“I was born in Pretoria, and as regards W01 c HOLLIDAY John James Clarke Holliday, first Ser­ language, that helped me. But when I joined geant Major of the SADF, must be one of the SADF after leaving school, that’s when I the last full-time members to wear service became bilingual. I wasn’t before joining the ribbons from World War 2. It is an SADF. indication of the span of his long career “In my time in the SADF it has always and the immense wealth of experience he been predominantly Afrikaans — the per­ can bring to his new appointment. manent force ratio is perhaps 70-30. But I Born on October 16 1927, Holliday is have not become Afrikanerised. It’s not an armour specialist who joined the Army something I could claim for myself. But I while still a schoolboy. He got his first have greater insight into the Afrikaner than rank — lance corporal — at the age of 19 many of my countrymen. in 1946, as an instructor at 1 Special “There have been the Rogerses, the Ed­ Service Battalion. He stayed there until wardses, the Frasers and so on. I can mention he became an instructor at the Army many names in the upper echelons. Gymnasium in 1962. He later served as “To me the major factor is that the De­ Squadron Sergeant Major at OFS Com­ fence Force is not attuned that way. If it was, mand, and later Northern Transvaal it would be looking for trouble because of the Command. question of racial, cultural, political and reli­ In 1969 he became Command Ser­ gious affiliations. It is not just the question of geant Major of Northern Trans English churches. This is a heterogeneous Command and in July 1984 Sergej society. So if the Defence Force becomes Major of the Army. cliquey it is looking for trouble. The post of Sergeant Major of the “I’m glad.to say that the opposite is true. Army is a comparatively recent one, hav­ We take pride in being the one big organisa­ ing been instituted in 1970 only (the first tion which can get people together. So there incumbent was the legendary WOl Ock- is no place for pettiness or sectarianism. ert Snyman, who died recently). Obvious­ Jp'People from the US and UK have asked ly Snyman and his successors have made me: Taking into account the fact that there is the appointment work, because this year a greater percentage of Afrikaans-speakers the new post of Sergeant Major of the in the officer corps and therefore automati­ SADF was created, and Holliday was cally more conservatism, what hope do you firs t the post appointed. see for the Defence Force to move in the direction of enlightenment? “And being English-speaking, I have-to manent Force (PF) and more English-speak- “Something which has been very good in correct them by saying: You’re stating that as ing youngsters found themselves in leader the Defence Force in the past 10 years has a fact. I grant you the majority is Afri­ training, the situation would be improved. been the atmosphere in the top structure. kaans-speaking, but why prejudge the Afri­ It’s a pity more English-speakers don’t want There has been good cohesion and a spirit kaner as necessarily conservative? to be part of it. They have themselves to which encouraged a man to express himself “When it comes to mixing people the De­ blame for the situation. So I ask them to in his own language. fence Force has a head start on the rest of the come forward. And there is no doubt we in “We respect each other’s language, and country. It has the privilege of putting them the PF must pay more attention to the lan­ I’ve never had a problem in expressing my­ all together. guage problem. self as an English-speaker. In any case, when “The trouble is that people come along speaking we all switch across from one lan­ with pre-conceived ideas. It is a pity, but guage to the other for better expression. It’s these ideas got into the minds of English- no trouble. speakers, and so for a long period in the “Hopefully this is happening throughout Fifties and Sixties few of them joined the the SADF. That way we can form this multi­ Permanent Force. tude into a cohesive organisation.” ‘‘Now it’s slowly being rectified. I think On his religion: As a Roman Catholic, percentage of English-speakers has in­ Gleeson belongs to a church which has been creased. But because Afrikaans-speakers outspoken in his condemnation of the South were predominant in recent history there is African government and its employment of no doubt that the English language doesn’t the SADF. But he does not experience an come fully into its own. Obviously the 50-50 inner conflict which could require him to language principle doesn’t either, and it’s choose between the church into which he was incumbent on the SADF to rectify this. born and the profession he has chosen to “In my mind it’s not an unwillingness on follow. the part of the Afrikaner to do something “I’ve never felt the need to change my about this. Many an Afrikaner has a com­ religion. If I’ve been guilty of backsliding, plex about English — for example, often he it’s not been to please my superiors or the can’t get his “is’s” and “are’s” right. . . We SADF, because the SADF is broad-minded have a definite policy of language tests, but I in its outlook on religion. It has more than think we too easily assume people are more 100 denominations, and 33 churches are per­ proficient in English than they are. manently represented by chaplains. Every “So you get a young Afrikaans-speaking man can practise his religion according to his corporal who has to address a bunch of men beliefs. So I’ve never stood back for my from the Cape Town Highlanders or the religion. Cape Town Rifles (Dukes), and he is fright­ “The Defence Force has some good basic ened. R M Pickersgill ... English rules — don’t discuss politics or religion in “If more English-speakers joined the Per- Methodist the mess. I’ve always practised my religion in my private life. The present Chaplain-Gen­ the Defence Force there is much in common. “If a Permanent Force member suffers a eral was my chaplain in SWA, and although The Defence Force pays much attention to religious conflict he is free to leave, and the we had different religious backgrounds I the religious aspects of military service and Defence Force has also gone out of its way to have great respect for him. tries to apply some of the principles, and so accommodate people who had problems. “Reconciliation is based on Christian val­ there is no problem reconciling all the differ­ “But in my own case I have no conflict of ues, and if one looks at the religious code of ent denominations. conscience.” ®

