Pastorale begeleiding van getraumatiseerde Koevoet veterane in hul geestelike herstelproses
Abstract
The devastation and wounding caused by any war sets high demands to all ranks who are thereby involved directly or indirectly and where the aftermath of war will remain with them for decades to come. The specific aim of the study focussed on Koevoet because commentary regarding Koevoet was not always complimentary. After the Bush War this caused many Koevoet veterans to disappear due to their Koevoet past which branded them as criminals and murderers. However, they remain part of our history of violence in the past and their story of hurt and rejection emanating from the Border War needs to be heard. The study is placed within the historical-political narrative of Southern Africa. This was deemed necessary in order to place the reader within a framework that played a major role in the conflict of Southern Africa's turbulent past. For the purpose of this investigation interviews were conducted with fifteen voluntary Koevoet veterans who are all members of the Koevoet Veterans' League. War will always remain war, yet war has many faces. In war the worst and the noblest of mankind is brought to the fore. This seemingly contradictory aspect of war also emerged from the empirical study: War could never totally alienate people from their shared humanity. Four concepts emerged from the empirical study, namely: * As core concept the reality of war that includes physical, psychological and moral-ethical wounding; * the rejection Koevoet members experienced at the hands of their colleagues and politicians from the former and present government after the Bush War; * anger towards their former colleagues and erstwhile political masters for leaving them in the lurch; and * experiencing humane feelings amid the horrors of war. The purpose of the study was to establish pastoral guidelines – supported by the insights derived from the neighbouring sciences, the exegetical study and the pastoral-theological contributions – in order to develop a pastoral model for the spiritual and pastoral support of traumatized Koevoet veterans.
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