scholarly journals Ethnicity and Violence During Democratic Transitions: Evidence from South Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 1234-1280 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesco Amodio ◽  
Giorgio Chiovelli
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Democratic Transitions

Stability and Governability the Benign Effects of Party Dominance in South Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 56-75
Author(s):  
Ainara Mancebo
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
African National Congress ◽  
The Other ◽  
Democratic Transitions ◽  
African Countries ◽  
National Congress ◽  
Independence Era ◽  
Party Dominance

A tripartite alliance formed by the African National Congress, the South African Communist Party and the Congress of South African Trade Unions has been ruling the country with wide parliamentarian majorities. The country remains more consensual and politically inclusive than any of the other African countries in the post-independence era. This article examines three performance’s aspects of the party dominance systems: legitimacy, stability and violence. As we are living in a period in which an unprecedented number of countries have completed democratic transitions, it is politically and conceptually important that we understand the specific tasks of crafting democratic consolidation.

Democratic Innovation: South Africa in Comparative Context

1993 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-150 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Shapiro
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Political Parties ◽  
Internal Structure ◽  
South African ◽  
Review Essay ◽  
Public Organizations ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
African Politics ◽  
Democratic Transitions ◽  
South African Politics

This review essay of four recent books on democratic transitions is written from the standpoint of contemporary South African politics. Each of the books takes the Schumpetarian model of democratic politics for granted, and in the course of evaluating them the author explores the advantages and limitations of that model for thinking about the prospects for democracy in South Africa. He concludes that the Schumpeterian model diverts attention from questions that should concern promoters of democracy. The most important such questions deal with the internal structure of political parties, public organizations, and civil institutions.

scholarly journals Discussion of Montiel and Belo: Nonviolent Democratic Transitions Within a Peace Psychology Framework

2008 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-11
Author(s):  
Daniel J. Christie
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Transition To Democracy ◽  
Military Power ◽  
Human History ◽  
Democratic Transitions ◽  
The Face ◽  
Current Article ◽  
Peace Psychology

AbstractIn addition to being the bloodiest century in human history, the 20th century was distinguished by many large-scale nonviolent movements that successfully toppled oppressive regimes, often in the face of overwhelming military power. Notable examples include: India, South Africa, Poland, Czechoslovakia, the Philippines, Chile, and Serbia (cf. Ackerman & DuVall, 2000; Ackerman & Kruegler, 1994; Zunes, Kurtz, & Asher, 1999). Montiel and Belo's research is unique, identifying human cognitions, emotions, and values that accompanied East Timor's nonviolent transition to democracy. The current article places their work within the larger framework of peace psychology

Democratic Transitions and Political Opportunities

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
María Inclán
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Social Movements ◽  
Social Movement ◽  
El Salvador ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
Democratic Transition ◽  
Democratic Transitions ◽  
Political Opportunities

This chapter presents the theoretical arguments of the book, which come from the literatures on political opportunities and democratic transitions, in particular protracted transitions and transitions from below. The chapter first compares Mexico’s democratic transition to other democratization processes in which insurgent social movements play a crucial role, such as the cases of El Salvador and South Africa. Then it provides an analysis of the opportunities that democratic transitions may open for the mobilization, success, and survival of an insurgent social movement. Third, hypotheses contextualized to the Mexican case illustrate how these expectations may influence the development of a specific movement’s cycle of protests, negotiating success, and chances of survival within a protracted democratic transition.

Courts and Democracy in Postconflict Transitions: A Social Scientist’s Perspective on the African Case

2001 ◽  
Vol 95 (1) ◽  
pp. 64-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer Widner
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Dispute Resolution ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
African Continent ◽  
Democratic Transitions ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
New Era ◽  
The Core ◽  
Independence Movements

A “second liberation” swept the African continent beginning in 1989. In many places, multiparty elections and a measured optimism gained ground. Yet during the 1990s, the spirit of moderation and tolerance typical of the early independence movements began to fray. The recent armed conflicts of Central and West Africa and the columns of refugees crossing borders have served as a blunt reminder of the fragility of many of the continent’s democratic experiments.In this new era, law plays a central, visible, yet delicate role in many peace settlements and democratic transitions, from South Africa to Ghana. Africa’s courts have been challenged to provide the kinds of basic dispute resolution that lie at the core of what it means to be a “government.” At the same time, Africanjudges are mindful of Learned Hand’s caution in The Spirit of Liberty, taped above a secretary’s desk in Uganda. “Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women,” Hand wrote. “[W]hen it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it; no constitution, no law, no court can even do much to help it.” The success of a postconflict transition will depend, in part, on the role of courts in sustaining a spirit of liberty and tolerance in their societies.

