SAA Technical slammed over racism
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This all too much takes us back to thread that was on here a long time ago, about "www.neverflysaa.com" In the one article it spoke of how SAA top management attempted to buy the "pale" engineers an early retirement-so they could start the transformation from a technical side.
In 2000, SAA also started offering the overwhelmingly white technical staff retirement packages to withdraw and make way for black technicians. Many whites accepted, particularly after the Australian airline, Qantas, and the Spanish airline, Iberian Air, heard about the offers and set up recruiting offices in Johannesburg. SAA was stripped of many of its most experienced repair and service personnel overnight.
Whether this happened, or fell through...???
maybe someone from the technical side of SAA can tell us, or is this Journo doin a litttle propaganda as prev mentioned?
6String you make a good point with regard to the stereo typing German-Nazi's and White SA-Racist.
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Originally Posted by 6-String
Just as most Germans were Nazis (or Nazi followers) in the '40's, so most white South Africans were racists until quite recently.
I also don't think the article is balanced. Many of the AMO folk I know are of Afrikaner descent. The fact that one or two might say something like the above is not surprising. Why highlight some bad apples?? Besides, one's parents have a knack of passsing down attitudes that were normal for them and change is a slow process. Nobody was sent to reconditioning classes
(yet)Why is there is uch shock that white people are dominating this section of aviation. White, black, green, coloured so what! As long as the aircraft they work on are not falling out of the sky.
I say a slow transformation is better. You can't transplant 100 years of expertise in such a short time. We have seen far too many failing SA industries and government departments that have changed too rapidly with disastrous results For example - Koeberg Power Station blackouts & expensive mistakes & coverups; the crooked Councils who aren't cutting it; the lazy, indadequate police officers who don't solve crime; hospital employees who just don't want to work and keep stealing blankets and medicine; the army raping people whilst on UN duty; teachers who can't cut it etc .. etc. Arguably ALL of these are as a result of undertrained, newly hired political appointments who thought they knew how to do the job.
If we get even a small percentage of this problem in aviation - then I'm outer here because things are going to get messy.
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As a visitor to SA for a relatively short couple of years and having arrived with no pre-concieved ideas I have to admit to becoming ever more dissillusioned with those in power. Apart from the fact that several of them are blatently certifiable their insistence on blaming there own obvious failings on long past political policies will lead only to the slow destruction of what is a wonderful country with an excellent infrastructure. The success or failure of SA will largely depend on having the right people at shop floor level... a strong work ethic and ability are essential if the country is not going to slide irrevocabley into the downward spiral that predominates in the rest of this sad continent.
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Originally Posted by poorwanderingwun
As a visitor to SA for a relatively short couple of years and having arrived with no pre-concieved ideas I have to admit to becoming ever more dissillusioned with those in power. Apart from the fact that several of them are blatently certifiable their insistence on blaming there own obvious failings on long past political policies will lead only to the slow destruction of what is a wonderful country with an excellent infrastructure. The success or failure of SA will largely depend on having the right people at shop floor level... a strong work ethic and ability are essential if the country is not going to slide irrevocabley into the downward spiral that predominates in the rest of this sad continent.
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DawnTreader
QUOTE: "Pieter Dirk Uys, in one of his skits, claimied that only around 100,000 voted for the Nats during one election.
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Pardon me if I don't quite fully accept Pieter Dirk Uys as a reliable source of statistical information..! The statement you quote above is based on a lifetime spent living in a predominantly white South Africa. Working, socialising, being educated, signing up into the military and much more...
I say again: In all of my years in WHITE South Africa, nary did I encounter a non-racist white South African. In the past ten years of living abroad, I am completely unable to find one that, like me, was an apartheid era rascist white South African.
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Pardon me if I don't quite fully accept Pieter Dirk Uys as a reliable source of statistical information..! The statement you quote above is based on a lifetime spent living in a predominantly white South Africa. Working, socialising, being educated, signing up into the military and much more...
I say again: In all of my years in WHITE South Africa, nary did I encounter a non-racist white South African. In the past ten years of living abroad, I am completely unable to find one that, like me, was an apartheid era rascist white South African.
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I lived and worked in West Africa
. . for many years and sorry to say the WORST racism I EVER experienced was between the different AFRICAN tribes within the country. So please don't be given us white folks lessons! 
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Originally Posted by 4HolerPoler
Please get this thread back to the topic and away from the old racism spiral dive. Sure it's an issue but it has no place on this site.
4HP
4HP
Racism is a big issue at the moment because of the way transformation is being implemented in South Africa, which has the biggest aviation industry in Africa. If the radios, newspapers & TV are full of this type of discussion, then I don't think you can keep it off the forum without blocking all South African issues. We certainly cannot stop the government here from making race an issue in South African aviation!!
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It is a spiral dive, I agree. It's a messy topic too. But it is also one which WE South Africans need to get used to discussing, avoid avoiding and start telling the truth about! It is also a reality which affects the lives of most South African pilots daily. Not allowing RACISM as a topic at PPRUNE is absurd.
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Let me get this straight & anyone who's been on this site more than a few months will already understand me - you can shoot the breeze all day here on issues concerning racism that are aviation related - what I will not tolerate is a black on white racial debate which serves no purpose other to incite the issue further. Got it?
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No, 4HP has just been around longer than you (correction: a *lot* longer than you) - he's right - the issure here is racism at a specific place, namely SAA technical. You obviously haven't been here to see the degeneration of almost all other threads on racism in general. I say again - this is about a specific case of alleged racism, not racism in general. I think we all know enough about racism in general....any more is just preaching to the choir.
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Just re-read the entire thread and quite honestly, other than an already cut out and apologised for K-word, all I see are a few concerned people airing their opinions on racism in South Africa and SA Aviation in general. I certainly don't see anyone enciting the issue as such
Racism IS an issue in South African aviation. It always has been. I hazard the statement that it always will be. And that is all that I have to say about that.
Racism IS an issue in South African aviation. It always has been. I hazard the statement that it always will be. And that is all that I have to say about that.
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See the biggest problem is when one is discussion realities. Those that are normally the subject of discussion dont like the scrutiny and the bad rep that they have created for themselves, so they call any such talk racism, when in fact it is nothing more than REALISM. Mentioning the truth is not racism, only when it suits someone to use as an excuse or a crutch, then the reality becomes racism.
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Originally Posted by napoleon
I have noticed in south avaition if your not a racist then two things are plain:1) You aint South African. 2) If you are a South African, then your a moffie. Simple
