This article is derived from the methodological experiences from a 1-year ethnographic study carried out at Chingwizi among the Tokwe Mukosi displaced persons in Zimbabwe. This followed the unexpected and ultimately contentious disarticulation of over 6,000 Chivi and Mushawasha families from their ancestral land, sources of livelihoods, and social well-being. This study was therefore carried out in the context of a volatile and unpalatable relationship between the state and its functionaries, on the one hand, and the Tokwe Mukosi residents, on the other hand. The protracted conflict between the said actors has unintentionally made the Chingwizi area a very sensitive and protected area in terms of academic research. In this article, we therefore reflect on the ethical and practical dilemmas in studying the marginalized and often traumatized ‘victims’ of this dam project and the subsequent displacement, albeit from an insider’s perspective. Central to our discussions are issues such as the politics of signing forms, gaining entry, informed consent suspicion, and balancing the insider–outsider dilemma in research. The article moves on to look at the practical solutions to the said ethical and practical impediments in studying the marginalized communities in conflict situations. We therefore place emphasis on the significance of reflexivity, identity, and the politics of belonging, which was engrained in the wematongo concept. In addition to a number of strategies used under reflexive ethnography is the significance of social capital.
Post-apartheid South Africa is at the interface of defining its social fibre, but at the same time, it is faced with the challenge of dealing with historical mishaps such as acute socioeconomic inequality, and all forms of social engineering of notions of identity. This has led thinkers and researchers to probe into what it means to be a South African. In a recent book titled 'Do South Africans Exist", Chipkin (2007: 178) introduced a discourse, questioning the notion of South "Africaness" based on territory and geography. Other recent writings on race and identity continue to question the wisdom of framing identities in terms of culture and other primordial substances. Such substances have brought about a notion of identity that has led to human catastrophes framed in terms of ethnic identities and racial differences. While this paper capitalizes on such criticism, it interrogates academic discourse for not 'coming out' with durable explanations of what identities are about and especially what constitutes them. This paper proposes a conceptual analysis and framing of the substance of identities that balances emic and etic explanations. In this formulation an exploration of a range of elements affecting conceptualization of identities is done, including notions of territoriality culture and roots.
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