Old and strong

Is the South African Army the strongest in sub-Saharan Africa? It depends on how you juggle the fig u res

f the yardstick is merely numbers, Army is the largest in I Africa, since fully mobilised it would be able to field about 300 000 men; whereas its nearest rival, Ethiopia, has but 220 000 (Ni­ geria, surprisingly, has a modest ground force of 94 000). But statistics are not enough. Both SA and Ethiopia have considerable numbers of part- time reservist troops. To make any sort of analysis one has to consider qualitative fac­ tors such as level of training, staff efficiency, command efficiency, logistical backup and that great but vital intangible, morale and fighting spirit. It is certainly the oldest army in Africa if one takes its development back to its roots. The history books say the SA Army dates from 1912, when it was put together from the odds and ends of the various more or less willing bedfellows in the new Union of SA. But it is directly descended from the merce­ nary company soldiers Jan van Riebeeck landed at the Cape in 1652, and many ofi~ present characteristics can be traced ba! several hundred years. Two interesting aspects that still charac­ terise South African defence thinking were there from the very beginning. Firstly, to save money, the size of the regular force was kept well below its require­ ments, the intention being that in time of trouble its ranks would be swelled by the levying of militia from the civilian popula­ tion.

Goodwill — and “feel” Secondly, stress was laid on cultivating the goodwill of the indigenous population. This last was accomplished partly by exerting rigid discipline on the hard-bitten mercenar­ ies (in the 18th Century, for example, any soldier who got into the Castle after retreat had been sounded was thrashed by the ser­ Ready to roll ... an infantryman waits, R4 assault rifle at the ready geant of the guard). Apart from things like conscription, the the Abyssinian campaign, and so, almost 35 soldiers of today have inherited something SA ARMY STRENGTH years later, was Colonel Koos van Heerden more intangible but equally important: a Full-tinw members: 76 000 consisting of: in his swift advance up the Angolan coast in which he covered 3 000 km in 33 days of “feel” for mobile warfare involving maxi­ Permanent Force ...... 1 80 00 mum use of initiative and downright ingenu- National Servicemen ...... 5 8 0 0 0 movement, fighting along the way. ity. Part-time members: 280 000 consisting o t South African history this century Old philosophy abounds with examples. General Jan Citizen F orce ...... 1 40000 Today the commando spirit lives on in the 140 000 Smuts’s famous dash to Namaqualand in Commando F orce...... South African Army. But now its horsemen 1902 is one example; another is General Jaap Source: The International Institute of Strategic Studies in "The Military are the mechanised infantry in their Ratel van Deventer’s epic trek to Kondoa Irangi Balance. 1986/7." fighting vehicles — trained to travel fast, hit during World War l’s East African cam­ hard and move on to fight again. The tools paign. mando fighter, was entirely in his element may have changed, but the philosophy lives Brigadier Dan Pienaar, the son of a com- with his ultra-mobile bush columns during on. ®

