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Worldview Diversity Within South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission

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Reconciliation and Building a Sustainable Peace

Part of the book series: Palgrave Studies in Compromise after Conflict ((PSCAC))

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Abstract

Recognising South Africa is an amalgam of diverse cultures, Chapter 4 deconstructs the idealised forms of a Western liberal, nationalist and interconnected worldview (as exemplified within the African philosophy of ubuntu) that intertwine to shape South African society. Understanding that worldviews are not as fixed as such a depiction might suggest, the aim is to develop a more nuanced understanding of these core strands of worldview and understand how they weave together, overlap and contradict each other simultaneously. This analysis is used to demonstrate how different processes of meaning-making led to competing interpretations of South Africa’s truth recovery process. It shows how key concepts such as reconciliation, accountability and nation-building can be interpreted differently highlighting the inherent assumptions worldview brings to how peace-building is approached.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    An inyanga is defined as ‘a person who uses herbal and other medicinal preparations for treating disease’ and a sangoma as someone who is ‘trained to communicate with and utilise the powers of ancestors in diagnosing a disease or mishap’ (Ashforth 2005: 53). An inyanga or sangoma can be used for either malevolent or benevolent purposes including gaining protection from one’s enemy or for harming one’s enemy.

  2. 2.

    Although the term ubuntu is an isiZulu term, the concept is expressed in a number of languages in South Africa and across Africa (Mbiti 1969; Munyaka and Motlhabi 2009; Kanwangamalu 1999).

  3. 3.

    Muthi related murders are regularly reported on in the news. For example, Daily Sun (2013c) and Vilakazi (2015).

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  1. Ulster University, Belfast, UK

    Cathy Bollaert

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Bollaert, C. (2019). Worldview Diversity Within South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission. In: Reconciliation and Building a Sustainable Peace. Palgrave Studies in Compromise after Conflict. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03655-3_4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03655-3_4

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