Battlefield Tourism in South Africa with Special Reference to Isandlwana and Rorke’S Drift Kwazulu-Natal

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Battlefield Tourism in South Africa with Special Reference to Isandlwana and Rorke’S Drift Kwazulu-Natal University of Pretoria etd – Moeller M (2006) - Battlefield Tourism in South Africa with Special Reference to Isandlwana and Rorke’s Drift KwaZulu-Natal - by Maricki Moeller 24326063 Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree M Phil Tourism Management in the FACULTY OF ECONOMIC AND MANAGEMENT SCIENCES at the UNIVERSITY OF PRETORIA Study leader: (Dr. F. A. Fairer - Wessels) Date of submission October 2005 University of Pretoria etd – Moeller M (2006) EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Battlefield Tourism in South Africa is an increasingly important tourism product in northern KwaZulu-Natal. Rising visitor numbers to the famous Anglo-Zulu battlefields of Isandlwana and Rorke’s Drift over the past ten years have created certain challenges to the management of the area. Thanatourism is a form of Cultural Heritage Tourism that comprises visits to battlefields. Thanatourism sites often attempt to interpret sensitive events of the past. This requires management skills different to those needed by other heritage attractions. One of the issues faced by management is dissonance in heritage, which refers to dilemmas associated with reconciling the interests of rival groups with separate stakes in the development of controversial sites. This study attempts to investigate the level of dissonance present at the battlefields of Isandlwana and Rorke’s Drift and to identify ways of reducing it. A qualitative approach was applied to capture the different opinions of four major stakeholder groups as present in Seaton’s Force Field Model (2001): the subject groups (Zulu and British), visitor groups, owners/controllers of heritage and the host community. An ethnographic investigation combined with an analysis of the tourism situation on the battlefields revealed that the levels of dissonance between the stakeholders are much lower than expected. This is achieved through the prioritisation of heritage at provincial level, the balanced narratives of tour guides, increasing economic prosperity and the participation of the host community in heritage development. The findings imply that despite South Africa’s colonial and apartheid past, Isandlwana and Rorke’s Drift manage their dissonance successfully. It is suggested that in order to sustain this development, cooperation between tourism and heritage should be improved and the guiding environment should be more regulated and controlled. Also, new memorials on the battlefields have to be authentic and subject groups must be able to relate to them. - i - University of Pretoria etd – Moeller M (2006) BESTUURSOPSOMMING Slagveldtoerisme is ‘n toerismeproduk wat al hoe belangriker word in noordelike KwaZulu- Natal. Verhoogde besoekersgetalle die afgelope tien jaar by die bekende Anglo- Zuluslagvelde van Isandlwana en Rorkesdrift stel bepaalde uitdagings aan die persone in beheer van die gebiede. Thanatoerisme is ‘n vorm van kulturele erfenistoerisme wat die besoeke aan slagvelde behels. By thanatoerismegebiede word dikwels gepoog om sensitiewe gebeurtenisse van die verlede te interpreteer. Dit vereis bestuursvaardighede wat verskil van dié wat benodig word by ander erfenisattraksies. Een van die kwessies waarmee bestuurders gekonfronteer word, is dissonansie of onenigheid betreffende erfenis. Dit verwys na bepaalde kwessies rakende die versoening van die aansprake van strydende groepe met verskillende belange in die ontwikkeling van kontroversiële terreine. Hierdie studie poog om ondersoek in te stel na die vlak van dissonansie by die slagvelde van Isandlwana en Rorkesdrift en om maniere te identifiseer waarmee dit verminder kan word. ‘n Kwalitatiewe benadering, soos uiteengesit in Seaton se sogenaamde Force Field Model (2001), is toegepas om die verskillende menings van vier belangrike insethouers te bepaal. Die insethouers is: die groepe wat as onderwerpe dien (Zulu en Brits); besoekersgroepe; eienaars of erfenisbestuurders en die plaaslike gemeenskap. ‘n Etnografiese ondersoek, gekombineer met ‘n analise van die toerismesituasie op die slagvelde, het getoon dat die vlak van dissonansie tussen die insethouers baie laer is as wat verwag is. Die rede hiervoor is waarskynlik die belangrikheid wat aan erfenis verleen word op provinsiale vlak, die gebalanseerde aanbiedings deur toergidse, toenemende ekonomiese welvarendheid en die deelname van die plaaslike gemeenskap aan erfenisontwikkeling. Die bevindings dui daarop dat, ten spyte van Suid-Afrika se koloniale en apartheidsverlede, dissonansie bevredigend bestuur word by Isandlwana en Rorkesdrift. Om dit so te behou, word voorgestel dat samewerking tussen toerisme en erfenis verbeter moet word en dat die toergidsbedryf beter gereguleer en gekontroleer moet