Tom Lodge: Neo-Patrimonial Politics in the ANC

Politics in Africa is best understood when taking into account both official and highly personalised relationships of those in power. South Africa has long been cited as an exception of this rule. In the latest issue of African Affairs, however, Tom Lodge describes the creeping and rising influence of neo-patrimonial politics within the ANC. A must-read for everyone interested in the Rainbow Nation.

South Africa: “The rage is there”

My article about the Marikana killings of miners by the police and the Neo-Apartheid in South Africa appeared in October 2012 in Konkret. You can download it as a pdf.

Southern Africa: The Limits of Liberation

Read my article about the changing patterns of power and domination in the Southern African region in the weekly paper Das Parlament.

Call Again Later, Protestors in South Africa Are Told

The grassroots of the ANC want to remind the government of themselves by way of strikes, protests and riots. The often violent language employed does not come as a surprise to observers of politics in South Africa (pdf of the original German article here).

‘ANC Needs to Wake Up’ in Light of Election Results, Says Adam Habib

Interview with Adam Habib, Deputy Vice Chancellor of the University of Johannesburg, on the political prospects after the elections and the formation of a new government in South Africa. He says that the ANC  ‘needs to wake up’ in view of the losses in all provinces but KwaZulu-Natal.

‘Popular Protests in South Africa Will Definitely Increase’

Interview with Justin Sylvester, Political Analyst, Institute for Democracy in South Africa (Idasa), Pretoria. Justin talks about his views on the continuing dominance of the ANC, the weaknesses of opposition parties and the possibility of a left-wing breakaway from the ruling party.

Shower Head, Madiba and Other Comrades from the Bad Old Days

A cultural highlight at the ECAS conference in Leipzig happened to be the vernissage of a cartoon exhibition by Zapiro. South Africa’s ‘funniest philosopher’ (SA Times) opened the show himself and entertained the scientists with eloquent remarks about the different trajectories of people who were once united in their fight against Apartheid. He’s really good in mimicking Madiba. My favourite piece had the headline ‘Mugabe: SADC leaders apply pressure’, the picture shows Bob getting a relieving massage from African leaders (‘A bit lower … Aaah, that’s the spot!’). The one to the left on anti-Semitism isn’t bad too.

South Africa: A Big Man on the Crest of the Wave

My latest contribution to Konkret (June 2009) offers an analysis of the election results in South Africa. The magazine from Hamburg will be on sale tomorrow. Read some English excerpts here or download the original German article as pdf.

South Africa: Companies Will Go on Trial for their Support of Apartheid

Last week a court in New York gave the green light for class actions against US and German corporations who dealt with South Africa’s apartheid regime in defiance of UN sanctions. The case could help to expose some of the international backers of white minority rule before 1994.

‘A Danger to Health’

The policy of the South African government under ex-president Thabo Mbeki vis-à-vis the Aids pandemic has been held responsible for thousands of unnecessary infections and deaths. In his article ‘Thabo Mbeki, HIV/AIDS and bogus scientific controversities’ Cardiff-based researcher Martin Weinel describes how the former president created an ‘inauthentic scientific controversity’ by lending credibility to a small group of academic dissidents on the Aids/AZT subject. Read his essay here, and a response by Anthony Brink here.