Our largest organisation

The largest direct employer of manpower in South Africa is not the general manager of SATS or any of his ranking executives. It is the Chief of the Army

^hen Lieutenant General “Kat” er. Exactly how many is a closely-guarded although, since most of it is part-time, a Liebenberg gets his dander up in secret and has been for years, but local and universal simultaneous call-up of reserves his neat office at Army Head­ foreign military observers agree on the basic would wreck the economy. W! figures, which state that the Army’s total A true assessment of the Army’s potential quarters off Pretoria’s Potgieter Street, he sends a tremor through what is — if all its mobilisable strength is in the region of cannot be made unless its manpower is divid­ parts were to be summoned together — the 360 000 men and women of all races — ed into the various categories: largest single organi­ The Army has about 76 000 full-time sation in the entire members, divided into Republic. SA ARMY COMMAND STRUCTURE Its structure is also two groups: Chief of the Army The Permanent one of the most com­ plicated because, un­ Force (PF). There are about like any other organi­ 18 000 PF members sa tio n , it has a Inspector General AS-1 AS-2 AS-3 AS-4 AS-5 Finance number of divergent Personnel Intelligence Operations Logistics — including about 1 000 women. Inter­ tasks to fulfil. The Army has more estingly, about 5 500, or roughly one-third people under its com­ 44 Para Territorial Conventional SA Forces in SWA C of Armv Units of the 17 000 or, mand — although not Force Force and SWATF Bde all at the same time — male members, a either black or than the other three 11 Commands •SWATF •Arm y College 73 Mot coloured, receiving services rolled togeth­ Walvis Bay • 8 Div •Sectors 10, 20 and 70 •Arm y Battle School •3 2 Bn •Arm y HQ Unit •6 1 Bn GP

Troops on the march problems with a mass call-up equal pay and fringe benefits, with no ceiling diately deployed on tasks where their skills parachute battalions right down to mobile on promotion (the highest-ranking officer are needed. Others are used for everything shower units. More importantly, it provides who is not white is presently a colonel.) else, from clerical work to commanding Ra- all but a tiny fraction of the manpower for National Servicemen tel infantry fighting vehicles or Eland ar­ the country’s entire conventional warfare The number of national servicemen varies moured cars in one of the nine infantry force. from year to year, depending on how many battalions. In addition, it has a great number of white males reach military age, and on how In actual fact the full-time Army is un­ lightly armed infantry battalions trained to many black and coloured two-year volun­ healthily dependent on the ubiquitous perform counter-insurgency and intemal-se- teers join up, but usually there are around national servicemen for its normal function­ curity tasks wherever they are needed. 58 000 of them in service, each serving two ing. Without them its administrative mach­ Commando Force. years of full-time duty. inery would grind to a halt, and it would have The Commando Force also has about This includes the 15 000-odd recruits do­ virtually no fighting forces. 140 000 members, most of them obligated to ing six months of basic and advanced train­ The Army has about 280 000 part-time serve 1 000 days at the rate of 50 days a year ing at any given stage, plus selected “junior members. They consist of: maximum. As in the CF, the backbone of the leaders” undergoing anything up to six The Citizen Force (CF). ComForce is made up of the senior volunteer months of officer or non-commissioned offi­ There are about 140 000 CF members. element. cer instruction in the second half of their Most are obligated to serve 720 days in five The ComForce is dedicated to local coun- year’s service. two-year cycles (30 days in the first year, 90 ter-insurgency and internal security; lately it The national servicemen are used for a in the second), while a vitally important has been reinforced in some areas by drafts wide variety of tasks. Graduates and others sprinkling, usually senior officers and of “Dad’s Army” members (older men serv­ who come in with specialised skills are usual­ NCOs, are volunteers who have stayed on ing 12 days a year). ly given a shorter basic training, and imme- after completing their time. Barring members of “Dad’s Army” (a Numerically the volunteers are not a large phrase heartily disliked by the military au­ element, but they represent a vital pool of thorities, but seemingly inextricably rooted experience and training, and senior Army in the common parlance). ComForce mem­ Structure of SA army officers freely admit that without the volun­ bers receive the same training as the CF; the teer element, the CF would cease to function difference is that they are “area-bound,” f arritorial Force'. effectively. meaning that they serve in their local areas a. Ten re g ie * W H M W ...... The CF mans a great variety of units, from only. ■

