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Land, Gender, and Cultural Biodiversity Preservation in Venda, South Africa

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Land, Gender, and Cultural Biodiversity Preservation in Venda, South Africa TRADITIONAL TERRAIN: LAND, GENDER, AND CULTURAL BIODIVERSITY PRESERVATION IN VENDA, SOUTH AFRICA By Kimberly Bernita Ross A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of African American and African Studies—Doctor of Philosophy 2017 ABSTRACT TRADITIONAL TERRAIN: LAND, GENDER, AND CULTURAL BIODIVERSITY PRESERVATION IN VENDA, SOUTH AFRICA By Kimberly Bernita Ross This study examines the colonial and apartheid frameworks manifest in South Africa’s land act legacies and the specific impact on land administration, gender, and the environment in the former apartheid homeland of Venda, South Africa. These historical forces shape present-day neocolonialism and globalization in the region which challenge the rights and citizenship of Black South African women within traditional leadership structures—concurrent with the country’s democracy. In Venda, politicians, traditional leaders, and multinational corporations reinforce colonial and apartheid gender ideologies which undermine Vhomakhadzi roles and eco- cultural knowledge practices. Vhomakhadzi are women who have historically played a central role in their clans by advising Vhamusanda (chiefs) on community affairs and presiding over customs that connect with environmental sustainability. Yet today, leaders and politicians ignore Vhomakhadzi warnings that development projects threaten biodiversity and food and water security in the region— instead commencing with deals to establish foreign coal mines, commercial farms, casinos, and tourist resorts. This empirical study in particular investigates the environmental and community activism and cultural biodiversity preservation strategies of Vhomakhadzi of the community-based organization Dzomo La Mupo. Through ethnographic-style interviews, participant observation, and archival research, this scholarship analyzes the historical and present-day gender politics that have diminished cultural biodiversity. The study reveals that colonial social formations historically confronted the role of makhadzi and continues to undermine her authority today in a globalized, post-apartheid era. Copyright by KIMBERLY BERNITA ROSS 2017 To my mother and father who always stressed the importance of education and made many sacrifices over the years for me to achieve my goals. Also to my sister Tracey whose unwavering encouragement gave me energy and confidence. It was the love and support of my family and the spirit of my ancestors that carried me across the finish line. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the following people for supporting me through my dissertation research and writing. First, I am especially indebted to Dr. Denise Troutman, my guidance committee chair who like a lighthouse guided me through the fog and safely to my scholarly shore. She consistently supported this research by providing practical tools and an analytical eye to help me shape my work into a cogent and solid intellectual product. I am also incredibly appreciative for the encouragement and reassurance of my remaining committee members, Dr. Galen Sibanda, Dr. Stephanie Nawyn and Dr. Terrion Williamson. Each of them contributed to this interdisciplinary project in invaluable ways. I am equally grateful to those who were not on my committee but significantly contributed to this research endeavor. I must extend a special thank you to Dr. John Metzler of the African Studies Center who thoroughly combed through chapter drafts and was exceedingly generous with his time and expertise. Likewise, I want to acknowledge Akil Cornelius in the History Department whose advice bolstered the historical contextualization of this research. I also want to thank Dr. Sekepe Matjila at The University of South Africa for assisting me with the various paperwork and supporting documents to conduct fieldwork and the necessary in-country research. Additionally, I must recognize Dr. Thambatshira Rabothata in Venda who welcomed me into her home and with her protégé shared fundamental aspects of Vhavenda culture. Finally, this research would never have been completed without the critical advice and perspectives of Mphatheleni Makaulule and Mr. Mashudu Rubson Dima, whose lived experiences, indigenous knowledge skills and expertise, and unremitting passion for their community and culture invigorated this project. I thank them especially for allowing me to live vi in their home with their family. Their worldview deeply changed my understanding of research, as well as the natural and spiritual world. Thank you also to Vhomakhadzi of the community based organization Dzomo La Mupo. Not a single day passed that I did not revel in the rich cultural heritage and wisdom that they shared with me. It was a privilege to learn from them. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ...............................................................................................................x LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................... xi KEY TO ABBREVIATIONS .......................................................................................... xiii CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION ..............................................................................1 1.1 Background ........................................................................................................1 1.2 Statement of the Problem ...................................................................................3 1.3 Purpose of the Study ..........................................................................................4 1.4 Need and Significance of the Study ...................................................................5 1.5 Research Questions ..........................................................................................10 1.6 Definition of Terms..........................................................................................10 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW ...............................................................13 2.1 South African Land Politics .............................................................................14 2.2 Environmental Degradation .............................................................................23 2.3 Cultural Biodiversity and Conservation...........................................................31 2.4 Ecological Feminism and Environmentalism ..................................................41 CHAPTER THREE: SOCIO-HISTORICAL CONTEXTUALIZATIONS ..............53 3.1 Historical Debates ............................................................................................53 3.2 Venda Geography ............................................................................................57 3.3 Gender and Power ............................................................................................62 3.4 Colonialism and Apartheid ..............................................................................69 CHAPTER FOUR: METHODOLOGY ........................................................................75 4.1 Feminist Qualitative Research .........................................................................75 4.2 Black and African Feminism(s) .......................................................................79 4.3 Grounded Theory .............................................................................................86 4.4 Data Analysis and Procedures .........................................................................88 4.5 Data Collection ................................................................................................90 4.6 Participants .......................................................................................................94 4.7 Participant Observation ....................................................................................96 4.8 Archival Data ...................................................................................................98 CHAPTER FIVE: DATA ANALYSIS I ......................................................................101 5.1 Makhadzi Participants ....................................................................................102 5.2 Disenfranchisement of Vhomakhadzi: Land and Culture ..............................105 5.3 The Politics of Cultural Biodiversity .............................................................114 5.4 The Phiphidi Waterfall Court Case ................................................................119 5.5 Engagement with The South African Heritage Resources Agency ...............130 viii 5.6 Colonialism and Traditional Leadership ........................................................137 5.7 Exogenous Influences on Gender ..................................................................146 CHAPTER SIX: DATA ANALYSIS AND RESULTS II ..........................................156 6.1 Vhomakhadzi Observations: Coal Mining.....................................................156 6.2 Vhomakhadzi Observations: Wetlands and Deforestation ............................169 6.3 Vhomakhadzi Observations: Seed Security and Food Sovereignty ..............174 CHAPTER SEVEN: DATA ANALYSIS AND RESULTS III ..................................183 7.1 Dzomo La Mupo Community Outreach ........................................................183 7.2 Empowering Vhangona Clans .......................................................................190 7.3 Community Mapping .....................................................................................195
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