I had the most enlightening conversation with a friend of mine from the Coloured community in Cape Town this morning. He is a firm supporter of Front National and asked me to explain where the Coloured community fits into the picture according to FN.
Exactly where the Khoisan, the Indian, the white and the black community fits into the picture. Let me explain:
South Africa is probably one of the most diverse multicultural nations in the world. We are a country of minorities. By that we mean, there is simply no such thing as purely a white South African Coloured South African or black South African. In the white community we have Afrikaners, Boere, English speaking white people, Greeks speaking whites etc. The Coloured community includes Cape Malay, Northern and Eastern Cape Coloured people, Cape Coloured, Griqua etc. In the black population we have a number of tribes.
To compare our composition of ethnicities and cultures to, for example that of the USA, is a fatal mistake. In the USA white Americans, black Americans, Hispanic Americans basically share a common heritage, customs, set of values, religion and a more reconcilable cultural output than what we have here.
In the light of this we need to understand that Front National:
1) Never wants the white man to be in charge of the destiny of any other minority ever again.
2) Would like every single minority group to have the right to self determination and peaceful co-existence. If the Zulu people wants a Zulu Kingdom, by all means, let it be. If the isiXhosa people (both the tribes) wants traditional isiXhosa lands to be the home of the isisXhosa people, let it be so. If the Khoisan people wants to rule over the Khoisan people in the lands that legally belong to them, then it must be so. And this applies to the Coloured people and the white people and the Indian people. And to every black tribe in this country. We all belong here, but not when we want to rule over each other.
3) We are more than willing to work together as equals to help every minority group to defend, demand and achieve self determination.
The question my friend asked was: Where do I belong as a Coloured man? To that my response would be: Where you are. This is as much your country of birth as it is mine. It has now become time for the coloured people of our country to embrace, defend and protect the very uniqueness of their culture, values and heritage.
In a previous dispensation the Coloured people were regarded as not quite “white” enough to be taken into account. In the current dispensation the Coloured people are suddenly not quite black enough. And the same applies to the Indian population, Khoisan population, Griqua population. There is no need to be ethnically “acceptable” to anybody. You are who you are. Cherish that.
We accept that, between White, Coloured, Indian, Khoisan, Griqua we have different cultures, values, ambitions…even religions. The time is now for these groups to start forming themselves into political groupings demanding their right to be who they are and to defend who they are and to determine their destiny. And to exist peacefully along with the rest in this country.
If that can happen, Front National would fight tooth and nail alongside to create for each of these groups what we want for ourselves: the right to govern ourselves and be who we are and live in peace with our neighbours.
We have heard from a number of coloured and Indian voters, over the last weeks in particular: If Front National can give me the assurance that you don’t regard me as an inferior human being but as a person whose right to be who I am is respected, I give you my support.
You don’t even have to pledge your support to get that assurance from Front National. Because we do.
Read the original article on Front Nasionaal SA
South Africa Today – South Africa News
