A photographic slice of conscript life in the South African Defence
ForceThis pictorial is a compilation of images obtained by the
author while working on his first book-an oral history of pre-1994
South African Defence Force national service. It was illegal to
take photos; however, there were inevitably those conscripts who
ignored the rules, aiming their cheap, disposable cameras at
whatever they could, but usually among comrades or when it was
considered safe to do so. Inevitably certain images are poor in
quality, often blurred and off-centre. But that is the
reality-hastily-taken amateur snapshots. Even so, many are
remarkably clear, serving to illustrate a period when over 600,000
white South African males, between 1951 and 1993, were ordered to
join the South African Defence Force for service mainly 'on the
border', or the 'Operational Area'-South West Africa (Namibia) and
Angola. It is of note that all the photos, apart from Operation
Protea, were taken by non-professional soldiers; young men some
would call boys. Some patriotically embraced their call-ups as an
opportunity to serve their country, while most stoically accepted
their unsought-for lot-the law, and a war to protect South Africa
from the spread of communism, the Red Tide. Cameron Blake was born
in 1969 in Johannesburg where he grew up. He graduated from the
University of Cape Town in 1991, with a Diploma in Graphic Design.
In 1992, still liable for compulsory national service-albeit in the
early '90s when most conscripts were not heeding their call-ups-he
cleared in at Voortrekkerhoogte, a large military base outside
Pretoria. After doing his basic training in the Technical Services
Corps, he transferred to the Ordnance Services Corps in Cape Town,
completing his service in the media department. After a decade of
varying careers in creative media fields, he finally teamed up with
a long-time friend to open a small shop in Cape Town's CBD. The
shop specializes in coins, medals and surplus militaria: his true
passions. It was here that he began networking with veterans and
collecting their stories, in line with his interest in southern
African military history. His first book, Troepie: From Call-up to
Camps, was published in 2009, and the sequel, From Soldier to
Civvy, in 2010.
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