scholarly journals A forgotten past is the past that is yet to be

2021 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 60-78
Author(s):  
Sindiso Bhebhe ◽  
Mpho Ngoepe
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Oral History ◽  
Southern Africa ◽  
Document Analysis ◽  
Oral Traditions ◽  
Positive Development ◽  
Natural Death ◽  
The Past ◽  
Working Model ◽  
The Government

South Africa is one of the few countries in Africa that has a running oral history association. In some countries, especially in southern Africa, these oral history associations have arisen and then died a natural death. For example, Oral Traditions Association of Zimbabwe (OTAZI) did not last long. Therefore, it is a positive development for South Africa to have a functioning oral history association. The Oral History Association of South Africa (OHASA) is the brainchild of the government and is mainly funded by the government. It is involved in the coordination and documentation of stories that were silent during the apartheid era. Therefore, with this highly perceived task it is necessary to critically evaluate its successes and failures in meeting the objectives of the National Oral History Programme (NOHP). This paper, through document analysis and purposively selected interviews, critically evaluates the achievements and shortcomings of the OHASA from its inception to present with the aim of proposing a ‘working’ model which involves the setting up of a monitoring and evaluating system. The paper concludes that although OHASA unveiled the muted marginalised voices, it soral history programme demonstrate elitism in critical emancipatory as mostly the stories of the elites are covered. Furthermore, such recorded stories are not accessible as the recordings are stashed in the boxes in archives repositories.

scholarly journals A forgotten past is the past that is yet to be

2021 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
pp. 60-78
Author(s):  
Sindiso Bhebhe ◽  
Mpho Ngoepe
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Oral History ◽  
Southern Africa ◽  
Document Analysis ◽  
Oral Traditions ◽  
Positive Development ◽  
Natural Death ◽  
The Past ◽  
Working Model ◽  
The Government

South Africa is one of the few countries in Africa that has a running oral history association. In some countries, especially in southern Africa, these oral history associations have arisen and then died a natural death. For example, Oral Traditions Association of Zimbabwe (OTAZI) did not last long. Therefore, it is a positive development for South Africa to have a functioning oral history association. The Oral History Association of South Africa (OHASA) is the brainchild of the government and is mainly funded by the government. It is involved in the coordination and documentation of stories that were silent during the apartheid era. Therefore, with this highly perceived task it is necessary to critically evaluate its successes and failures in meeting the objectives of the National Oral History Programme (NOHP). This paper, through document analysis and purposively selected interviews, critically evaluates the achievements and shortcomings of the OHASA from its inception to present with the aim of proposing a ‘working’ model which involves the setting up of a monitoring and evaluating system. The paper concludes that although OHASA unveiled the muted marginalised voices, it soral history programme demonstrate elitism in critical emancipatory as mostly the stories of the elites are covered. Furthermore, such recorded stories are not accessible as the recordings are stashed in the boxes in archives repositories.

scholarly journals Individual shareholder activism in South Africa: The case of Theo Botha

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (2) ◽  
pp. 247-369
Author(s):  
Suzette Viviers
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Shareholder Activism ◽  
Document Analysis ◽  
Modus Operandi ◽  
Normative Power ◽  
The Past ◽  
Depth Interview ◽  
Clear Goal

Shareholder activists play a key role in monitoring managerial behaviour. This study was undertaken given the paucity of research on the shareholder activism as practised by individual shareholders. Accordingly, the motives, modus operandi and sources of salience of Mr Theo Botha, a well-known shareholder activist in South Africa, were investigated. Document analysis and an in-depth interview conducted with Botha revealed that he not only has a clear goal, but is also very passionate about achieving his goal. Botha prepares meticulously before engaging companies across the economic spectrum. In addition to possessing normative power, Botha also exhibits individual, pragmatic and societal legitimacy. His assertiveness, persistence and willingness to apply his own resources significantly contribute to his prominence as a corporate watchdog. Shareholder activists who wish to become more salient (irrespective of their size) could learn from Botha’s experiences over the past decade.

