Afrikaner's complain to BBC about misrepresentation

[Orania is a small Afrikaner community. These people are the pioneers, paving the way for Afrikaner autonomy. They live in a small town where White people do everything for themselves. No black labour is used. I believe this is the way - the way of the future for us Whites in Africa.

Here is an email to the BBC wherein they complain about misrepresentation.

For your interest, they have their own mailing list on Yahoogroups. See below. Jan]

To: Oraniagesprek@yahoogroups.com

Subject: [Oraniagesprek] Critique of the BBC

Dear readers,

not having heard back from the BBC I decided to send them another message.

This time I hope to hear a response. If not I'll continue to write in. Not being an Afrikaner, I hope that I have represented the Afrikaner truthfully and fairly.

Aaron

Dear BBC,

Some weeks back I wrote a message expressing frustration with the manner in which the town of Orania was being referred to in BBC reporting. Despite my request for a response I have not yet received one. Since then, I have been made aware of a number of more articulate complaints of the same nature so I will not resend my original message.

What I would like to point out is the nature of your reporting on Orania and the Afrikaner people in general which I, and others, find to be consistently negative and misleading.

The BBC is widely considered to be a champion of minority rights and other reports on African minorities are sympathetic and supporting. Not so the Afrikaner. The town of Orania comes under particular attack and is described as racist. In fact your four previous articles on Orania have all contained the words 'Whites only' in the title. This is in strong contrast to your reporting on other South African minorities including the Zulu and Bushmen peoples.

No doubt the BBC is aware of the threat to minority cultures which are, at least in part, a consequence of globalization. The BBC itself reported earlier this month (06.01.05) that some 2000 African languages are under threat of extinction. The Afrikaans language is one of those languages.

Efforts of South Africa's ruling party to encourage English and other, native, languages in the education system have included the forcing of Afrikaner founded universities and schools to abandon their historical use of Afrikaans as a language of instruction. These efforts have caused great distress amongst the minority Afrikaner population.

The goal of Orania is, in large part, the conservation of the centuries old Afrikaans culture, of which language is a critical element. Surely the preservation of an indigenous African language and culture is a good thing.

In the long term, many Afrikaners believe that a degree of autonomy is necessary for the preservation of their culture. In a sign of the maturity of South Africa's democracy, the right to autonomy is permitted under the country's constitution. This right is being expressed by the citizens of Orania.

A critical flaw in your reporting on Orania is the context in which the town is considered by many Afrikaners who believe the town and others like it, necessary. Since 1994, nearly two thousand Afrikaner farmers have been murdered including many women and children. It is widely assumed in the Afrikaner community that the motive for these attacks has been anti-Afrikaner racism. Many members of the Afrikaner minority believe autonomy to be the best measure against these threats to personal safety.

Orania's primary economic activity is agricultural and many have re-settled there to escape danger.

Furthermore, it is the objective of the ruling ANC party to implement "land reform" whereby Afrikaners are to be disposed of their property. It is also worth highlighting that the leadership of the ANC has not criticized the methods used by neighbouring Zimbabwe in their implementation of "land reform" and in some cases praised it as the BBC has itself reported (11.08.05). The seizure of Afrikaner owned farms has already begun and, according to the government, will be stepped up.

It is irresponsible for the BBC to report on the town of Orania without including the context of farm murders and the appropriation of their land.

To do so creates a seriously distorted picture of the Afrikaner minority * a minority that has very real fears of its continued existence in light of Africa's tragic record on minority rights.

I encourage the BBC to significantly improve its reporting on the issue of both Afrikaners and their efforts at autonomy as highlighted by the town of Orania. The Afrikaner community will no doubt be watching with expectation.

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