Command ■mmand Northern Transvaal Command...... Witwatersrand Command ...... Natal Command ...... ' Eastern Province Command ...... The five elements Western Province Command...... " " iCommand ...... _ The Arm y’s structure has five distinct elements, ------7 infantry Division each of which stems from some actual, 8 Mechanised Division 73 Motorised Brigade theoretical or perceived requirement or 44 Parachute Brigade set of circumstances

wo of the Army’s five elements, the tion of manpower. At about 46 000 men and Territorial Force and the Convention­ women to handle both criminal and internal Tal Force, derive directly from the security matters for a total population of Army’s two main tasks, as laid down in the about 26m, the SAP is under-staffed by at Defence Act. least 40%.

203 Battalion ...... For this reason the SADF and specifically 701 Battalion .... The Territorial Force the army has been deployed in certain areas 911 Battalion ...... The Army’s most important task is to com­ along the borders on northern Natal, the 9 ,2 Battalion ...... bat insurgency and act in aid of the civil eastern Transvaal and northern Namibia (Regt Erongol I $ power, as represented by the SA Police, in with the primary responsibility of border mSZ = .... “.. the maintenance of internal security, law protection. The SAP however, is still respon­ 91 Armoured Car Regt ...... and order if this should become necessary. sible for law enforcement in these areas. (Regt Windhoek) These tasks should be seen in the correct The second aspect of the Territorial Force 1 SWA Signal R e g !...... :.... Windhoek 1 SWA Provost Unit perspective because there are actually two responsibility is providing aid to the civil 91 Field Regt aspects. authority. What it means in effect is that 91 Maintenance...... The first is the combating of insurgency. Army troops can be mobilised to help the Area Force U n its ...... W hat it amounts to is a border-security func­ police to contain an unrest situation — usu­ 112 Commando Sqn .... tion. In many countries, ranging from West ally by supplying the needed manpower for Territory Germany and Israel to Angola, East Ger­ such low-key internal security tasks as All ground units resident except 61 Mechanised many and the Soviet Union, there is a separ­ throwing cordons, manning roadblocks and Battalion Group and 32 retain SADF identity ate border guard force which in most cases patrolling. In such an event the police are in 5. Chief of tin Army U n t o does not fall under either the ministry of overall command.

i College. Army Headquarters defence or the ministry of police. The Army’s well-concealed distaste for In South Africa there is no such dispensa­ this task springs from more than one reason.

Sources: 1986 SADf Yearbook tion. Border security is handled by the Army, In the first place it plays hob with training "SA War Machine" SADF statements with some police input. It is a simple ques­ and service schedules that have been planned years ahead. The other primary task of the Army is the The units themselves Another reason is that as a result of the landward defence of SA against any form of are totally part-time, border war it has become so imbued with the “conventional” aggression. In a nutshell, if while brigade and di­ hearts-and-minds philosophy that it is any hostile force invades or tries to invade pained to be in a situation where it is often South African territory it will be met, accused of unleashing bully-boys and worse mauled and (all going well) sent reeling back on the townships. by the mobile, hard-hitting Conventional Its response was to set up complaints of­ Force, comprising me­ fices in all large centres (which were later chanised and motor­ scaled down because complaints were few or ised infantry, artillery non-existent) and to take a pacific line with non-regular members who suffered from conflicts of conscience. This generally flexi­ ble approach (coupled with a warning from visional staffs are on high to all services partly staffed by regu­ that no troops guilty lar PF members and of misconduct would partly by CitForce men.

