kitskonstabel, noun

Origin:
AfrikaansShow more Afrikaans, kits trice, moment, instant + konstabel constable.
A derogatory name for a Black police assistant or Special Constable assigned to the policing of the townships after only a short period of training; bloupak.
1986 E. Prov. Herald 24 Sept. 1The row over the 1 000 ‘kitskonstabels’ undergoing a three-week crash course at Koeberg raged on yesterday.
1987 Rhodeo (Rhodes Univ.) Mar. 15Since the imposition of the State of Emergency the state has begun arming and training black people to contain opposition in the townships. These ‘kitskonstabels’ as they have been called, because of their brief and inadequate training, are a cause for grave concern throughout the country.
1988 B. Orpen in E. Prov. Herald 15 Jan. 5In his affidavit, Mr N— said the township had been peaceful until the advent of the ‘kitskonstabels’ toward the end of June 1987.
1988 Now Everyone Is Afraid (Catholic Inst. for Internat. Rel.) 21The kitskonstabels are second class members of the SAP. They are paid weekly wages that amount to under R400 per month and have no benefits. They are not treated as full members of the police team and are easily dismissed. Kitskonstabels need no educational qualifications.
1989 Weekly Mail 17 Mar. 5Opposition spokesmen in Parliament..have strongly criticised the kitskonstabels, not only because they receive only six weeks’ training, but also because of their reputation for brutality in the townships and their record of abuses and irregularities.
1990 New African 25 June 10We know of the dirty work done by the kitskonstabels and the KwaZulu Police and these other South African forces who are supposed to be keeping peace in the country.
1993 Sunday Times 11 July 22There is a distinct risk we shall end up with another force of unready ‘kitskonstabels’, or ‘kitsgeneraals’, adding another dimension of disillusion, distrust, and freelance ‘peacekeeping’ by the semi-criminal gangs of the townships.
A derogatory name for a Black police assistant or Special Constable assigned to the policing of the townships after only a short period of training; bloupak.
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