scholarly journals Abrupt Termination of Employee Contracts In a Democratic State: The Case of Botswana

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 71
Author(s):  
Baakile Motshegwa ◽  
Keratilwe Bodilenyane
Keyword(s):  
Southern Africa ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
The State ◽  
The Past ◽  
Democratic State ◽  
Essential Services ◽  
Disciplinary Procedures ◽  
The Government

Botswana has in the past received accolades of being the most peaceful country in Southern Africa. Any disturbance of this peace is either shunned or seen as a departure from the norm. The advent of trade unions in Botswana has always been looked at with suspicion and they have been seen as militant, which is contrary to the peaceful existence the country has enjoyed regardless of the fact that it is surrounded by countries that have been to war at some point in their history. Therefore, the state has made it a point that any sign of unrest is severely dealt with by the government. Some employees were dismissed un-procedurally as disciplinary procedures were not followed and the court ruled in the employee’s favour in 2012. The majority of those dismissed were from the essential services sections of government even though at the beginning some were released through the strike rules agreement between government and unions. Laid down disciplinary rules and procedures of having a hearing were not followed. 

Black economic power and nation-building in post-apartheid South Africa

2004 ◽  
Vol 42 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-30 ◽  
Author(s):  
Okechukwu C. Iheduru
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Nation Building ◽  
Positive Development ◽  
Economic Empowerment ◽  
Capitalist Development ◽  
Middle Classes ◽  
Black Economic ◽  
Black Economic Empowerment ◽  
The Government ◽  
Growth Coalition

This paper evaluates the evolution and the implementation of the ANC government's commitment to fostering a black capitalist class or black economic empowerment (BEE) as a non-racial nation-building strategy. A substantial black bourgeois i.e. and other middle classes begun to emerge over the last decade, contrary to popular perceptions. The legitimating role assigned to the emergent black bourgeoisie by the ANC and the government is, however, threatens to turn the strategy into a nepotistic accumulation. This development is paradoxically threatening to re-racialise the country, widening black inequality gaps, and precluding the rise of a black bourgeoisie with a nurture capitalist agenda. Other equally powerful social groups have begun to challenge the prevailing strategy, compelling the government to explore a more accommodating strategy exemplified by the recent introduction by the government of ‘broad-based economic empowerment’. Should a less patrimonial, less racially and ethnically divisive BEE strategy emerge from this quasi-pluralist power play, such a change holds prospects for the creation of a ‘growth coalition’ capable of sustainable capitalist development and true empowerment of the black majority. That would be a positive development in terms of establishing and consolidating democracy in South Africa.

scholarly journals Negotiating Elusive Justice: Dilemmas of Land Distribution in Southern Africa

Obiter ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Anstey
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Southern Africa ◽  
Land Ownership ◽  
Economic Empowerment ◽  
Societal Transformation ◽  
Land Distribution ◽  
The Past ◽  
Transitions To Democracy ◽  
Principle Of Justice ◽  
And Control

Transitions to democracy across southern Africa have been difficult and inevitably flawed. Shifts in international values, national demographics and power realities see social conflicts mutate through time, making societal transformation not a point of arrival, but an ongoing process. In Zimbabwe, and more recently Namibia and South Africa, land ownership and control have become bitterly contested issues. If one accepts that injustices were perpetrated in the past, what principles should guide their remedy? This article considers the complexities arising from competing conceptions of justice over land ownership and management in the context of changing political pressures and dilemmas as to who land might be taken from, along with future dilemmas about equitable distribution and productive management. If the crisis-driven experience of Zimbabwe is to be averted, stakeholders in Namibia and South Africa must find jointly acceptable principles to guide action into the future, and it is likely that no single principle of justice will suffice – a principled multi-track approach based on a mix of utilitarian, restorative and economic empowerment logics must be negotiated ... and then urgently implemented.

scholarly journals A Comparative Study of World’s Truth Commissions —From Madness to Hope