The SWA Territory Force The South West African Territory Force and heavy and light (SWATF), now about 21 000 strong, is armour, backed up by manned mainly by Namibians and is fast the SAAF. developing its own identity as a defence force The Conventional Force is organised into native to Namibia, although it is still under two divisions (7th and 8th Division), each the ultimate control of the SADF (see commanded by a brigadier and sub-divided SWATF). into mechanised, motorised and armoured it be allowed to shelter brigades, each commanded by a colonel; and f behind the emergency two independent brigades (44 Parachute and The Army presence in Namibia is a hang­ regulations’ indemni­ 73 Motorised), also commanded by colonels. over from the days (starting in the early ty clauses) has taken care of most of its Each brigade in turn is divided into various 1970s) when it bore the main responsibility problems. But a bad taste lingers all the regiments, battalions and other units. for the counter-insurgency campaign there. same. The brigades are scattered all over the The Army has been winding down its The Territorial Force is spread out over 10 country in the various command areas. strength in Namibia for some years, and command areas or military districts. Each is These brigades are in the somewhat peculiar probably maintains no more than about more or less of divisional status and is headed position of having about the same status as 5 000 troops there at any given time. by a brigadier or major general, who rules lodgers in a boarding house, since they take Many of these are command and support over a mix of PF personnel, national service­ their orders from the Chief of the Army, via elements stationed in three military areas — men and part-time troops. their higher formation headquarters. Sector 10 (Ovamboland), 20 (Kavango) and The part-timers are organised into forma­ In time of all-out emergency all the bri­ 70 (Caprivi). tions called groups and consist of various gades would be mobilised and join their divi­ However, the Army also maintains two commando units and “non-area-bound” Cit­ sions, with the independent brigades being important fighting units in Namibia. One is Force light battalions. The units are all part- employed as the Chief of the Army sees fit. the famous/notorious 32 Battalion, original­ time, while each group headquarters has a Interestingly, the Conventional Force con­ ly recruited from displaced Angolan ex-in- small PF element. sists almost entirely of CitForce part-timers. surgents of the 1975-1976 era and now a key Another source of counter-insurgency manpower in times of unit, specialising in civil unrest on which long, in-depth patrols. the OC command can The other is 61 Me­ draw are local chanised Battaliogfe national service train­ Group, a conventioir ing units, although al-warfare unit this is done as little as manned by national possible because it servicemen and a thin tends to disrupt train­ layer of PF members ing schedules. which has been in­ The Territorial volved in virtually Force also includes every “external” the Walvis Bay Mili­ operation in the past tary Area, a geo­ 10 years. graphical oddity re­ sulting from the fact Chief of the Army that due to the vaga­ Units ries of 19th Century Certain military in­ politics Walvis Bay stallations, most of and the area around it them used for ad­ belongs to SA and not vanced training of one Namibia. kind or another, fall directly under the The Conventional Chief of the Army. Force G5 155mm gun firing ... long arm of the Conventional Force These include the Army Battle School, a vast tract of land in Chief of the Army. operational area but are permanently at­ the northern Cape where fighting units regu­ It might be asked why such a massive tached to the Angolan armed forces. larly sweat and/or shiver their dusty way force is needed when the only actual enemies The answer is that SA’s borders are long through arduous training camps; the Army (not counting what might come in a conven­ and frequently consist of difficult terrain College at Voortrekkerhoogte (formerly the tional attack) are so thin on the ground. where there is no real state-of-the-art alter­ South African Military College), where native to the man on the ground. various advanced officer training courses are The Opposition In the case of the ANC it is also a fact that held; and the various corps schools like the After all, the ANC’s military wing, Um- part of its campaign to overthrow the present Infantry School at Oudtshoorn, the Intelli­ konto We Sizwe, comprises an estimated government consists of fomenting as much gence School at Kimberley and the Artillery 10 000 trained, semi-trained and untrained nationwide unrest as possible. School at Potchefstroom. men, while Swapo is believed to have about This demands eternal manpower-intensive The Army Headquarters Unit at Pretoria, 9 000 in various categories of training, of patrol activity whether things are quiet or needless to say, also falls directly under the which about 85% are not pointed at the active. ■