scholarly journals Experiencias internacionales de procesos de paz y de transición hacia la democracia: La incidencia del movimiento sindical

2016 ◽  
pp. 245-290
Author(s):  
Kjeld Jakobsen
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Democratic Transition ◽  
Labor Rights ◽  
Democratic Transitions ◽  
Trade Union Movement ◽  
Union Movement ◽  
Peace Processes ◽  
Peace Accords ◽  
The Impact

Como manera de aportar a una reflexión sobre los posibles caminos que se pueden abrir en Colombia, luego de la firma del Acuerdo de Paz entre el Gobierno y las Farc-EP, y la apertura de negociaciones de paz entre el mismo gobierno y el ELN, el presente artículo examina los procesos de paz y transición a la democracia en diez países de Centro, Sur América y Sudáfrica. Se parte de un análisis que prioriza el rol de los movimientos sindicales en los procesos de cada uno de estos países, análisis que se configura como forma de ofrecer una reflexión para el propio movimiento sindical colombiano. Esta propuesta es relevante en la medida que dicho movimiento aún se encuentra deliberando sobre cómo influir en la implementación de los Acuerdos de la Habana, ya que estos traen consigo mejorarías en las relaciones laborales, en beneficio al ejercicio de las libertades sindicales y los demás derechos laborales. A partir del análisis comparativo de estos diez casos, se pretende argumentar que, a pesar de la notable heterogeneidad de los procesos, ninguno logró transformar el modelo político económico dominante y solo en Sudáfrica se pudo elegir un gobierno de izquierda en el transcurso de las transiciones democráticas. Del mismo modo en que solo en Perú hubo participación directa, aunque limitada, del movimiento sindical en la transición democrática.Palabras clave: Transición democrática, autoritarismo, movimiento sindical, dictaduras, comisión de la verdad, derechos humanos, libertades sindicales. AbstractInternational Experiences of Peace Processes and Transition to Democracy: The Impact of the Trade Union MovementAs a means of reflecting on the possible paths that could open up in Colombia, after the signing of the Peace Accords between the Colombian government and Las FARC, and the formal opening of Peace negotiations with the ELN, this article examines the peace processes and democratic transitions that took place in ten countries (in Central and South America, and in South Africa). The article gives special attention to examining the role of the trade union movements in each of these processes, in particular to contrast with the Colombian union movement, at a time when this actor is still deliberating as to how best it can influence the implementation of the Havana Peace Accords in a way which helps improve labor relations and the protection of union and other labor rights. Based on the comparative analysis of these ten cases, the author argues that despite the vast heterogeneity of each process, not one peace process managed to transform the dominant political-economic model, and only in South Africa was a leftist government elected during the democratic transitions. Furthermore, only in Peru was there a direct participation of the union movement in the democratic transition, although limited.Key words: Democratic transition, authoritarianism, trade union movement, dictatorships, Truth Commission, Human Rights, union freedoms.   

scholarly journals Women's Rights and Democratic Transitions

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Abida Bano
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Institutional Change ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Political Context ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
Women's Movements ◽  
Policy Outcomes ◽  
Democratic Transitions ◽  
Research Questions

Democratization provides women an opportunity to represent their interests/issues effectively. Institutional change of democratic transition proves women's movement's best chance to push for gender-sensitive policy outcomes. This case study critically examines three selected democratic transitions' workings and assesses the cross-cases variation in women's gendered outcomes (South Africa, Chile, and Pakistan). The research questions state as "how and why did women's movements perform differently in achieving gendered policy outcomes in the democratic transitions?” Engaging comparative framework and the qualitative approach, the study shows that the socio-political context, historical legacies, and party alliances have played vital role in varying gendered outcomes.

Time and Latitude in South Africa

1972 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 27-38
Author(s):  
J. Hers
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
Astronomical Observations ◽  
Royal Observatory ◽  
The Republic ◽  
Astronomical Determination ◽  
Limited Accuracy ◽  
Better Than

In South Africa the modern outlook towards time may be said to have started in 1948. Both the two major observatories, The Royal Observatory in Cape Town and the Union Observatory (now known as the Republic Observatory) in Johannesburg had, of course, been involved in the astronomical determination of time almost from their inception, and the Johannesburg Observatory has been responsible for the official time of South Africa since 1908. However the pendulum clocks then in use could not be relied on to provide an accuracy better than about 1/10 second, which was of the same order as that of the astronomical observations. It is doubtful if much use was made of even this limited accuracy outside the two observatories, and although there may – occasionally have been a demand for more accurate time, it was certainly not voiced.

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