Brotherhood of Afrikaners

The organization was founded on June 5, 1918 in a suburb of Johannesburg . The initiators were four young representatives of the Afrikaans intelligentsia and entrepreneurship - Henning Johannes Klopper , Hendrick Willem van der Merwe , Daniel du Plessis , Joshua Francois Naude ^[3] . The original organization was named Young South Africa ( African. Jong Zuid Afrika ). In 1920, the name Afrikaner Broederbond Brothers Union was adopted . ^[4] The first chairman was Henning Klopper secretary - Daniel du Plessis ^[5] . Klopper and du Plessis were employees of the railway company, van der Merwe - a businessman, Naude - a lawyer and a deputy of the city council of Petersburg .

The goal of the association was to protect the Afrikaner culture from British influence and domination, as well as to increase the economic well-being of the Afrikaner community. The organization’s ideology was Christian socialism ^[6] . Formally, the organization was not political in nature. However, the promising goal was the elimination of British colonial rule and the establishment of the Baasskap , the leadership of Afrikaners in South Africa. In fact, it was a revenge for the defeat in the Boer War . This was supposed to be achieved through gaining economic dominance and penetration into the organs of political power.

The activities of Bruderbond caused great suspicion and a negative reaction from the authorities. In 1921, Bruderbond moved to an illegal position. The selection criteria and conditions for admission were very stringent.

Allowed exclusively white male Afrikaners of Calvinistic faith, parishioners of the Dutch Reformed Church , natives of South Africa, who have independent income and speak Afrikaans . In all these points, the contrast between the English-speaking British and the Anglicans was emphasized. The problems of relations with blacks were not considered paramount then, and the presence of colored ones was considered as a consequence of the British migration policy.

The organizational structure of Bruderbond was built according to the type of underground groups, Masonic lodges and the mafia . There were cells of 5 to 20 people. The new entrants were required to recommend two current members of the Brotherhood, an obligation of mutual fidelity, obedience to leadership and observance of conspiracy.

Cells were linked territorially and periodically held regional meetings. Every two years, the National Congress of Bruderbond met, electing a chairman and an Executive Council of 10 people.

The African Brothers actively promoted traditional Boer values ​​and ideas of African nationalism . An important place was occupied by the cult of events of the 19th century - the Great Track , the Battle of the Bloody River , and the Boer War. The Boer republics and the traditional social order were idealized. The colonial orders and the bureaucracy of the British administration were sharply criticized. This propaganda resonated among Afrikaner farmers, city employees and local entrepreneurs.

Bruderbond pinned great hopes on the government of the Afrikaner James Herzog (a participant in the Boer War on the part of the Orange Republic), who came to power in 1924. However, from 1927 it became apparent that the Duke did not intend to change the status of South Africa as the dominion of Great Britain and would not restore Boer republican statehood. But under his government, conditions were created to expand the social and economic influence of Bruderbond. Under the influence of the Brotherhood, a federation of cultural organization Afrikaans was created, an association of Afrikaans commercial structures and several banks. Influential Afrikaner scientists, professors, scientists and cultural figures adjoined Bruderbond.

In 1934, the James Herzog National Party teamed up with the more moderate South African party of Ian Smuts . This aroused the indignation of the radical Afrikaners, whose leader was Daniel Francois Malan . Successive African nationalists consolidated around Malan, which was in Bruderbond (the chairmen of the organization in the second half of the 1930s were Johannes van Ruy Nikolaas Diderichs ).

During the Second World War, Bruderbond supported the state of the Hitler Axis . This created the Brotherhood of Afrikaners a stable image of a fascist organization. This characteristic was largely true of Ossevabrandvag activists. However, many leaders and members of Bruderbond professed traditional conservative views and were not adherents of Nazism and fascism. But they sympathized with the Nazi Reich as an anti-British force and associated with its success the prospect of South African independence from the British Empire .

In the 1948 election, the National Party won. The government of South Africa was headed by Daniel Francois Malan. In the white community, the predominance of the English-speaking elite was broken, and Afrikaners dominated. With respect to the black majority, a policy of apartheid has begun. Bruderbond actually came to power.

Nevertheless, under the new conditions, the Brotherhood of Afrikaners retained the character of a secret organization. Bruderbond has become a kind of " think tank " of the ruling regime. Government decisions long before the public announcement behind the scenes were discussed at meetings of the Brotherhood. All the prime ministers and presidents of South Africa-South Africa from 1948 to 1994 - Daniel Francois Malan, Charles Swart , Johannes Streid , Theofilus Dönges , Hendrik Fervurd , Joshua Naude, Jacobus Foucher , Baltazar Forster , Johannes de Clerk , Nikolaas Dide , Peter Botha , Frederic de Clerk - were members of Bruderbond.

