The first of these problematic policies is that if elected, the ACDP would deny bail for serious offences and scrap parole for serious crimes. Here the ACDP does not seem to understand two crucial concepts. First is the fact that under South African law, one is innocent until proven guilty. Therefore, holding someone in detention without a bail hearing until their guilt has been determined is a fundamental breach of their human rights. Second, they do not seem to under stand the purpose of cash bail. This is used as a mechanism to ensure that an accused who has not been found guilty and is therefore innocent in the eyes of the law appears in court on their trial date. Therefore, in most cases a cash amount is set which the accused is to submit to the court and this amount is to act as an incentive to return to court on their trial dates. If they do not do so, this amount will be forfeited.

The whole construction of bail is a system used by our courts and courts worldwide. It is premised on the underlying principle that an individual is innocent until proven guilty. Therefore, cash bail is an instrument that ensures the trial process which determines if the individual in question is in fact guilty or not runs smoothly. The rejection of the mechanism of bail by the ACDP shows a departure from this crucial underlying principle that is the cornerstone of our criminal law system. Not to mention that it is a departure from Section 35 of our Constitution. The second problematic policy of the ACDP is it advocates the re instatement of the death penalty for offences such as premeditated murder. This is premised on the idea that if would be criminals knew the consequences of their crime being state sanctioned murder , they would not engage in the crime in question. This view needs to be laid to rest once and for all. First, there seems to be a fundamental misunderstanding on the ACDP’s part as it relates to the activity of criminals. This is the fact that when criminals engage in illegal activities, they do so because they believe they will get away with them. Second, some 88% of criminologists from around the world do not believe that the death penalty is an effective deterrent of violent crime.

Finally, the ACDP says that if they were to be elected, they would erect more minimum security prisons and these prisons would be privatised. This is a bad idea. From a purely ideological stand point, the inmate and their rehabilitation should be at the centre of the prison system. Instead, once prison privatisation is introduced, responsibility for the prison becomes that of the shareholders and directors of the company which operates the prison. In light of the ACDP’s denial of bail and its associated fundamental principle of law, coupled with its stance on the imposition of state sanctioned murder, we as citizens should see as problematic the way this party portrays itself as the party of moral virtue.

Mikhail Petersen holds a Bachelor’s degree in Social Science and an LLB. He is an intern in the Sustained Dialogue Programme at the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation based in Cape Town.

Published by Daily News

On Thursday, the group hosted its media launch for the week, where the theme, #UniteAgainstRacism, as well as some of the campaign activities, were made public.

The launch took place at Constitution Hill in Johannesburg, where Anti-Racism Week patrons and supporting organisations gathered.

ARNSA’s coordinator, Busisiwe Nkosi, explained that Anti-Racism Week, which is being held for the fourth time in South Africa, aims to create public awareness about racism, how it affects individuals and broader society, and how it can be tackled. “Anti-Racism Week is held annually during Human Rights Month. It culminates on Human Rights Day and the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. It’s about ensuring that there is countrywide focus on tackling racism and that it remains on the national agenda.

“This year, we have a specific focus on sports and anti-racism with an international cricket match between South Africa and Sri Lanka being dedicated to supporting the campaign. The week will also be an opportunity for the country to reiterate its support for athlete, Caster Semenya, who is currently challenging the IAAF’s regressive policies, which raises questions about its treatment of black female athletes.

“We have also refined the Zimele Racism Reporting App, which was piloted last year. Now, the South African Human Rights Commission has agreed to partner on the initiative to respond to complaints received via the app. So there will be a strong focus on how technology can be used to tackle racism. We are also planning to engage in discussions around tackling racism in schools and workplaces.”

Nkosi added that while Anti-Racism Week is initiated by ARNSA, it aims to get all sectors of society involved and encourages self-initiated activities during the week.

“We hope that all sports clubs, schools, NGOs, businesses, labour unions, faith-based institutions, community and cultural groups and individuals will use the week as a platform to start their own dialogues, education drives and campaigns against racism. We want the public to adopt this week as their own, and use it to start addressing the sometimes deep-seated issues around race, identity and transformation within their own spaces.”

