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Natives, tourists, and makwerekwere: Ethical concerns with 'Proudly South African' tourism

Publication ,  Journal Article
Mathers, K; Landau, L
Published in: Development Southern Africa
September 1, 2007

South Africa wants to be the African destination for tourists from the continent and elsewhere in the world. Its ambitions rely on an amorphous 'African' brand that simultaneously positions itself as quintessentially African and 'not African'. Examining this tension reveals at least three contradictions implicit in South Africa's current tourist strategies. The first is a schizophrenic response to Africans from elsewhere on the continent who are at once a critical component of South Africa's Africanness, mighty consumers, widely touted as criminals, seen as burdens on the state, and deported by the tens of thousands. The second is the tourist industry's empowering previously disadvantaged South Africans as its raison d'être, while relying heavily on colonial imagery that is inherently (if implicitly) racist. The third is the way it profits from the country's democratic transformation but to a large degree remains symbolically and financially inaccessible to most of its citizens. This article argues that as long as South African tourism is about an African brand while denying its African spaces and people, it will struggle to become a sustainable and ethical industry.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Development Southern Africa

DOI

EISSN

1470-3637

ISSN

0376-835X

Publication Date

September 1, 2007

Volume

24

Issue

3

Start / End Page

523 / 537

Related Subject Headings

  • Development Studies
  • 4404 Development studies
  • 1402 Applied Economics
 

Citation

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Mathers, K., & Landau, L. (2007). Natives, tourists, and makwerekwere: Ethical concerns with 'Proudly South African' tourism. Development Southern Africa, 24(3), 523–537. https://doi.org/10.1080/03768350701445632
Mathers, K., and L. Landau. “Natives, tourists, and makwerekwere: Ethical concerns with 'Proudly South African' tourism.” Development Southern Africa 24, no. 3 (September 1, 2007): 523–37. https://doi.org/10.1080/03768350701445632.
Mathers K, Landau L. Natives, tourists, and makwerekwere: Ethical concerns with 'Proudly South African' tourism. Development Southern Africa. 2007 Sep 1;24(3):523–37.
Mathers, K., and L. Landau. “Natives, tourists, and makwerekwere: Ethical concerns with 'Proudly South African' tourism.” Development Southern Africa, vol. 24, no. 3, Sept. 2007, pp. 523–37. Scopus, doi:10.1080/03768350701445632.
Mathers K, Landau L. Natives, tourists, and makwerekwere: Ethical concerns with 'Proudly South African' tourism. Development Southern Africa. 2007 Sep 1;24(3):523–537.

Published In

Development Southern Africa

DOI

EISSN

1470-3637

ISSN

0376-835X

Publication Date

September 1, 2007

Volume

24

Issue

3

Start / End Page

523 / 537

Related Subject Headings

  • Development Studies
  • 4404 Development studies
  • 1402 Applied Economics