The unknown man

Surprisingly few people, either inside the military or out, know a great deal about Lieutenant General Andre Liebenberg, who took command of it in late 1985

ien Andre Liebenberg, Chief of the over two years later — at the age of only are of medium height, but Liebenberg is very Army, is the unknown man of the 42 and 22 years after commencing his broad in the shoulders and distinctly stocky L four service chiefs. Newspaper clip­ military career in earnest — he was pro­ in build. He is prematurely bald and sports a ping files on him are thin. If one wants to moted to major general and Gener­ large, sweeping moustache, both of which find out what makes him tick one has to al Officer Commanding Special Forc­ help to make him look older than his 49 speak to people who have known and worked es. years. with him. There he worked quietly away till July of The origin of his nickname Kat is obscured The records show that he is another of the 1985, when it was announced he would be­ by the mists of time — although it is known fast-risers among the present generation of come Chief of the Army on November 1 of to date back to his schooldays — but it senior military officers. Born on April 18 of that year, in the rank of lieutenant general. appears to be an appropriate one. When 1938 at Upington in the Northern Cape, his Thus ended the most suspenseful promo­ Liebenberg moves, they say, he moves fast first taste of the Army came when he enlisted tion cliff-hanger the Defence Force had seen and quietly, even when he is shuffling papers at the Army Gymnasium for a year after in years. Weeks of high speculation had instead of making war. leaving school. resulted in a more or less generally-accepted A former subordinate says: “Liebenberg After his year’s service he enrolled for a short list of two — and neither of them was doesn’t amble around the place. You won’t law degree at Stellenbosch. Then he rejoined Kat Liebenberg. Yet when the announce­ find him taking a stroll from one office to in 1960, and from then on his career moved ment was made, those who know him nodded another.” forward in swift bounds. In July of 1960 he in approbation of the Jocularly known in was a candidate-officer at the SA Military choice. the corridors of mili­ College, a year later a platoon commander at Somehow it was tary power by the fc Field Training Regiment. In 1964, by now typical of the man punful alternative * captain, he became a staff officer in the both friends and en­ nickname of “die office of the Director Infantry at Army emies call by his nick­ muisvanger” (the Headquarters. name — “Kat.” mouse-catcher), he is There he stayed till 1969 when, with the Liebenberg has said to be a meticu­ rank of commandant, he was posted to Lon­ never been a very pub­ lous planner and or­ don as a military attache — often a portent lic figure, even while ganiser — “ I was in­ of greater things to come. In 1972 he re­ occupying fairly high- volved with some of turned from London to become second in profile appointments. the ops he planned,” command of the Army Gymnasium. Two One of his former sub­ an officer says, “and years later he was back at Army Headquar­ ordinates professes you co uldn’t fau lt ters as a Staff Officer. admiration while at them anywhere.” Seven months later he was given another the same time confess­ In personality he plum post, that of Director Infantry, and in ing that in some ways and his predecessor December 1977, as a colonel, took over the he remained an enig­ differ widely though hottest seat in Namibia: Officer Command­ ma in spite of a close both of them are given ing 2 Military Area (now Sector 10) at association lasting to knock-’em-down Oshakati, nerve-centre of the main war most of a year. bridge sessions. against Swapo. Physically he is Like Geldenhuys, He stayed there till January 1980, when vastly different from he is not an inspired he became Director of Operations at Army his predecessor, Jan- public speaker, but Headquarters in the rank of brigadier. Just nie Geldenhuys. Both Kat Liebenberg ... fast but quiet when he addresses a planning session or order group, a former your dignity intact. You still feel like a associate says, “he’s to the point, and you human being when you walk out of there.” listen to what he says . . . and if you’re sitting This is where Liebenberg strongly resem­ in an order group with him you had better bles his two predecessors, generals Constant know what the hell you’re talking about.” Viljoen and Jan Geldenhuys — concern for Liebenberg may not be an eloquent speak­ his troops, and his ability to inspire loyalty er, but he has a reputation as a good commu­ without favouritism or playing to the gallery. nicator. One typical comment is: “He gets A notoriously hard-nosed and irreverent his message across; you know exactly what middle-level officer says: “When you see