A historical perspective of the information scandal
| dc.contributor.advisor | Stemmet, J-A. | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Oelofse, M. M. | |
| dc.contributor.author | Haasbroek, Joshua Kruger | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2017-07-14T07:19:48Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2017-07-14T07:19:48Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2016-11 | |
| dc.description.abstract | English: The Information Scandal, also known as Muldergate Scandal, originated when Prime Minister John Vorster and members of the Department of Information realised that international and local opinion were hostile towards the white dominated regime and its apartheid laws. The unwanted image of apartheid resulted in the deterioration of vital international links, trade, and cooperation with foreign nationalities. In order to combat this negative representation of South Africa, the Department of Information resorted to an unorthodox propaganda campaign in the 1970s. The Minister of the Department of Information, Dr Connie Mulder, and the Secretary of Information, Dr Eschel Rhoodie, believed unconventional methods of influencing opinions were justified for South Africa's survival. The Department of Information's propaganda campaign started to gain traction in 1974 when Vorster concurred to allocate a huge amount of resources to the programme. In the five years that the clandestine propaganda campaign was active, approximately 180 information projects were operational and cost millions of rand to fund. By 1977 cracks were starting to appear in the clandestine operation. A report leaked by the Auditor-General, Gerald Barrie, revealed the misuse of state funds. The Department of Information was convinced that no one would notice if irregularities of R64 million occurred. However, between 1977 and 1979 journalists exposed many of the secret operations. The Scandal ruined the political careers of Vorster, with the Head of the Bureau of State Security (BOSS), General Hendrik van den Bergh, as well as Mulder and Rhoodie. Muldergate left the Minister of Defence, P.W. Botha, with an opportunity to depose Mulder and later Vorster, ultimately securing the position of Prime Minister. While Rhoodie left the country to become a fugitive, Vorster and Mulder were taking the full brunt of the allegations. In the process, Mulder lost his leadership position within the NP, while Vorster retired as Prime Minister in 1978 and became the Ceremonial President of South Africa. Later that same year, Vorster was forced to resign from his new post in disgrace after the Erasmus Commission found him accountable of being actively involved in the Information Debacle. After more than thirty years since the Information Scandal settled, this study conveys a comprehensive history of the disinformation campaign. The main research objective of this dissertation is to view the events of the Information Scandal as they unfolded, and after exploring the events of the Information Scandal, to be able to answer two main questions. Firstly, the approach the Department of Information applied and the impact that the propaganda campaign had on its targeted audience with an attempt to reveal whether the campaign was initially successful, or not. The second question addresses the consequences of the scandal when it met public scrutiny: how did the scandal influenced the individuals, the political sphere of South Africa and the international community's reaction. In the analysis of the Information Scandal from a contemporary perspective, the dissertation uncovers new insights into the betrayals, cover ups and deceit. It explains the use of unorthodox propaganda and its consequences from a historical point of view in assessing the successes, failures and options faced by those involved in the scandal. Hence, it creates a comprehensive historical narrative of the Information Scandal. The most notable feature of this research is how a mainly Afrikaner regime battled and tried to keep itself in power in a changing democratic world by means of persuasion and deceit. | en_ZA |