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 192
Author(s):  
Professor Bishnu Pathak
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
El Salvador ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
East Timor ◽  
Former Yugoslavia ◽  
Truth Commissions ◽  
Truth Commission ◽  
The Past ◽  
Public Hearings ◽  
The Government

<em>The objective of this paper is to explore the initiatives and practices of different countries in truth seeking. Many countries during the post-conflict, colonial, slavery, anarchical and cultural genocide periods establish the Truth Commissions to respond to the past human wrongdoings: crimes and crimes against humanity. Enforced Disappearances (ED), killings, rapes and inhumane tortures are wrongdoings. Truth Commission applies the method of recovering silences from the victims for structured testimonies. The paper is prepared based on the victim-centric approach. The purpose reveals the piecemeal fact-findings to heal the past, reconcile the present and protect the future. The study covers more than 50 Commissions in a chronological order: beginning from Uganda in 1974 and concluding to Nepal in February 2015. Two Commissions in Uruguay were formed to find-out enforced disappearances. Colombian and Rwandan Commissions have established permanent bodies. The Liberian TRC threatened the government to submit its findings to the ICC if the government failed to establish an international tribunal. The Commissions of Bolivia, Ecuador, Haiti, former Yugoslavia and Zimbabwe were disbanded, and consequently, their reports could not be produced. No public hearings were conducted in Argentina and former Yugoslavia. It is noted that only 8 public hearings in Ghana, 8 national hearings in East-Timor and 15 in Brazil were conducted. Moroccan Commission held public hearings after signing the bond paper for not to disclose the names of the perpetrators whereas Guatemala did not include the perpetrators’ names in the report. The Shining Path’s activists are serving sentences based on civil-anti-terrorist court, but Alberto Fujimori is convicted for 25 years. Chadian Commission worked even against illicit narcotics trafficking. The UN established its Commissions in Sierra Leon, El Salvador and East-Timor, but failed to restore normalcy in Kosovo. Haiti prosecuted 50 perpetrators whereas Guatemala prosecuted its former military dictator. The Philippines’ Commission had limited investigation jurisdiction over army, but treated the insurgents differently. In El Salvador, the State security forces were responsible for 85 percent and the non-state actors for 15 percent similar to CIEDP, Nepal. The TRCs of Argentina, East-Timor, Guatemala, Morocco, Peru and South Africa partially succeeded. Large numbers of victims have failed to register the complaints fearing of possible actions. All perpetrators were controversially granted amnesty despite the TRC recommendation in South Africa. The victims and people still blamed Mandela that he sold out black people’s struggle. Ironically, the perpetrators have received justice, but the victims are further victimized. As perpetrator-centric Government prioritizes cronyism, most of the Commissioners defend their respective institution and individuals. Besides, perpetrators influence Governments on the formation of Truth Commission for ‘forgetting the victims to forgive the perpetrators’. A commission is a Court-liked judicial and non-judicial processes body, but without binding authority except Sierra Leone. Transitional Justice body exists with a five-pillar policy: truth, justice, healing, prosecution and reparation. It has a long neglected history owing to anarchical roles of the perpetrators and weak-poor nature of the victims. Almost all TRCs worked in low budget, lack of officials, inadequate laws and regulations, insufficient infrastructures and constraints of moral supports including Liberia, Paraguay, Philippines, South Africa, Uganda and Nepal. The perpetrators controlled Governments ordered to destroy documents, evidences and testimonies in their chain of command that could have proven guilty to them.</em>

The Displacement of Indigenous Oral History

2019 ◽  
pp. 16-39
Author(s):  
Nēpia Mahuika
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Oral History ◽  
Oral Tradition ◽  
Folk Songs ◽  
Oral Traditions ◽  
Past Century ◽  
The Past ◽  
Aotearoa New Zealand ◽  
Fields Of Study

This chapter examines the evolution of oral history and oral tradition as two separate fields of study with their own associations, journals, theories, and definitions. It considers how these fields have been viewed and engaged with by indigenous writers, with a particular emphasis on scholarship out of Aotearoa New Zealand. Oral history and oral tradition have often been considered the same, but over the past century have been presented as two distinctively different fields with their own theories, methods, and emphases. This chapter surveys the seminal writing and definitions popularized in oral history and tradition, which include the idea of oral history as a methodology and interview practice and oral traditions as predominantly the study of ballads and folk songs. It explores some of the arguments about the orality or textuality of oral sources, and the differing focus oral traditionalists and oral historians have proposed in their evolving theories and politics.

