1. The 'rhinofication' of South African security
- Author:
- Jasper Humphreys and M. L. R. Smith
- Publication Date:
- 07-2014
- Content Type:
- Journal Article
- Institution:
- Chatham House
- Abstract:
- Counter-poaching operations in South Africa's so-called 'rhino wars' have seen increasing use of kinetic strategies and tactics. It can be argued that this follows the country's historical tendency to react to threats with confrontation in the first instance rather than negotiation, as leaders invoke images of 'backs-to-the-wall' isolation. During the apartheid period the National Party strongly promoted patriotism and self-sacrifice, portraying South Africa as facing 'total onslaught'; today, the rhetoric of 'rhino wars' is often framed in similar terms, not least because the person leading the rhinoceros counter-poaching campaign, Major General Johan Jooste (retired), was himself heavily involved in the 'apartheid wars' in the latter half of the twentieth century.
- Topic:
- War
- Political Geography:
- South Africa