Different values lead to alternative approaches to the land debate in South Africa

Abstract

In South Africa, two traditional cultures, namely the African and the European cultures, meet, each with its own historical view on what land is and how to govern it. This situation is complicated by modernist ideological thinking represented by capitalism and communism. Goudappel’s urbanistic concept1 is used to show how ideological thinking influences theory and practice when  contemplating the land issue. This answer is not a single approach, but a multiple view on land which allows for different regions, each with its own solution coupled with its cultural background, in order for all the different peoples in this country to have a place in the sun. Therefore, this article gives a theoretical explanation that there are different value systems that influence the approach to possible solutions of the land issue in South Africa.

Keywords: Autonomous regions or city states, land debate, modernist thinking, South Africa, traditional values