1. The South African Society of Archivists & Limpopo Provincial Archives 8-10 July 2015, Limpopo Province “National Archival and Records System”

3. 1. INTRODUCTION 2. CONTEXTUAL SETTING 3. BMS PRE-COLONIAL STORIES WITHIN THE ARCHIVAL AND RECORD SYSTEMS 3.1 The pre-colonial historical gap 3.2 Archaeology, Rock Art and oral evidence 4. EARLY EUROPEANS AND MISSIONARIES RECORDS 5. COLONIAL AND APARTHEID SYSTEMS 6. POST- COLONIAL/APARTHEID SYSTEMS 6.1 New dispensation 6.2 Efforts to close the pre-colonial gap through Archaeology, Rock Art and Oral History projects 7.CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

4.  The current archival records preserved in South Africa’s mainstream archives largely consist of documents and materials which were generated after the arrival of Europeans in this part of the world.  Communities in rural, peripheral areas in the countryside rarely participate in the mainstream archiving and record keeping systems throughout the world.  Archiving systems became a prerogative and domain of the victorious European occupying forces, while the local African communities were passive subjects.  This paper is an opinion piece of work which focuses on the Blouberg- Makgabeng-Senwabarwana (BMS) area as a case study.  The paper investigates the gap in the mainstream archival and records system that resulted from the non-participation of indigenous local communities due to the historical phenomena.  The paper adopts a chronological approach from the pre-colonial era; colonial/apartheid period; up to the post-colonial/-apartheid times.  It concludes by making recommendations on how communities in the BMS area (and in other areas) could be drawn into systematically participating into formal, coordinated ways in order to contribute to the entire, mainstream archival and records system from local, regional and national levels in South Africa.

5.  The BMS area is a geo-cultural heritage landscape found towards the north-western corner of the province of Limpopo, almost next to the South Africa’s borders with Botswana and Zimbabwe.  Scenic beauty; fauna and flora; rich in cultural heritage and living heritage (especially performing arts).  Thoroughly researched and documented by various institutions and professionals including historians, archaeologists, anthropologists, zoologists, botanists, geologists, rock art students, etc.

7. 3.1 The pre-colonial gap  The pre-colonial indigenous communities like those of the BMS areas did not “read and write” as reading and writing are understood today.  They used their own ways of “reading and writing” embodied in what is today generally referred to as indigenous knowledge systems.  Deliberate intent to suppress the indigenous communities’ histories, heritage and cultures – which was part of a bigger scheme of political colonial project of subjugating indigenous communities – the local content was never regarded as mainstream.

8.  Archaeological and rock art evidence indicate that before the arrival of the first early European explorers, hunters, traders and travellers, and later the missionaries as well as the Boer and British colonial settlers around BMS, the area was home to the indigenous San, Khoikhoi and the Bantu- speaking communities

9.  With the colonial project of subjugating indigenous communities, the colonial powers’ systems became dominant official mainstream in all walks of life: political, social, economic, religious, educational, etc.  As a result, today national archives are full of paper, electronic, audio-visual and microfilm records starting with the arrival of Europeans this part of the world, while the period prior to that does not have records.  Earliest Europeans 15 th century (Vasco da Gama, Bartholomeo Dias) – in BMS – hunters, traders, etc such as Coenraad du Buys.  Missionaries – more permanent – BMS (German Lutherans 1868 Sehlong/Leipzig 1870 Makgabeng, Ga Monyebodi: Beyer, Stech, Baumbach, Herbst, Sonntag, Franz, etc).  Role of missionaries in colonial project.  Abundant records produced.

10.  Colonial settlement – 1652 “discovery”.  The British occupation – 1795.  The 1830s Great Trek.  The 1899-902 “Anglo-Boer” War.  The 1910 Union.  1948 NP apartheid – Afrikaner heritage entrenchment.  Homelands/Bantustans.  In all these historical epochs, massive Eurocentric records generated which are abundant in archives today.

11. 6.1. New dispensation – post 1994  Policy frameworks, legislation.  Democracy – people participated (inclusive approach). 6.2. Efforts to close historical gap with Archaeology, Rock Arts and Oral History projects, BMS area:  Archaeological research by National History and Cultural Museum (Dr. Johny van Schalkwyk – under-students such as Phophi Raletjena).  Wits University Rock Art Institute (Prof Benjamin Smith).  Rock Art research and documenting by Ed Eastwood, Jonas Tlouamma, Elias Raseruthe and others.  Limpopo SAHRA Oral History Project of 2002.  Limpopo Heritage Resources Authority’s works: declaration of the Malebogo-Boer War Battlefields as Provincial Heritage Site in 2007 (Makgabeng was earmarked for national and UNESCO eventually).  NHC – funded Malebogo-Boer War Documentary 2007-8.

12.  This paper concludes by noting that community participation in national and archival system is essential so that the records in the archives could reflect and represent the South African society in its entirety, as compared to the previous records characterised by historically-induced gaps.  The paper recommends that the present and future governments should continue on a transformational trajectory and channel more efforts and resources in ensuring that the stories, histories and heritage of the previously excluded and oppressed indigenous communities are well researched, well documented, and well archived into the mainstream.