Kat he wants, and at the same time he gives you Liebenberg for the first time you’re inclined more than enough opportunity to say ‘I don’t to see this harsh character sitting there, but know what the hell you want’.” I’d work for that guy any day of the week . . . After that you’re on your own. Liebenberg Paratroops landing “There is a humanity about the man. He’s sets high standards for himself and requires a very tough cookie — he’s no teddy bear — his followers to attain them as well — and own ideas about how to do things. But they but at the same time he has an aura about then some. had better watch out. Kat Liebenberg’s go­ him; it’s as if he is asking you to produce At the time of his appointment a Perma­ ing to kick a few arses around here, I’ll tell without actually asking you, even if you have nent Force officer who served under Lieben­ you that.” very little contact with him. berg commented with considerable relish: But Liebenberg apparently has the knack “You don’t walk in fear and trembling of “Some people in the Army have got their of booting backsides without leaving perma­ him unless he’s fighting you, and he’s always nent scars. approachable as far as the welfare of his “If you don’t do your job,” says a resident people is concerned. I’d even be inclined to DEDICATED OPERATOR of Defence Headquarters who was often in put it this way: If you scratch a member of hot water while serving under Liebenberg as the Army, Kat Liebenberg will haemorr­ As Sergeant Major of the Army, WOl a junior officer, “you’ll get a clout. But at the hage. That’s how he feels about his people; Carl Frederick Rohrbeck is the senior of same time he’s a human being as well. He he follows the whole Army philosophy of all the warrant officers in the land forces, doesn’t hold a grudge . . . ‘look down’. JKj trend-setter, diplomat, arbiter, general “I’d sooner be jumped on by about 20 “If you want to sum the guy up, I’d say hr fount of all wisdom and channel of com­ other generals than Kat Liebenberg. Not evokes loyalty just by being around. As a munication from the lowest ranks to the because he’s vicious with you, but because human being, I’ve got the greatest respect highest. you feel so bad about it — you feel you’ve and admiration for him. It borders almost on As the senior sergeant major of the dropped him . . . but the man leaves you with a brotherly feeling for him.” ■ Army he is close in age to the man to whom he reports, the Chief of the Army, but his career has been considerably dif­ ferent. Rohrbeck is what computer ex­ perts would call a “dedicated operator” — he is an Armoured Corps man first, A tale of tw o camps last and always. Born on May 13, 1937, Rohrbeck joined the Army at 18 in 1955 and was There have been many reports of how township trained at the Army Gymnasium. There he did so well that little more than a year residents have felt about troops, but none about later he was an instructor at the School of how the troops felt about the townships. Armour in Bloemfontein. Three months later he was transferred as an instructor Here is a troopie's account of two periods of to the famed 1 Special Service Battalion. There he stayed for almost eight years unrest duty he has experienced: one in a hot before being transferred back to the School of Armour. spot in 1985, one in a quiet area in 1986 I In 1971 he became a squadron sergeant major at Walvis Bay and stayed there for four years, seeing action with n December 1985 we were grouped at Port was considerable and our guys were shocked the ubiquitous armoured cars that played Elizabeth when we arrived, and then my by it. You see, originally they took us such a major role in Operation Savannah, I company, Bravo Company, moved up to through New Brighton, through the seamier the SADF’s nine-month-long incursion Uitenhage. We were two units in the same side of it, and I think it shocked quite a few into Angola in 1975-1976. camp. people, made them wonder what we were In December 1975, with the shooting We worked on a system of 12 hours on, 12 doing there and so on. war in Angola virtually over, he was hours off, 12 hours stand-by. Within that Most people had seen it in the paper and apointed squadron sergeant major at 2 period we were called off stand-by about read about it, but the smell of it, the other Special Service Battalion, but within two three times, so the standby system worked. kind of senses, became more of a reality. weeks he was shifted to become regimen­ We’re a conventional battalion and it was There were quite a number of people that I tal sergeant major of 61 Base Workshop. our first riot camp. It wasn’t our place, had hardly expected to feel that way, who Then followed stints as the brigade ser­ definitely. Firstly the leader group didn’t were far more sympathetic to the blacks’ geant major of 81 Armoured Brigade, seem to understand how we fitted