Ahmed Kathrada Foundation Director, Neeshan Balton, who serves on the ARNSA Steering Committee, said that this year’s Anti-Racism Week happens at the same time that similar campaigns are being held globally. “On March 16, there will be demonstrations against racism in various countries. This is in response to the growth of right wing racist and fascist movements globally, which are driven by an anti-immigrant, anti-black, anti-Muslim and anti-Semitic agenda.

“These movements are increasingly connected to each other, make use of new media technology to mobilise support and are gaining enough popularity to contest, and in some instances, win elections in both developed and developing countries. In some ways, the era that we live in, is reminiscent of the period preceding the rise of Nazism in Europe.”

Balton added that South Africa was not immune to the problem, with right wing and conservative groups locally increasingly networking and finding common ground with similar organisations and political allies in other countries.

“To the contrary, the anti-racists – the progressives in society – remain fragmented, with very little coordination and organisation across communities, provinces, countries and continents.

“This needs to change. We need to ensure that our schools, religious institutes, community associations, our universities, workplaces, political parties, unions and sports clubs remain truly non-racist and actively challenge discrimination, stereotypes and prejudices. We need to ensure that we link up across communities and countries to build a world that values diversity, equality and basic human rights. In this way, we can start building what anti-apartheid activist, Ahmed Kathrada, called the ‘Greenpeace’ against racism.”

Balton said that if people do not unite against racism, and challenge it in all its forms, it can pose a threat to democracy and stability across the world.

Fellow ARNSA Steering Committee member, Stan Henkeman, from the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, echoed Balton’s views. He indicated that in South Africa, there was little thought given to finding solutions jointly, “in a way that does not polarise, but brings people together around common basic values”.

Henkeman said, “Over the last few years, we have seen a series of race related incidents in South Africa. More recent examples have included the segregation of learners at a school in Schweizer Reneke, racial tension at Clifton Beach and racialised discourse surrounding the deaths of pupils at Hoërskool Driehoek. A noticeable trend in many of these instances is the inability of stakeholders to bring people together to find joint and long-term solutions. There’s often a polarity of views, that’s sometimes further exacerbated by political or community leadership, with little regard for the serious consequences that inflamed racial tensions can result in.

“We need to be talking about new ways to address the contemporary challenges of racism; to replicate best practices to tackle it; to capacitate communities to deal with racial issues and injustices of the past; and to commit to working together, across colour, creed and class to find joint solutions.

“I think one way in which this can be done is through the Global Dignity campaign, which Anti-Racism Week will be used as a platform to launch. This campaign will focus on engaging young people at schools to participate in an initiative where they will portray their understanding of dignity in whichever way, though whichever medium. The campaign will see dialogues at school level where learners discuss their take on dignity. Schools will then identify learners that will participate in similar dialogues with other schools at provincial/ regional levels. The campaign will culminate on Global Dignity Day on 16 October 2019 in a national dialogue between representatives from different provinces. The campaign at a school, provincial and national level will feature exhibitions of the contributions of learners.”

Allan Zinn, from the Centre for the Advancement of Non-Racialism and Democracy, also represented on the ARNSA Steering Committee, said that he hoped the week would empower people to educate themselves and others about racism and how it can be challenged. “We hope that it encourages education on a mass scale, mobilisation of all sectors in society against this scourge, as well as empowers people to take action against racism and not remain silent in the face if it.”

Zinn, citing examples such as the Adam Catzavelos, Alochna Moodley and Hoërskool Driehoek cases, added that he was “greatly encouraged by the swift censure of racism by the public. The type of outrage following such incidences over the last few years has resulted in racists being publicly rebuked, with some facing serious consequences, such as the loss of their jobs. It’s important to continue making racism expensive for racists”.

He added, “We hope that this type of activism can be built upon and that we can start addressing the sometimes overlooked structural racism that remains in society. Anti-Racism Week provides us a platform to start the conversations in this regard. It also gives us the opportunity to actively work towards uniting against racism, which as history has demonstrated, was used to divide and marginalise.”

To access more information about Anti-Racism Week, visit www.arnsa.org.za and check out the visual media and information toolkit. Follow @AntiRacismNet on Twitter. Also, tell us what you will be doing for Anti-Racism Week. Email info@kathradafoundation.org or Whatsapp 078 5474 981.

ANTI-RACISM WEEK 2019 PATRONS

JANEZ VERMEIREN

All round media personality, television producer and former Top Billing presenter Janez Vermeiren.