Reconstructing the Past Using the British Parliamentary Papers: The Anglo-Zulu War of 1879

2004 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
pp. 117-132
Author(s):  
Joye Bowman
Keyword(s):  
Nineteenth Century ◽  
Southern Africa ◽  
House Of Commons ◽  
Valuable Source ◽  
Vast Amount ◽  
Secondary Sources ◽  
The Past ◽  
Precise Sense ◽  
The Government ◽  
Source Of Information

The British Parliamentary Papers continue to be a valuable source of information for historians of the African past. A vast amount of material on African affairs involving British interests can be found in these Papers. This essay deals with the way that the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879 was presented in the Parliamentary Papers, specifically volume 13 of the Irish University Reprint Series entitled Colonies—Africa: Southern Africa General, 1878-80. It examines the kind of information presented, as well as the kind of material not presented. It analyzes the function of these Papers in their own time and in secondary sources on the Anglo-Zulu War. Finally, it considers the kinds of questions historians must ask in order to make these documents as useful as possible.The term “Parliamentary Papers” used in the broadest sense refers to all of the official published records of the British Parliament. This includes the record of its proceedings and various debates; the reports of Parliamentary Committees and non-Parliamentary Committees; and the official documents of various departments that discuss routine business. In a narrower and more precise sense, the term “Parliamentary Papers refers to specific sets of papers that came before the House of Commons, were printed for Parliament's use, and were part of a numbered series of papers.” The papers in this narrower group are considered “Sessional Papers,” popularly called “Blue Books,” a name given them in the nineteenth century because the government printers bound the majority of the papers in blue covers.

Governing Body of the Church in Wales

2010 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 95-98
Author(s):  
Philip Morris
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Presidential Address ◽  
Quality Education ◽  
Governing Body ◽  
Big Society ◽  
The Past ◽  
90Th Anniversary ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
The Church

2010 marked the 90th anniversary of disestablishment; and the Archbishop noted in his April Presidential Address to the Governing Body that though disestablishment had been forced on the Church and its result had been to deplete assets, congregations had twice raised sufficient money to secure the Church's territorial ministry. Though the Church now had fewer attenders, clergy and ordinands than hitherto, it had survived greater challenges in the past. In his September address, as well as looking outwards and comparing the relationship between Gaza and Israel with apartheid in South Africa, he warned that the ‘Big Society’ might merely make life harder for the most vulnerable and reminded the Government that everyone needed good quality education, health and other public services.

scholarly journals Mass Mobilization and the Durability of New Democracies

2018 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
pp. 390-417 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Ali Kadivar
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Original Data ◽  
New Democracies ◽  
Mass Mobilization ◽  
The Past ◽  
Democratic Regimes ◽  
Past Half Century ◽  
The Government ◽  
Past Half

The “elitist approach” to democratization contends that “democratic regimes that last have seldom, if ever, been instituted by mass popular actors” (Huntington 1984:212). This article subjects this observation to empirical scrutiny using statistical analyses of new democracies over the past half-century and a case study. Contrary to the elitist approach, I argue that new democracies growing out of mass mobilization are more likely to survive than are new democracies that were born amid quiescence. Survival analysis of 112 young democracies in 80 different countries based on original data shows that the longer the mobilization, the more likely the ensuing democracy is to survive. I use a case study of South Africa to investigate the mechanisms. I argue that sustained unarmed uprisings have generated the longest-lasting new democracies—largely because they are forced to develop an organizational structure, which provides a leadership cadre for the new regime, forges links between the government and society, and strengthens checks on the power of the post-transition government.

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