The positions of the Afrikaners in the New South Africa

The aim of this thesis is to investigate conditions of the Afrikaners in the "New" Republic of South Africa and whether the Afrikaners have a strong desire for claiming their right for self-determination and would be able to establish their own ethnic-state, so-called volkstaat. The Afrikaners are a significant minority, the descendants of the Western European settlers who came to South Africa in the 17th century and during the following centuries they developed their own culture, language, religion and national heritage including their own national identity and politics. The strong national awareness, patriotism and the affiliation with the new-born nation gave the birth for the Afrikaner nationalism, which was enhanced with the important historical event, today known as the Great Trek and series of the Anglo- Boer Wars. The Afrikaner National Party was a leading proponent of the racial segregation and proposed the idea of apartheid under the persuasion of the white supremacy and the political dominance of so-called whiteness. In 1994, when the racial equality was promoted and the black African National Congress came into power, the Afrikaners became politically underrepresented and economically, socially and culturally marginalized. This article examines changes and the current positions of the..