CHRISELDA LEWIS

Award-winning broadcast journalist, Chriselda Lewis.  

ZULAIKHA PATEL

Anti-racism student activist and member of the Pretoria High School for Girls student protest, Zulaikha Patel.

MARK HEYWOOD

Activist and former executive director of civil rights group Section 27, Mark Heywood.

BARBARA CREECY

Member of the Executive Council responsible for Finance in the Gauteng Provincial Government and member of the National Executive Committee Barbara Creecy

SHAKIRA CHOONARA

Member of the inaugural African Union’s Youth Advisory Council, health researcher, activist and graduate of the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation Youth Leadership Progrmme, Dr Shakira Choonara.

NOMPENDULO MKHATSHWA

Former Wits University SRC President, Nompendulo Mkhatshwa.

DEREK HANEKOM

Minister of Tourism and Chairperson of the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation Board, Derek Hanekom.

NOMASONTO MAZIBUKO

Executive Director of the Albinism Society of South Africa, Nomasonto Mazibuko.

JUSTICE DIKGANG MOSENEKE

Robben Island political prisoner and Former Deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke.

SELLO MAAKE KA NCUBE

Television and stage actor Sello Maake ka Ncube.

MOTLATSI MAFATSHE

Soap opera actor and musician, Mohlatsi Mafatshe.

BONANG MOHALE

CEO of Business Leadership South Africa, Bonang Mohale.

JNJ PROFESSOR KLIPPIES KRITZINGER

Emeritus Professor of Missiology at UNISA

Issued by Zaakirah Vadi on behalf of the Anti-Racism Network South Africa, 28 February 2019 

Article first published by Politicsweb

The event will attempt to: 

(1) zoom in on the national discourse around tertiary education;

(2) unpack the complex nature of race and racism in this sector as well as its various intersections;

(3) engage with key drivers of change in this sector and attempts to address systemic and racialized economic inequality and

(4) assess the relationship between the Higher Education department and the knowledge community at large;

(5) assess the implications of free education on the broader economic transformation agenda and the transformation mandate in the higher education sector.

Venue:                IJR Offices, 105 Hatfield Street, gardens, Cape Town

Date:                     9 October 2018

Time:                    17h00 – 19h00

To  RSVP, contact Pamella Vutula PVutula@ijr.org.za

DATE: Wednesday, 28 June 2017
TIME: 17:30 for 18:00-19:30 (cocktails will be served thereafter)
VENUE: GIBS, Classroom 8, 26 Melville Road, Illovo

A recurrent theme of this year’s edition of the IJR’s annual Transformation Audit is the need for two key social actors – business and the government – to pool their collective resources and forge a new consensus for long-term social and economic change. However, in the post-1994 South African context, the relationship between business and the state has been complex and multi-layered. Mistrust and misunderstanding between business and the government have deepened over time. On the one hand, perceptions persist that large South African corporates resist social transformation, and are not prepared to contribute towards addressing the structural legacy of apartheid. At the same time, rhetoric that espouses radical economic solutions, without putting substantive alternatives on the table, poses an equally perilous threat to the cohesion of South African society.

In light of this, we invite members of the public to a moderated discussion on the possibility of achieving a new social compact, implying ‘a consensus’, at a time when the word ‘radical’ is increasingly being used in relation to potential solutions

The Anti-Racism Network of South Africa (ARNSA) is an alliance of organisations working to respond to racism in South Africa. The Nelson Mandela Foundation and the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation facilitated the formation of ARNSA and currently serve as the secretariat.

On Wednesday, 22^nd March 2017, 10h00 – 12h00 the Western Cape Chapter of ARNSA cordially invite you and your Faith Organisation to a Dialogue with leaders from different faiths, titled, “Being the ‘Other’ and Seeing the ‘Other’” at the offices of the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation, 105 Hatfield Street, Gardens, Cape Town. A representative from your organisation will be requested to deliver a five minute input, together with other Faith Organisations, on the state of racism and other identity discrimination in South Africa.

The discussion will be quite short, but hopefully emerge with a very useful sense of shared perspectives, healthy points of disagreement and collective approaches to the current challenge of racism.

We trust that this will receive your most favourable response.

