VU UNIVERSITY AMSTERDAM SHIFTING SPECIES IN SOUTH AFRICA Wildlife Policy, Rural Consequences By Dhoya Snijders Reading committee: Prof. dr. Dan Brockington Prof. dr. René van der Duim Prof. dr. Dvora Yanow Dr. William Ellis Dr. Sandra Evers © 2015 Dhoya Snijders Cover design: Kelly Sue Cram Printed by Ridderprint, Ridderkerk All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. VRIJE UNIVERSITEIT SHIFTING SPECIES IN SOUTH AFRICA Wildlife Policy, Rural Consequences ACADEMISCH PROEFSCHRIFT ter verkrijging van de graad Doctor aan de Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, op gezag van de rector magnificus prof.dr. F.A. van der Duyn Schouten, in het openbaar te verdedigen ten overstaan van de promotiecommissie van de Faculteit der Sociale Wetenschappen op dinsdag 10 februari 2015 om 15.45 uur in het auditorium van de universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105 door Dhoya Snijders geboren te Lelystad promotor: prof.dr. H. Ghorashi copromotoren: dr. M.J. Spierenburg dr. H. Wels Table of Contents Preface .............................................................................................................................. 7 Chapter I Opening .............................................................................................................. 13 Chapter II Organizing Wild Property .................................................................................. 35 Chapter III A New Farming Game ....................................................................................... 64 Chapter IV ‘n Boer maak ‘n Plan ....................................................................................... 101 Chapter V A Rush of Blood .............................................................................................. 148 Chapter VI Making up Species ........................................................................................... 193 Chapter VII Fifty Shades of Green ...................................................................................... 225 Chapter VIII Closing ............................................................................................................. 248 Bibliography .......................................................................................................................... 261 List of Acronyms and Abbreviations ..................................................................................... 276 Politiek Dier – Nederlandse Samenvatting ............................................................................ 277 About the Author ................................................................................................................... 286 Preface I expected to see wildlife when flying into South Africa, but not so soon. And not so abundant. When first flying to South Africa I stepped into a full plane that had no more isle or window seats. Cramped into a middle seat I found a British wildlife painter, who was headed for a private game reserve to teach and be inspired, on my left. On my right was a Dutch businessman who planned to top off his stay with a safari in the Kruger. I told them about my research on wildlife policy and its rural consequences. Soon after taking off the screens in front of us displayed a nature documentary about a pack of surikats. A magazine in the seat pocket had a special section on whale watching. It also advertised tented safari camps, which lured one ‘to experience the romantic Africa of yesteryear in luxury and comfort’. ‘Outdoor showers, Jacuzzis and private pools spell ROMANCE!’, it said. Upon landing I found out that one need not be a naturalist or professional hunter to spot game at Johannesburg International Airport. Only a few steps from the plane there were herds of bucks turned into rugs, zebras which now served as cushions, boots made out of crocodile leather, purses consisting of ostrich leather and venison steaks served on hot plates. I was welcomed by a live size elephant artwork that featured as the logo of a local liquor, by crisps packets that were imprinted with roaring lions and ads for a delivery company that showed cheetahs to accentuate its speed of delivery. T-shirts, postcards, pens, paintings, sculptures, placemats, cups, all presented wildlife. South African sport merchandise, most famously of the national rugby team the Springboks, but also of local teams such as the Sharks, Bulls, or Cheetahs, was recognizable from far by their animal emblems. Advertisements on the wall brought wilderness decorum closer by. Placards were filled with vast plains, romantic sunsets, lush waterfalls, dramatic mountain ranges and were distorted only by brand names and slogans. Other posters showed tear-jerking animals, which were set up to be awareness campaigners and cried out at tourists to be conscientious with wildlife: ‘if you don’t buy, we don’t die’!1 The connection between South African society and wildlife is perhaps most clearly spelled out at the bank teller. As one commands Rands2 from the machine, one’s Euros, yens, or dollars are transformed into a parade of printed wild beasts, which are carefully sorted, piled, and transferred to you. All of South Africa’s wildlife star cast, commonly known as the Big Five, are present. The rhinoceros watches over the 10 rand note, Elephants are on the 20, Lions 1 Think Twice campaign by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) and the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) 2 As of July 21, 2014, 1 Euro equals 14,35 Rands. 7 on the 50, Cape Buffaloes on the 100 and Leopards mark the 200 rand bill.3 The other sides of the notes depict the leading economic sectors: agriculture, mining, manufacturing, tourism, transport and communication. After paying with the notes, they break into loose change with depictions of kudus, gnus, springbucks, birds or flowers. Before leaving the airport it dawned on me that wildlife is knotted into the heart of South Africa’s economy, in myriad ways. Over the next few years I set out to untie some of these knots. This dissertation is the result. Before I start I would like to note that these knots could not be untied by myself alone. I would like to thank a number of persons who showed me new ways to look at knots, who gave me insight in entanglements, helped pull strings, fasten concepts and loosen tension. Firstly, this work would not be if it was not for Harry Wels. After attending his lectures as a bachelor’s student I knew I wanted to visit Southern Africa and read, write, study, and talk about it. What is more is that once I approached him, he enabled it. Under his supervision I travelled to Pretoria for half a year in 2005 and did research on affirmative action on the South African labour market (Snijders, 2006). When I spoke to him after graduation, he triggered me to get involved in research on interspecies relationships in South Africa. This work is the outcome. I could write a lot about the inspiration I gained from working with Harry, the support he gave to push me to bring this trajectory to an end, and the excitement we shared, but for now I will leave you with one anecdote which illustrates our pooled passion. In February 2011 we met up in Kwazulu Natal to host a workshop on game farm conversions for research respondents. We came to share a room and as we unpacked our bags and took out the book we had brought for leisure reading we looked at each other and laughed. Without ever talking about it, we had both brought exactly the same book, ‘When Species Meet’ (Haraway, 2007). Harry, you have been a truly inspirational force in my life and have showed me what brightness can come about when species meet. Halleh Ghorashi, undoubtedly, was constitutional for this work. Another inspirational force from my student times, our professional paths crossed again when we visited a conference on ‘Classification & its consequences’ in Durban. Together with Dvora Yanow we travelled to Hluhluwe game reserve, the oldest proclaimed natural park in Africa, and had close encounters with elephants as well as each other. I will never forget our late night ‘braai’ there, in which we improvised everything from cutlery to seasoning. Thankful I am to you especially Halleh for stepping in as my promotor when I found myself in a PhD-pickle and started to lose grip 3 For decades no human featured on South Africa’s currency, just wildlife, but by the end of my fieldwork in 2012 South Africa’s former president Nelson Mandela joined the Big Five. 8 on the trajectory. Working with you gave me the focus and energy that was needed to export my beliefs and findings to paper. Very special thanks go out to Marja Spierenburg who involved me in the project from a very early stage and was always available for questions, advice, readings, comments and support. From Groningen to the Cape, thank you for all those good times we wined, dined, and mined data. Then there is Femke Brandt, who cannot simply be classified as a former colleague. She has traversed between the categories colleague, housemate, sports coach, mirror, rival, and above all, friend. Heidi Dahles I wish to thank for all the work she put into this project; your dissertation ‘Men in Green’ taught me how to fit in with hunters in South Africa and with social scientists back home. I loved working with Shirley Brooks on papers and projects; sometimes we would not see each other for months and then a single