into the plight after that .... I think many people RSM of the School of Armour and the greater pattern, and the chaps that were went home with a new insight. Personnel Services School and Command actually on the Buffel were still thinking After a while they became a bit more sergeant major of Northern Transvaal more border coin (counter insurgency) ops blase; their attitude changed when their Command before his appointment as Ser­ than internal security. sympathy changed a little. And what made geant Major of the Army on May 1 of this Conditions there were pretty much an eye- the sympathy change, I think, was a realisa­ year. opener for most of the chaps . . . the poverty tion that these people weren’t unhappy. They ______:— 28 TOWNSHIP TROOPS Once we found this burnt, charred body in these little smiling faces and ask yourself: a field outside Kwanobuhle — that really were they really friendly or were they the comrades? Addressing women guests at a Western shocked the guys. And there were some stone-throwings that caused injuries. Once I think it stems from the old army thing Province Command Army Ladies’ Asso­ about “know your enemy.” In this case we ciation meeting, Chief of the SADF Jan we went into a school to see what was going on, and that afternoon the school was burnt didn’t know. Geldenhuys said that between 5 000 and This was obviously also a kind of learning 8 000 soldiers were serving in black town­ down. On the whole the troops’ reaction was process for the whole army as regards means ships at present. Of these a large percent­ of communication with the local population. age were serving in support rather than At that stage we were still working on a patrolling posts such as clerks, cooks and textbook knowledge of what to look out for, signallers. and of course it wasn’t anything like that. I He added: “Considering the men work think at that stage the intelligence-gathering in shifts in an area stretching from the wasn’t very effective. Witwatersrand to the western and east­ Yet throughout the time in Uitenhage we ern Cape and Natal, there are only a were told by the local population, and I think handful of soldiers backing up other gov­ they meant it, that there was a positive ernment departments at any time.” feeling towards the Army. I think the reason why I enjoyed the (1985) camp so much was because it was constructive rather than destructive. We built things and helped the people. The 1986 camp was a different set-up altogether. Uitenhage had been very active. The attitude of the local population was different too. . As far as it was concerned, I think thc^ leader group was uncountably more pre­ pared for the type of situation we were in. That had been half of our problem at Port tSt Elizabeth. The feeling (in the township) was more \ neutral. I certainly didn’t have that feeling of anxiety, that I’d had at Port Elizabeth, at all. I felt good about that camp, I felt that ___ _ IIimhpmII ImmSBSsBhk! it we’d achieved something, and that even if we hadn’t done something concrete like building were disgruntled with the lack of money and sympathy for the people who were being intimidated, anger at the people who were houses, at least we could look back and say: so on, but they weren’t unhappy people. “Look, this is how we can operate” ... I There was a fair amount of unrest. There doing it and frustration at not being able to pinpoint the wrongdoers, and certainly a lot think most of the chaps coming back felt that was a fair amount of stone-throwing inci­ was hope for the future, if you want to dents, but I think arson and intimidation of apprehension, like when you were just were the most noticeable. patrolling through the streets and you’d see

Defence forces as a whole tend to be unproductive, in the sense that they do not actually produce anything, but the SAAF is something of an exception to the rule because its skills and equipment are often pressed into non-military use. But its primary task remains a military one

but according to the generally accepted stat­ nlike the Army, there is nothing de­ It has been a prime factor in the success istics published by the International Insti­ ceptive about the strength and achieved in just about every sizeable joint tute for Strategic Studies the full-time structure of the SAAF. It is an al­ air-ground operation undertaken by the U strength is about 11 000 men and women most totally regular force, certainly sub- SADF; on more than one occasion it has careerists of the Permanent Force, plus Saharan Africa’s strongest in terms of the snatched victory from impending disaster. 2 000 national servicemen. number of operational aircraft and pilot Official figures about the SAAF’s They are backed up by about 25 000 re- quality. strength have not been given out for years,

Collection Number: AG1977

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