A mindset of service will shape young people to become responsible citizens

This week marks 36 years since Nelson Mandela was released from prison after serving 27 years for what the apartheid government deemed to be treason. As I reflected on this, my thoughts turned to how a mindset of service is nurtured and trained, so much so that even prison does not break one’s commitment to active citizenry.

My thoughts then turned to a concept I have often peddled to my friends and family, and anyone who would listen, really: the reinstatement of conscription. But I am not talking about the form that we had previously in South Africa, where white men were forced into the army for two years of mandatory military service.

This military service soon drew opposition and criticism because it was rooted in the role of the military and security forces in enforcing apartheid, as well as in South Africa’s military operations in Namibia and Angola. It was ultimately rightfully banned in 1994 when democracy was introduced.

My reasoning, however, has never been about forcing people to actively participate in upholding an illegitimate system of ­government, but rather about being of service to their country.

The thinking is that after high school, young people should all work in some sort of civil service, since this would benefit both them and our society. This belief was shaped by growing up in a family of politically active and civic-minded people for whom love of country and humanity defined life’s purpose. This upbringing shaped my ethos: a commitment to being of service, in whatever way I can.

At school and university, I was drawn to civic programmes for young people. I even initiated an unpaid internship at a government department, which gave me rich insights into the civil service and enabled me to engage with the ordinary people who were meant to benefit from it. It afforded me the opportunity to think deeply and participate in problem-solving initiatives with others towards a shared ambition for society. So where I find myself now is no coincidence, but rather the result of incremental and deliberate actions.

Alternative paths

I thought about conscription again a few months ago when my partner told me that his freshly matriculated nephew, who had excelled at school, would not be going straight to university but instead be enrolling in a regimented life skills programme for a year. The programme is designed to condition both body and mind and shape a responsible leadership mindset.

Reflecting on this, I thought how great it would be if all young people had access to such opportunities. In my mind, this represents a natural progression into adulthood and civic citizenship, as it cultivates a disposition that moves beyond individualism towards an appreciation of collective thriving and working together.

Mandela himself was a proponent of national service – not in the performative, perfunctory sense of 67 minutes a year, but as a means of unifying the country through sustained service in, and as part of, communities.

A programme like this would most certainly be a useful tool in our social cohesion agenda. DM

This story first appeared in our weekly DM168 newspaper, available countrywide for R35.