Botswana in the Southern African Periphery : the Limits of Capitalist Transformation in a ‘Labour Reserve’

SUMMARY The article examines Botswana's development in the context of ‘constraints’ generated by its position as a small and weak economy in the Southern African region dominated by South Africa, and the relevance of this in the context of a wider world system. Limits on a national, regional and world scale are explored historically and as they have affected post?colonial policies. It is concluded that a strategy of weakening South Africa's regional domination by engaging in new ties of dependence will not release the developmental potential of Botswana, although it has led to a certain amount of economic growth. An alternative development model is suggested. RÉSUMÉ Le Botswana sur la périphérie du sud de l'Afrique : Les limites de la transformation capitaliste dans une ‘réserve de main?d'oeuvre’ L'article examine le développement du Botswana dans le contexte des ‘contraintes’ issues de sa position d'économie limitée et faible de la région du sud de l'Afrique dominée par l'Afrique du Sud, et l'importance de cet état de choses dans le contexte d'un système mondial plus vaste. Les limites sur une échelle nationale, régionale et mondiale sont examinées du point de vue historique et aussi de leur effet sur les politiques post?coloniales. L'auteur conclut en disant qu'une stratégie visant à l'affaiblissement de la domination régionale de l'Afrique du Sud en créant de nouveaux liens de dépendance ne libérera pas le potentiel de développement du Botswana, bien que cela ait amené une certaine croissance économique. L'auteur suggère un autre modèle de développement possible. RESUMEN Botswana en la periferia de Africa Meridonal: los limites de la transformación capitalista en una ‘réserva laboral’ En el artículo se examina el desarrollo de Botswana en el contexto de las ‘restricciones’ generadas por su posición como una economía pequeña y débil en la región de Africa Meridional dominada por Sudáfrica y la influencia de esto en el contexto de un sistema mundial más amplio. Se exploran, desde el punto de vista histórico, los límites a escala nacional, regional y mundial y la manera en que han afectado a las políticas posteriores a la colonia. Se concluye que una estrategia que tienda a debilitar el dominio regional sudafricano estableciendo nuevos vínculos de dependencia no liberará el potencial de desarrollo de Botswana, aunque haya conducido a determinada amplitud de desarrollo económico. Se sugiere un modelo de desarrollo alternativo

Land restitution, traditional leadership and belonging: defining Barokologadi identity

How do government policies and practices affect struggles over collective identity and struggles over land? Examining the interconnections among collective identity struggles, land struggles and state policies and practices in post-apartheid South Africa, this paper argues that the government\u27s contradictory policies and ambivalent practices have aggravated collective struggles over the boundaries of belonging. Specifically, the differing definitions of community set forth in traditional leadership, land tenure and land restitution policies exacerbate existing divisions among ‘communities’ concurrently subject to these policies and create practical policy dilemmas for decision-makers. This paper illustrates the interplay between public policies and collective identity struggles through close examination of struggles among the Barokologadi ba ga Maotwe, a so-called traditional community. The Barokologadi case underscores the necessity of attending to these interactions

The tip cross-sectional areas of poisoned bone arrowheads from southern Africa

Abstract: Current hunter-gatherers from the Kalahari in southern Africa are well-known for their use of poisoned arrowheads, and it is assumed that this tradition spanned most of the Holocene in the region. Recent archaeological work, however, indicates that the techno-behaviour may have originated sometime during the Pleistocene. Tracing the use of poisoned arrowheads through time is not an easy task. Here I explore the use of the tip cross-sectional area (TSCA) metric to analyse relatively large samples of bone points that are ethno-historically associated with Kalahari San poisoned arrow hunting. I add the southern African poisoned bone arrowhead TSCA range to the previous ranges established for North American atlatl dart tips, North American arrowheads and large thrusting spears. Based on the results obtained from 445 artefacts spanning historical, Later and Middle Stone Age phases, I show that poisoned bone arrowheads may have been in use in southern Africa throughout the last 60 000 years, and that a methodical effort to trace stone-tipped poison arrowheads may be warranted

First molar size and wear within and among modern hunter-gatherers and agricultural populations

Apart from reflecting modern human dental variation, differences in dental size among populations provide a means for studying continuous evolutionary processes and their mechanisms. Dental wear, on the other hand, has been widely used to infer dietary adaptations and variability among or within diverse ancient human populations. Few such studies have focused on modern foragers and farmers, however, and diverse methods have been used. This research aimed to apply a single, standardized, and systematic quantitative procedure to measure dental size and dentin exposure in order to analyze differences among several hunter-gatherer and agricultural populations from various environments and geographic origins. In particular, we focused on sexual dimorphism and intergroup differences in the upper and lower first molars. Results indicated no sexual dimorphism in molar size and wear within the studied populations. Despite the great ethnographic variation in subsistence strategies among these populations, our findings suggest that differences in sexual division of labor do not affect dietary wear patterns.The study was funded by grants CGL2010-15340 and CGL2011-22999 (Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia de España) to APP

The Dualism of Contemporary Traditional Governance and the State

In many parts of the world, people live in “dual polities”: they are governed by the state and organize collective decision making within their ethnic community according to traditional rules. We examine the substantial body of works on the traditional–state dualism, focusing on the internal organization of traditional polities, their interaction with the state, and the political consequences of the dualism. We find the descriptions of the internal organization of traditional polities scattered and lacking comparative perspective. The literature on the interaction provides a good starting point for theorizing the strategic role of traditional leaders as intermediaries, but large potentials for inference remain underexploited. Studies on the consequences of “dual polities” for democracy, conflict, and development are promising in their explanatory endeavor, but they do not yet allow for robust conclusions. We therefore propose an institutionalist research agenda addressing the need for theory and for systematic data collection and explanatory approaches

Beetle and plant arrow poisons of the Ju|’hoan and Hai||om San peoples of Namibia (Insecta, Coleoptera, Chrysomelidae; Plantae, Anacardiaceae, Apocynaceae, Burseraceae)

The use of archery to hunt appears relatively late in human history. It is poorly understood but the application of poisons to arrows to increase lethality must have occurred shortly after developing bow hunting methods; these early multi-stage transitions represent cognitive shifts in human evolution. This paper is a synthesis of widely-scattered literature in anthropology, entomology, and chemistry, dealing with San (“Bushmen”) arrow poisons. The term San (or Khoisan) covers many indigenous groups using so-called ‘click languages’ in southern Africa. Beetles are used for arrow poison by at least eight San groups and one non-San group. Fieldwork and interviews with Ju|’hoan and Hai||om hunters in Namibia revealed major differences in the nature and preparation of arrow poisons, bow and arrow construction, and poison antidote. Ju|’hoan hunters use leaf-beetle larvae of Diamphidia Gerstaecker and Polyclada Chevrolat (Chrysomelidae: Galerucinae: Alticini) collected from soil around the host plants Commiphora africana (A. Rich.) Engl. and Commiphora angolensis Engl. (Burseracaeae). In the Nyae Nyae area of Namibia, Ju|’hoan hunters use larvae of Diamphidia nigroornata Ståhl. Larvae and adults live above-ground on the plants and eat leaves, but the San collect the underground cocoons to extract the mature larvae. Larval hemolymph is mixed with saliva and applied to arrows. Hai||om hunters boil the milky plant sap of Adenium bohemianum Schinz (Apocynaceae) to reduce it to a thick paste that is applied to their arrows. The socio-cultural, historical, and ecological contexts of the various San groups may determine differences in the sources and preparation of poisons, bow and arrow technology, hunting behaviors, poison potency, and perhaps antidotes