Thought Leader » Conrad Steenkamp

Happy endings in Afghanistan

Conrad Steenkamp — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 13:22:22 +0000

“All that has to happen is for the Taliban to lob a couple of hand grenades over the walls of one of the guesthouses,” the security consultant told me. He traced an imaginary trajectory over the roof of the guesthouse into the courtyard with his can of beer. “Then you’ll see how quickly the foreign...

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Apostasy and ducks in Afghanistan

Conrad Steenkamp — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 16:39:02 +0000

“He’s the man!” Barham, my young Afghan colleague, said one morning as we inched through the godforsaken rush-hour traffic of Kabul, rocking through the frozen potholes. Barham proceeded to tell me that the rather timid-looking young man at the office had a black belt in karate and participated in full-contact fights. “Beneath that shirt of...

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The ancestors strike back

Conrad Steenkamp — Thu, 30 Jun 2011 13:46:57 +0000

The angry whispering of my ancestors, black, tan and white, refer. They speak about the words of some Deployed Writers in this middle-class space about race and hatred and the Great Juggernaut; the Great One, that Great Socialist of the humble bank account, that is bringing hope to the African poor and anxiety to the...

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Fear in Afghanistan

Conrad Steenkamp — Wed, 04 May 2011 10:55:19 +0000

I had moved to a new guesthouse which looked and felt like a death trap. I had to travel even further to work and the first morning, just to complicate matters further, there was a demonstration at the University of Kabul. We took a circuitous route to the government compound: up and down narrow alleys...

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Trust in Afghanistan

Conrad Steenkamp — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 12:31:23 +0000

“Don’t trust anybody,” an old consultant told me one morning in the corridor of the government office, sotto voce and all that. “I mean — anybody.” He had been in the country for more than five years and I took note. Each morning I wake up to the sound of a muezzin in the background,...

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Forgiveness in Afghanistan

Conrad Steenkamp — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 05:47:11 +0000

Kabul airport was a run-down, high-security version of “Bloemfontein international”. It was dotted with military freight planes and helicopters, hidden behind concrete walls and sandbags. One’s baggage is scanned on the way into the country, the officials behind the counter eagerly confiscating the bottles of duty-free booze from Dubai. In the arrivals hall outside I...

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En route to Afghanistan

Conrad Steenkamp — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 12:19:34 +0000

I was offered a job in Afghanistan. Exactly what kind of work is not at issue. It was everyday stuff, though the context was unusual. Unsurprisingly the family was not impressed and I had to decide whether the job would be too dangerous or not. From the word go I struggled to get a straight...

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Dave Harris on ‘Don’t call me a kaffir’

Conrad Steenkamp — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 16:12:08 +0000

Dave Harris writes: @Conrad Both blacks and whites were victims of apartheid but in different ways. Here is why I find your article (i.e. the previous blog) hypocritical and insensitive: In spite of your concern of how white afrikaner males are being portrayed in the media, you seem to be totally oblivious of YOUR use...

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‘Don’t call me a kaffir’

Conrad Steenkamp — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 13:51:31 +0000

Recently, about five-thirty in the afternoon when everybody was stuck in traffic, 5FM exposed its listeners to the following lyrics: Kom hier, kaffir, kom hier! Hoekom het jy nie my kar skoongemaak nie…Bliksem! (white male). Baas, don’t call me a kaffir (black male). Don’t call me a kaffir (choir). Thereafter the word “kaffir” is repeated...

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On attacking Tutu: Bile, heaps of audacity and heart burn

Conrad Steenkamp — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 19:34:03 +0000

Not too long ago Bishop Tutu (and many others like him) were taking on the moral corruption of apartheid. Particularly Bishop Tutu became a voice of reason and hope at a time that many thought that things would never change. In response the regime deployed the overcoat brigade and propaganda machinery to discredit him (and...

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