Thesis Sci 2020 Alasow Khadra Ghedi.Pdf
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Capitalism and Private Nature Reserves: the Taming of Mala Mala land claim Dissertation presented for the degree of Master of Science in Environmental and Geographical Science by Khadra Ghedi Alasow Faculty of Science Department of Environmental and Geographical Science University of Cape Town June 2020 UniversitySupervisor: Professor of Maano Cape Ramutsindela Town The copyright of this thesis vests in the author. No quotation from it or information derived from it is to be published without full acknowledgement of the source. The thesis is to be used for private study or non- commercial research purposes only. Published by the University of Cape Town (UCT) in terms of the non-exclusive license granted to UCT by the author. University of Cape Town Declaration This dissertation is submitted by me to the University of Cape Town for the award of a Masters degree. It is research work carried out by me under the supervision of Professor Maano Ramutsindela. I know the meaning of plagiarism and declare that the work in this dissertation is my own in conception and execution. The contribution from the work or works of other people has been credited accordingly. Khadra Ghedi Alasow 2 Acknowledgements The study reported in this dissertation would not have been possible without the valuable contribution of many individuals to whom I would like to extent my sincere gratitude. I am thankful to my supervisor, Professor Maano Ramutsindela, for his guidance, encouragement and mentorship. He has taught me the value of deep critical thinking that aims at observing the connections and disconnections that define our everyday life. The intellectual insight I have gained during this journey, I will treasure dearly. I am grateful for the financial contributions that supported this dissertation. The support from the Andrew Mellon Foundation through the Social Science Research Council not only assisted me financially, but also gave me the opportunity to network with other Mellon Fellows globally and to engage in discussions on research and academia. I am also grateful for the funding from the National Research Foundation and the University of Cape Town (through the Schroder Foundation). While tertiary education remains exclusionary due to high tuition fees, these networks of financial aid have given me the opportunity to pursue a passion that would otherwise not have been possible. I would like to thank all the participants in this study. I appreciate the time taken by each individual to explain to me their thoughts and opinions. This research carries deep meaning for many, and I truly hope that it makes a positive contribution towards effective land restitution. Lastly, and very importantly, I thank my family and friends for their support and motivation. Thank you for the endless discussions and debates that helped me refine my thoughts and ideas. 3 Abstract Capitalism has evolved globally by disciplining its key features to suit new markets and changing socio- economic environments. These features include private property, labour and neoliberalism. Whilst capitalism has managed to become a well-established system, occasionally it is confronted with challenges which expose its callous nature. In South Africa, land restitution calls into question capitalism’s operation as it disrupts the conventional process of profit accumulation. This is evident when looking at the manner in which land claims are settled in private nature reserves that are under a land claim. Private nature reserves have been structured to bring together capitalism’s key features of property, labour and neoliberalism and therefore become interesting sites on which to study how they react to land restitution. This study uses Mala Mala Game Reserve to investigate how capitalism unfolds in the game reserve. It specifically looks at the conservation business, labour conditions, and the settlement of the land claim in the reserve. It begins by analysing the structuring of the conservation business to fit capitalism’s objective of profit accumulation. The emphasis here is on the relationship between capitalism and nature, and how the conservation business is built on the commodification of nature. It traces the business foundation of Mala Mala over time to understand how the reserve became a luxurious safari destination that target a small, select group of wealthy, mainly international tourists. The reserve promises quality wildlife viewing and luxury accommodation for its guests, which it is able to offer through the commercialisation of nature in a manner that is often viewed as ethical to the greater public, yet a closer look at the operation of the reserve shows the unaccounted cost of exclusion, dispossession and exploitation. These impacts are further contextualised in the second part of the study, which documents the structuring of labour as a condition for building the reserve’s economic success. 4 Labour is an important necessity for capitalism’s operations and its conditions show us the fierce manner in which surplus value is extracted. The creation of the cheap labour system in South Africa played an important role in building conservation areas. The success of conservation business in private nature reserves routinely depends on conservation labour. The study finds that cheap labour in Mala Mala is secured through the adoption of a migrant labour system. Such a system highlights the social ‘cost’ (labour) of capital accumulation that takes place in the reserve. While the first two parts of the study explain how capitalism has shaped the conservation business in Mala Mala, the last section investigates what happens when this almost perfectly structured system is challenged through land claims. The study finds that the clash between conservation business and land restitution produce a model of land reform that chime with neoliberalism. Backed by government and landowners, the model separates business ownership from landownership in order to guarantee capital accumulation. This study contributes to our understanding of land restitution in private nature reserves in South Africa and the land restitution model it produces. 5 Acknowledgements Abstract Contents Page List of Tables List of Figures List of Acronyms References Table of Contents Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Capitalism, conservation and land restitution ................................................................ 12 1.2 Contextualizing Mala Mala Game Reserve as a site for capital accumulation .............. 16 1.3 Structure of the dissertation............................................................................................ 19 Chapter 2: Theoretical Background 2.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 22 2.2 Positioning South Africa in the global capitalist system ............................................... 22 2.3 The conservation business – capitalism in its newest form? .......................................... 27 2.4 Labour – an understudied requirement in conservation spaces...................................... 31 2.5 Land reform in a capitalist society ................................................................................. 35 2.6 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................... 38 Chapter 3: Research Methodology 3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 39 3.2 Research approach.......................................................................................................... 39 6 3.3 Research design .............................................................................................................. 40 3.4 Conducting research through a case study: Mala Mala Game Reserve ......................... 42 3.5 Data Collection ............................................................................................................... 44 3.6 Interviews ....................................................................................................................... 45 3.7 Direct observations ......................................................................................................... 48 3.8 Data Analysis ................................................................................................................. 49 3.9 Limitations of the study.................................................................................................. 51 3.10 Ethical considerations .................................................................................................. 53 3.11 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 54 Chapter 4: The Commodification of Nature 4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................... 56 4.2 Theoretical understanding of nature’s commodification ............................................... 56 4.3 The history of Sabi Sand Complex ................................................................................ 63 4.4 Contextualising the history of Mala Mala Game Reserve in the Sabi Sand Complex... 71 4.5 Contemporary dynamics of Mala Mala Game Reserve ................................................. 76 4.6 Conclusion .....................................................................................................................