Yours faithfully

Kenneth Lukuko
For ARNSA WESTERN CAPE

In South Africa, we experience a very specific kind of xenophobia, targeted at African foreign nationals, which can be attributed to South Africa’s long history of apartheid and racism. Afrophobia is as a result of centuries of colonial oppression, the legacy of imposed borders and internalised racism. It is also as a result of competition over resources and employment opportunities which results in misplaced anger towards foreign nationals, instead of the racially-based economic system that brought about these disparities. Afrophobia undermines the ideology of Pan-Africanism, which speaks to a united Africa and an Africa without borders, it is this spirit of Pan-Africanism that animated and mobilised the decolonisation process in the mid-20th century, which contributed to South Africa’s liberation from Apartheid. There is also a very particular kind of xenophobia experienced by Muslim foreign nationals which contributes to compounded experiences of violence and fuels growing Islamophobic sentiments globally.

It is in the spirit of intersectionality, that we recognise the members of society that become particularly vulnerable in times of violence, including women, children and members of the LGBTQIA+ community who experience compounded and intersecting violations. Sexual assault is often used as a tool of violence which is specifically targeted at vulnerable members of society and it is in times of increased conflict that sexual violence is used as a weapon of domination.

It is in light of growing xenophobic attitudes and violence that IJR is hosting a public conversation which aims at highlighting experiences of Xenophobia, tackling the history of xenophobic attitudes amongst South Africans and problematising the structures that perpetuate xenophobic violence and fail to protect foreign nationals from harm.

We call upon civil society, members of the public, government officials and law enforcement to join us in conversation and assist in creating a guiding document, containing workable recommendations, to be delivered to the Department of Home Affairs, Law Enforcement and the broader public.

Date: 6 March 2017
Time: 12h30 – 14h30
Venue: IJR Offices, 105 Hatfield Street Gardens, Cape Town

Contact person(s):
Mamello Mosiana africaintern1@ijr.org.za
Jodi Williams JWilliams@ijr.org.za
Ashanti Kunene bisintern2@ijr.org.za

Tuesday 14^th February 2017, 12.30 – 2pm
IJR Offices, 105 Hatfield Street, Gardens, Cape Town 8001

The Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) will host a Roundtable event, the African Union at 15 Years: An Agenda for the New Chairperson for AU Commission. In 2002, the African Union (AU) was launched in Durban, South Africa, raising expectations for deeper continental integration and the promotion of peace, security, trade and development. This year marks the 15 years since the inception of the Pan-African body, and in addition the fifth Chairperson of the African Union Commission (AUC) is scheduled to be appointed at the Annual Summit of the Heads of State and Government, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

The IJR Roundtable will provide an opportunity for participants to discuss the criticisms often levelled at the AUC Chairperson, currently held by the ANC presidential hopeful Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, as a merely bureaucratic and ineffectual position. Participants will be able to propose what the next AUC Chairperson should focus on in order to lay the foundations for the ambitious goal of ‘silencing the guns’ of violent conflict across the continent and implementing the visionary Agenda 2063 which seeks to achieve “an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in international arena.” Speakers will include AU, South African foreign policy analysts and citizen representatives. The Roundtable is open to the public and will provide a platform for Africans to voice their views on African unity and the future of the African Union.

Where: IJR Offices, 105 Hatfield Street, Gardens 8001, Cape Town.
Date: 14 February 2017; Time: 12:30-14:00
Contact Person: Mamello Mosiana, IJR Justice and Peacebuilding Programme, africaintern1@ijr.org.za, Tel: 021 202 4071

Date: 6 – 24 February 2017

In an effort to engage a more diverse audience and enable the voices of ordinary citizens to contribute to the national conversation, the IJR’s Sustained Dialogue programme will launch a social media campaign as a platform for ordinary community members to voice their opinions on their perceptions of the State of the Nation Address (SONA). The campaign will offer alternative views to the existing discourse around the SONA and how it pertains to issues of justice and reconciliation at community level.

The objectives for this campaign are twofold:

1. To provide a platform for ordinary community members to voice their opinions and share these with a wider audience and, in so doing, generate conversation;
2. To offer alternative views to the existing discourse around the state of the nation and how it pertains to issues of justice and reconciliation on community level;

To take part in the dialogue, follow us on our social media platforms and share your views:

• Facebook: Institute for Justice and Reconciliation
• Twitter: @_IJR_