As is the mentality of recruits and old timers in the defence force, we of the SADF also had our hazing rituals and rites of passage. One of these was the self appointing of ranks to National Servicemen.
During the years when 24 mths service was obligatory we had our own special ranks given for each 6 months service and the badge of honour was a crease, ironed horizontally across the top of your browns shirt. Each stripe had its own label for the rank displayed. These are/were;
One stripe (6 mths) = Roef or Roeffie, afrikaans for thief.
You were a thief, stealing food and blankets and resources from real soldiers and utterley useless, your only redeeemable attribute was that you survived basics and six months in the army.
Two stripes (12 mths)= BlouGat, Afrikaans for Blue hole (arse), some said it meant blue arse as in the blue arsed baboons that lead a troop of monkeys, some said it meant that you were part of the furniture now and ran around like a blue arsed fly for everyone.
Three stripes (18 mths) = OuManne, Afrikaans for old man. You'd been through the worst and survived. You'd possibly picked up a genuine rank along the way, a L/Cpl or Cpl stripe ('which is worth F&^%k all because even an army blanket has three stripes and that is worth F*&k all!').
During my time in national service I'd been through the township riots, done some border duty and some homeland protection. The guys who were posted to border duty and the like went through much more and lived life on the edge everyday and they deserved recognition. Sometimes, all they would get were their blougat and ou manne stripes.
So heres to all my friends and others who did 24 mths service but never lived to get their ou manne stripes.sal;
During the years when 24 mths service was obligatory we had our own special ranks given for each 6 months service and the badge of honour was a crease, ironed horizontally across the top of your browns shirt. Each stripe had its own label for the rank displayed. These are/were;
One stripe (6 mths) = Roef or Roeffie, afrikaans for thief.
You were a thief, stealing food and blankets and resources from real soldiers and utterley useless, your only redeeemable attribute was that you survived basics and six months in the army.
Two stripes (12 mths)= BlouGat, Afrikaans for Blue hole (arse), some said it meant blue arse as in the blue arsed baboons that lead a troop of monkeys, some said it meant that you were part of the furniture now and ran around like a blue arsed fly for everyone.
Three stripes (18 mths) = OuManne, Afrikaans for old man. You'd been through the worst and survived. You'd possibly picked up a genuine rank along the way, a L/Cpl or Cpl stripe ('which is worth F&^%k all because even an army blanket has three stripes and that is worth F*&k all!').
During my time in national service I'd been through the township riots, done some border duty and some homeland protection. The guys who were posted to border duty and the like went through much more and lived life on the edge everyday and they deserved recognition. Sometimes, all they would get were their blougat and ou manne stripes.
So heres to all my friends and others who did 24 mths service but never lived to get their ou manne stripes.sal;