| dc.description.abstract | Afrikaans: Die Inligting-skandaal, ook bekend as die Muldergate-Skandaal, het sy oorsprong in eerste minister John Vorster en lede van die Departement van Inligting se besef dat internasionale en plaaslike opinie vyandig is teenoor die wit dominerende regime en sy apartheidswette. Die ongewenste beeld van apartheid het gelei tot die agteruitgang van noodsaaklike internasionale bande, handel en samewerking met die buiteland. Om hierdie negatiewe voorstelling van Suid-Afrika die hoof te bied, het die Departement van Inligting homself na ʼn onkonvensionele propaganda veldtog in die 1970’s gewend. Die minister van die Departement van Inligting, dr. Connie Mulder, en die sekretaris van inligting, dr. Eschel Rhoodie, was oortuig dat onkonvensionele metodes om opinies te beïnvloed geregverdig was vir die oorlewing van Suid-Afrika. Vorster se besluit om groot bedrae hulpbronne aan die program toe te ken, het veroorsaak dat die propaganda-veldtogte van die Departement van Inligting in 1974 versnel het. In die vyf jare wat die geheimsinnige propaganda-veldtog aktief was, is ongeveer 180 inligtingsprojekte in werking gestel. Dit het miljoene rande gekos om te befonds. Teen 1977 het daar krake in die geheimsinnige operasie begin onstaan. ʼn Verslag wat deur die ouditeur-generaal, Gerald Barrie, uitgelek is, het gedui op die misbruik van staatsfondse. Die Departement van Inligting was oortuig dat niemand sou besef dat onreëlmatighede van R65 miljoen plaas gevind het nie. Tussen 1977 en 1979 het joernaliste egter die geheime operasie oopgevlek. Die skandaal het die politieke loopbane van Vorster, tesame met die hoof van die Buro van Staatsveiligheid, generaal Hendrik van den Bergh, asook Mulder en Rhoodie verwoes. Die Muldergate-skandaal het P.W. Botha die geleentheid gebied om ontslae van Mulder en later Vorster te raak, en om sy posisie as eerste minister te konsolideer. Terwyl Rhoodie die land as ʼn voortvlugtige verlaat het, het Mulder en Vorster die ergste kritiek ontvang. In die proses het Mulder sy leierskapposisie binne die Nasionale Party verloor, terwyl Vorster as eerste minister in 1978 bedank het en die seremoniële president van Suid-Afrika geword het. Later in dieselfde jaar was Vorster verplig om uit hierdie amp te bedank nadat die Erasmus-kommissie hom vir sy aktiewe betrokkenheid in die Inligtingsdebakel verantwoordelik gehou het. Na meer as dertig jaar sedert die Inligting-skandaal, is dit moontlik om in hierdie studie ʼn omvattende geskiedenis oor die disinformasie-veldtog te lewer. Een van die belangrikste invalshoeke van hierdie verhandeling is om die gebeurtenisse van die Inligting-skandaal te ontsluit soos wat dit ontvou het. Daarna is die verhandeling in staat om twee deurdringende vrae te beantwoord. Eerstens, die benadering wat die Departement van Inligting geïmplementeer het en die impak wat die propaganda veldtog op sy teikengehoor gehad het, asook om aan te dui of die veldtog aanvanklik suksesvol was of nie. Die tweede vraag wat die verhandeling aanspreek, is die gevolge van die skandaal toe dit openbaar gemaak is, dit wil sê, hoe het die skandaal die betrokke individue, die politieke sfeer van Suid-Afrika en die reaksie van die internasionale gemeenskap beïnvloed het. Die ontleding van die Inligting-skandaal uit ʼn hedendaagse perspektief in hierdie verhouding ontbloot nuwe insigte oor verraad, toesmeer van ondersoeke en bedrieëry. Dit verduidelik die gebruik van onortodokse propaganda en ondersoek die gevolge daarvan uit ʼn historiese oogpunt – veral wat betrek die sukses, mislukkings en opsies van diegene wat verantwoordelik was vir die skandaal. Dus, die studie skep ʼn omvattende historiese narratief oor die Inligting-skandaal. Die noemenswaardigste kenmerk van dié navorsing is hoe ʼn Afrikaner regime gepoog het om deur middel van oorreding en bedrieëry die mag in ʼn veranderende demokratiese wêreld te behou. | af |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/11660/6475 | |
| dc.language.iso | en | en_ZA |
| dc.publisher | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.rights.holder | University of the Free State | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | South Africa | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Information Scandal | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Propaganda | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Diplomacy | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | International | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Politics | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Information | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Media | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Apartheid | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | National Party | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Political corruption -- South Africa | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | South Africa -- Politics and government, 1961-1979 | en_ZA |
| dc.subject | Dissertation (M.A. (History))--University of the Free State, 2016 | en_ZA |
| dc.title | A historical perspective of the information scandal | en_ZA |
| dc.type | Dissertation | en_ZA |