Within these walls, Dr. Malan tediously preached African ideas. For many years Vervurd’s sinister voice sounded here. Now on the podium is Balthazar Johannes Forster.
Arkady Butlitsky, The Stigma of Bruderbond ^[7] .

The organization also included the majority of members of the government, hierarchs of the Dutch Reformed Church of South Africa, scientists and ideologists of Afrikaner nationalism, senior officers of the army, police and special services. In particular, an influential member of Bruderbond was Hendrik van den Berg , Director of the State Security Bureau, and Constand Filyun, Commander of the Armed Forces of South Africa .

At the same time, current leaders of the state were not formally chairmen of Bruderbond. This post was usually occupied by representatives of professors, journalism, and church circles.

The ideology and practice of apartheid, including racist and repressive politics, were associated with Bruderbond. In the USSR, the apartheid regime of South Africa was seen as “the most reactionary on the planet,” and South Africa as “the only state ruled by Hitler’s direct allies” (a hint of the participation of some Bruderbond leaders in Ossevabrandvag).

The existence of a secret Brotherhood of Afrikaners was known both in South Africa and in the world as a whole. However, a detailed study was published only in 1978. Ivor Wilkins and Hans Strade published the book The Super-Afrikaners: Inside the Afrikaner Broederbond - Super-Afrikaners: Bruderbond from the Inside ^[4] . For the first time, the reliable names of influential members of the organization became public. The chairman of Bruderbond at that time was professor-literary critic Geert Filyun , head of the administration of South West Africa , later the Minister of Education and Minister of Constitutional Development in the governments of Peter Bota and Frederick de Klerk. According to the authors, the organization totaled about 17 thousand members.

Despite the close interweaving, Bruderbond’s relations with the governments of the National Party were not unproblematic. The authorities often proceeded from considerations of state pragmatism, while the Brotherhood adhered to rigid ideological positions. Bruderbond’s leverage, on the other hand, was used by Prime Minister Forster to stifle liberal tendencies in the white community.

The greatest difficulties were noted during the reign of Peter Botha. Acute contradictions arose between Prime Minister Reformer Botha and the ultra-conservative chairman of Bruderbond, theologian professor Carl Boschoff . In 1982, far-right activists of the Brotherhood supported the creation of an opposition Conservative Party Botha, led by former chairman of Bruderbond Andris Treurnicht . Relations have normalized since 1983, when Boshoff was replaced by a more compromise chairman, rector of one of Johannesburg universities, Peter de Lange .

Bruderbond's last major initiative was the concept paper, Basic Political Conditions for the Continued Survival of Afrikaners, published in 1986. The text reflected de Lange's reformist approaches, which foresaw much in the further development of South Africa. Reform advocate was General Constand Filyun. The authors of the concept proposed to organize a political dialogue with the ANC , to allow representatives of the Negro majority into the government, and even considered it possible for a Negro to remain in the presidency ^[8] .

The task of Afrikaner’s policy was no longer the preservation of apartheid, but the prevention of communization and sovietization of South Africa (similar to the Angolan MPLA regime). On the common platform of anti-communism, rapprochement with the right - wing organizations of black Africans, especially the Zulu party of Inkata Mangosutu Butelesi, was considered appropriate.

In 1989, the provisions of the 1986 Bruderbond Document were used in the programmatic Concept for Political Dialogue proposed by President de Clerk. On this basis, interracial negotiations were conducted, leading to the dismantling of apartheid.

Large-scale reforms of the early 1990s changed the character of Bruderbond. In 1993, the Brotherhood of Afrikaners declared itself an open organization and began public activities. Membership was allowed to women and members of all racial and ethnic groups. The new name Afrikanerbond has come into use - the Union of Afrikaners .

The organization formally recognized the principles of democracy. Membership terms remained “service to South Africa,” fluency in Afrikaans, and advocacy of “cultural identities that speak Afrikaans.” The new chairman of the organization was African activist Tom de Beer.

The influence of the organization has decreased markedly:

We used to be able to make a phone call, and a member of the government immediately appeared on the other end. Now we don’t even know their names. The hardest thing to get used to.
Tom de Beer, 1996 ^[9] .

Nevertheless, back in the late 1990s, the Afrikaners' Union consisted of up to 14 thousand people, including about two hundred "color" ones. Tom de Beer stated that the organization can act as an intermediary between the ANC government and the African community ^[10] . However, the main activity of the organization is to cultivate the cultural traditions of Afrikaners.

• Ossevabrandvag