word. Nuwe gedenktekens op slagvelde behoort geloofwaardig en identifiseerbaar vir alle onderwerpsgroepe te wees. - ii - University of Pretoria etd – Moeller M (2006) ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to take this opportunity to thank the following people for their support in completing this study. My supervisor Dr. Felicité Fairer-Wessels deserves special mention for her patience and assistance. Prof. Anthony Seaton for his guidance and suggestions. The following people helped in one way or another to make this study possible: the stakeholders of the battlefields in northern KwaZulu-Natal, Barbara Levick, Shaun Levick, Nikki Funke, Tania Pretorius and Thomas van der Walt. I am very grateful to my family who made it possible for me to study at the University of Pretoria. - iii - University of Pretoria etd – Moeller M (2006) TABLE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary……………………………………………………………………………..….i Bestuursopsomming…………………………………………………………..……………………ii Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………………..…iii Table of Contents………………………………………………………………………………….iv Abbreviations…………………………………………………………………………………...….ix List of Figures……………………………………………………………………………………… x List of Tables……………………………………………………………………………………….xi 1 CHAPTER: THE PROBLEM AND ITS CONTEXT ..........................................................1 1.1 BACKGROUND TO THE PROBLEM ....................................................................1 1.2 PROBLEM STATEMENT AND RESEARCH AIM..................................................2 1.2.1 Research question .........................................................................................3 1.2.2 Objectives.......................................................................................................4 1.2.3 Research expectation.....................................................................................5 1.3 DEFINITION OF TERMS.......................................................................................5 1.4 METHODOLOGY ..................................................................................................6 1.5 LIMITATIONS........................................................................................................7 1.6 BENEFITS OF THE STUDY..................................................................................7 1.7 DISSERTATION OUTLINE ...................................................................................8 2 CHAPTER: BACKGROUND TO HERITAGE TOURISM ..............................................10 2.1 INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................10 2.2 HERITAGE ..........................................................................................................10 2.3 THE HERITAGE PRODUCTION PROCESS.......................................................11 2.4 HERITAGE TOURISM…………………………………………………………………13 2.5 THANATOURISM / DARK TOURISM………………………………………………. 14 2.5.1 Thanatourism studies……………………………………………………………. 17 2.5.1.1 War Tourism……………………………………………………………………… 17 2.5.1.2 Battlefield Tourism………………………………………………………………..18 2.6 CONCLUSION.....................................................................................................20 - iv - University of Pretoria etd – Moeller M (2006) 3 CHAPTER: HERITAGE DISSONANCE: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND .................21 3.1 INTRODUCTION.................................................................................................21 3.2 CONCEPT OF DISSONANT HERITAGE............................................................21 3.2.1 Heritage uses and users ..............................................................................23 3.2.1.1 Heritage as a cultural resource………………………………………………….23 3.2.1.2 Heritage as a political resource……………………………………………....…24 3.2.1.3 Heritage as an economic resource…………………………………………......25 3.2.2 Heritage users…………………………………………………………………… .26 3.2.3 Categories of dissonance in heritage…………………………………………. .26 3.2.3.1 Commodification…………………………………………………………………. 26 3.2.3.2 Place Product…………………………………………………………………….. 27 3.2.3.3 Multi-use…………………………………………………………………………...27 3.2.3.4 Content of the message………………………………………………………….28 3.2.3.5 Atrocity as entertainment ………………………………………………………..29 3.3 THE HERITAGE OF ATROCITY .........................................................................29 3.3.1 Types of atrocity ...........................................................................................31 3.3.2 Heritage dissonance in the post-colonial world ............................................31 3.3.3 Heritage dissonance in post colonial African cases………………………….. 33 3.3.4 Strategies of atrocity management…………………………………………….. 34 3.3.4.1 The management of victimisation……………………………………………… 35 3.3.4.2 The management of perpetration………………………………………………. 35 3.3.4.3 Reconciliation through reinterpretation…………………………………………36
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