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A new strategy by opposition party leaders in Africa who have lost elections is emerging. They contest the results and demand that fresh elections are held or launch a process of power sharing with the losing parties. But their successes have been limited and their actions tend to provoke democratic [...]

One of the strangest legal mechanisms in Apartheid legislation was that an individual of colour could apply and reclassify ones Race. This presented itself as some sort of a golden ticket to those of colour whom could “pass” as white with the opportunity to gain in the unearned privileges which [...]

One quarter of a century into democratic rule, South Africa will conduct its sixth general election on the on the 8th of May. It will do so at a time when the country still grapples with debilitating legacies of its past, and new challenges – global and local – that [...]

Not too long-ago, the outgoing Western Cape premier Helen Zille lead the charge and rallied for the military to be deployed into the Cape Flats to curb the ongoing gang violence. This call was highly controversial and as expected solicited mixed and emotional responses with government having the final say and vetoing [...]

Racial incidents are too often present in the South African Media. Incidents such as these include the segregation of learners at a school in Scweizer Reneke and racial tensions at Clifton Beach. They do not end here. They extend to the racialized discourse surrounding the deaths of pupils at DrieHoek [...]

A quarter of a century after the April 1994 genocide, Rwanda is prospering. The tiny, landlocked land with a population of little more than 12 million offers the world an image of stability and contentment. The success story is largely seen as the handiwork of President Paul Kagame, says Patrick Hajayandi, [...]

The election campaigning season has proven to be lacklustre at best and excruciatingly anaemic at worst. Twenty-five years into South Africa’s independence from the anti-human policies of the apartheid era, the political messaging in the 2019 poll is symptomatic of the absence of any inspirational “message” or grand narratives that [...]

In less than two months South Africa will be holding its fifth democratic elections and political parties have hit the ground running with campaigns, hoping to strengthen their voter base. As generational replacement occurs and younger potential voters enter the system in growing numbers, political parties will ramp up their [...]

Truth and Reconciliation: The South African Experience. A paper presented at the civil society commemoration of the 2019 International Women’s Day in Zimbabwe, by Webster Zambara (PhD), Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR), Cape Town, South Africa. Introduction      Thank you the National Transitional Justice Working Group (NTJWG) [We come [...]