TOPIC:

In the spirit of openness, you should declare that you are the author of this article. It seems that you are not raising this to people's awareness but rather promulgating your own campaign.

I did not find the article on the militaryhistorynsw site and note that your pdf is dated Autumn 2023.

I know you feel very strongly on this issue. Modern-day re-interpretations are making us all re-think and re-evaluate the strategies used in war. No one can look back at some events of the Boer War and not feel horror and regret. I was reading the post by Major General Brereton this morning ( militaryhistorynsw.com.au/2279-2/ ). He looks at war crimes involving Australian troops from the Boer War to Vietnam. The indictment from the ICC last week reminds us that war crimes are very much more than historical events,

Everyone is of course free to promote their own views but please note that this is not a campaigning website so I ask that you do not use it as such. If you continue, I will remove all of your posts and attachments.

David

Having posted my response to this post this morning, the author modified their original post. As I do not think this is appropriate behaviour, I have taken the decision to ban the author from subsequent posts and remove their past posts.

As a site focusing on research on the Boer War we sometimes have to face hard truths about what happened there. This is not unique to the Boer War but is a characteristic of all wars. Notwithstanding modern re-interpretations of past conduct, some decisions taken during the Boer War were unacceptable to many contemporary commentators.

We are seeing current debates about the appropriateness of statues and the names for schools, public spaces, public buildings and streets. That is understandable as societies change and we look back on our histories from different viewpoints and perspectives.

Some people have very strong view on these issues and that is absolutely their right. However, a line is crossed when sites such as this one are used to promulgate their campaigns. I do not find that acceptable. That is the reason behind my decision.

Well said, David! In our study of history, a soap box orator is not a helpful voice. By contrast, today I came across a lovely eyewitness account:
"...shortly afterwards the British arrived with wagons and we had to pack our things. Off to the concentration camp. It was a very slow journey. We young ones sat on the wagon talking. But very soon we were bored and began to sing. We liked to sing. Hallelujah hymns. Also English songs. 'What a friend we have in Jesus', many-voiced like our mothers taught us. Then we saw the old English soldier who was walking next to the wagon, with tears in his eyes also singing along, whilst he was staring in the distance. We didn’t understand this. 'You are Christians. I am a Christian. It is so wrong.', he said and kept on walking. 'It is so wrong.' Oom Christiaan said that that soldier gave him hope for the future of our land.."
(from www.walkervillesa.co.za/danietheron.html )