Die rol van die owerheid in die voorsiening van georganiseerde maatskaplike welsynsdiens in Suid-Afrika, 1902-1995

Abstract

Welfare has always been an integral part of all communities all over the world. Helping those less fortunate or in need, has been a part of society since time began. Therefore, it is not strange that almost always, private organizations were formed to care for the need, before state intervention. The indigenous people of South Africa were no exception to this. The members of a tribe lived in close proximity to each other and they inevitably depended on each other for food, shelter and clothing. Communal belongings were a part of daily life and everyone had as little or as much as his neighbour. Their attitude towards the social welfare of the community could be seen as social care which developed spontaneously. In the traditional communities in South Africa, the chief, however, did not play any vital role in the administration of welfare services. The introduction of Western-like ideas, cultures and traditions brought about a change in the traditional life of the peoples of South Africa in 1652. The VOC and British governments saw in the black, coloured and Indian populations of the country, a rich resource of labour which was to be harvested to the benefit of the white ruling class. The various colonial and republican governments did not play an active part in the provision of welfare services in the first 250 years after Jan van Riebeeck settled at the Cape in 1652. The various governments did, however, from time to time, as a specific need arose, proclaim laws to help the destitute. Examples hereof are the "Meesters en Dienstboden" Act of 1856, which provided better circumstances for servants, and the Friendly Societies Act of 1882, which helped the establishment of societies to help the destitute financially, or with the provision of food and other commodities. The discovery of minerals during the 1860's in South Africa, brought about large scale urbanization of all the population groups. All populations had difficulty adapting to city life and industrial surroundings. Poverty of inhabitants of the country led to the so-called poor white ("Armblanke") problem and the poor black problem which continued well into the twentieth century. This resulted in the churches becoming more closely involved in welfare. It was particularly the white people who benefited. The government's response was only to proclaim legislation aimed at solving the social problems that particular and non-particular organizations had requested. The South African War (1899 - 1902), and the devastation accompanying it, brought not only a change of governments, but also a different attitude within central government. The British administration in South Africa helped thousands of displaced citizens of the former South African Republic and Orange Free State, to relocate. Compensation, such as food, shelter and clothing, as well as agricultural equipment, was provided. All population groups were affected during the War. Although the British government assisted people to a large extent, the different populations were not treated equally. All of this led to a worsening of the social crisis in South Africa. It was also during the South African War that the country experienced an increase in the number of private welfare organizations. With help from British welfare organizations, the South African organizations attempted to alleviate the suffering of the men, women and children in the concentration and prisoner-of-war camps. People like Emily Hobhouse, Joshua Rowntree and Fox Bourne, and particular organizations like the Friendly Societies can be mentioned in this regard. Since the unification of the four British colonies in 1910, and until the early 1930's, the South African government, true to the international ideology, did not involve itself too directly in welfare activities. There was no governmental department concentrating on the welfare situation of the different populations. The government's role in welfare, during the period between 191 0 and 1931, was largely restricted to the passing of a number of laws, to alleviate social problems. These laws mainly concentrated on the disabled, the child, and those left desolate by the Great War of 1914- 1918, and the resulting economic problems in the country. It was the Great Depression of 1929, and the influence it had on South Africa, combined with the insistence of the Afrikaner cultural, religious and economical organizations, like the Carnegie Commission, that activated the government into taking the responsibility for official welfare activities. In 193 7, the government's involvement led to the establishment of the Department of Welfare. Since its inception this department took responsibility for the planning and implementing of official welfare services and welfare policy. In this regard it is important to point out the role played by Dr H F Verwoerd, especially as he was to have a great influence on South Africa's history in the future. As Head of the Department of Social Work at the University of Stellenbosch, and prominent leader at the "Volkskongres" of 1934, he played a vital role in the formation of the Department of Welfare in 1937. From 193 7 onwards, the Department of Welfare concentrated on establishing new services, and expanding the existing services for the different population groups. The government stated clearly that it cannot and would not take sole responsibility for welfare services and programmes, but that it will work in unison with established welfare organizations. The government's main reason for this policy was the lack of highly trained welfare personnel, and the fact that the newly formed Department of Welfare was still in a process of establishing its own work method. Therefore an individual had to provide for himself, while the aim of state and particular welfare organizations were only to enable a person to be self-sufficient. In this, the state provided the legal framework for this co-operation and granted subsidies to various organizations, to provide welfare services to especially the needy, aged, or disabled. An outstanding characteristic of the government's role in welfare, since 1938, has been that there have always been more services provided for the white population than for the other population groups. This principle was further endorsed, after 1948, with the introduction of the National Party's apartheid policy. Welfare services rendered by the Department of Welfare were then divided between the different departments of government responsible for the different populations. This meant that, instead of a core personnel dealing with welfare affairs, four departments were involved and a special interdepartmental commission had to be established to co-ordinate the welfare services. In essence, it meant more people, more money-output, and a duplication of infrastructural needs for which John Citizen had to pay. Due to the changing nature of South Africa, the government did concentrate more on expanding existing welfare schemes and programmes, amongst these were child abuse, care of the aged and the disabled. Research into social problems and contact with overseas countries in this regard, became an important aspect of the state's welfare planning and renewal as from the 1960's. More emphasis was also placed on in-service training and the ability of social workers to keep abreast with the newest methods and techniques in use. The government required that the expertise and knowledge of social workers employed in its service had to be kept on a par with those of outside countries. At the beginning of the 1980's, the black, Indian and Coloured populations continually expressed a desire for gaining greater responsibility for the planning and managing of the welfare services for the respective populations. The 1984 tri-chamber parliament offered some consolation to the Indian and Coloured populations. The black population still did not have any representation politically, or direct involvement, at government level, in their welfare activities. The official policy of the government therefore was that the welfare services for blacks should still be co-ordinated, administrated and structured from the different homelands. Only in 1994, with the election and the inauguration of the first democratic government of South Africa, all the welfare services for the four population groups were combined into one Department of Welfare. The combining of the various government orchestrated welfare services, typified the commitment of the government to the democratic principle of equality.