank the staff and editors at Macmillan Press who offered timely advice in the completion of this project. I would also like to acknowledge the invaluable help of some of the people instrumental to this project in its dissertation phase. My dissertation committee, consisting of Merle Bowen, Steve Douglas, and William Martin, helped formulate the structurc of the book's original arguments through insightful critiques and thorough analysis. Steve Douglas was an exceptional advisor and a steady source of encouragement. Patrick Furlong at Alma College offered hours of his time analyzing the dissertation as an outside reader and helped fine-tune the historical aspects of this study. There were countless other individuals who helped me complete this project. Andre du Toit and Charles Villa-Vicencio enhanced my fieldwork experience in South Africa through meetings that restructured my research questions and developed my interview list. Many thanks to T. Dunbar Moodie who served as an 'unofficial reader' offering helpful comments on the entire rough draft of this substantially reviscd manuscript. Petro Terblanchc and Lisa-Jo Rous worked on translations of Afrikaans texts that saved me precious time and Kimberly Bogart, a political studies student at Gordon, helped me construct the index. Finally, I would like to thank the 40 individuals I interviewed for this project who graciously gave of their time and offered insights into the NGK's role in South Africa. I have tried to remain true to the context of your statements, just as I tried to accurately reflect the many sources which provided an understanding of xv changing NGK-state relations. In the end, none of the scholars or individuals mentioned above are responsible for any of the weaknesses of or views expressed in this work. I would also like to thank personally the many South Africans, or those living in South Africa, who offered their homes and hearts to my husband and me from 1992 to 1993. They include Amanda Gouws, Robert Mattes, Eddie and Sue Mees, Ishmael Mothlanke, Bernard and Rosalind Pather, and Louis Verhoef. You made our stay in South African an enjoyable one, which we will always remember with fondness. I would also like to thank my family. Anyone who has written a book of this nature and scope knows that it is impossible to complete without moral support. My parents, Fred and Jennie Kuperus, blessed me with their constant encouragement. It is to my father, who shared my love for the Reformed tradition and South Africa that I dedicate this book. He taught me priceless lessons and showed me that integrity rather than achievement defines a person's character. And finally I want to acknowledge the support and encouragement of my husband Matt Heun. Thank you for traveling with me to South Africa and for sharing my love of this vibrant country. You have listened patiently to my setbacks, given me encouragement when I needed it, and shared the joy of my advances. Without your constant support, I could never have completed this book. "This book focuses on the interaction of dominant groups within the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk (NGK), otherwise known as the Dutch Reformed Church, and the South African state over a sixty-year period. It examines how and why the NGK's relationship to the groups dominating the South African state changed in conjunction with the development of race policy from 1934 to 1994. This 'church-state' case-study allows engagement with a broader body of literature on state-civil society relations that promotes discussion concerning the rise of civil society and its connection to democracy. The typology introduced in this book demonstrates that state-civil society relations are more complex and ever-changing than normally ascertained. Additionally, civil society can and does exist in an authoritarian situation, and it can deter the establishment of democracy in the event that components of civil society identify themselves with exclusive ethnic interests."--BOOK JACKET

focuses On The Interaction Of Dominant Groups Within The nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk And The South African State Over The Development Of Race Policy.

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kuperus (political Studies, Gordon College) Focuses On The Interaction Of Dominant Groups Within The Dutch Reformed Church And The South African State Over A 60-year Period. She Examines How And Why The Church's Relationship To The Groups Dominating The South African State Changed In Conjunction With The Development Of Race Policy From 1934 To 1994. The Study Allows Engagement With A Broader Body Of Literature That Promotes Discussion Concerning The Rise Of Civil Society And Its Connection To Democracy, And It Demonstrates That State-civil Society Relations Are Complex And Ever-changing. Annotation C. Book News, Inc., Portland, Or (booknews.com)

Front Matter....Pages i-xviii State-Civil Society Relations within South Africa....Pages 1-21 The NGK’s Development within Afrikaner Civil Society (1910–33)....Pages 22-46 NGK-State Relations during UP Governance (1934–47)....Pages 47-75 NGK-State Relations during Apartheid’s Early Years(1948–61)....Pages 76-102 NGK-State Relations during Apartheid’s Height (1962–78)....Pages 103-119 NGK-State Relations during Apartheid’s Demise (1979–94)....Pages 120-152 Conclusion....Pages 153-165 Back Matter....Pages 166-211 Tracy Kuperus focuses on the interaction of dominant groups within the Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk and the South African state over the development of race policy (1934-96) within the broader context of state-civil society relations. Additionally, this particular case study demonstrates that civil society's existence in an authoritarian situation can deter the establishment of democracy in the event that components of civil society identify themselves with exclusive, ethnic interests.