The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
Tristen Taylor -
An unholy alliance has come together on a Limpopo farm within the Waterberg District, about 60km from the town of Lephalale and a short drive from the border with Botswana. Anglo American Thermal Coal and India's Vedanta Zinc International have combined to produce a climate-killing and water-guzzling industrial machine: Anglo will open a new coal mine and Vedanta will use that mine's dirtiest coal - discards unfit even for Eskom's power stations - to produce 600MW of electricity.
On the...
Jane Duncan -
Recent revelations by former National Security Agency (NSA) computer analyst Edwin Snowden that the NSA was undertaking unwarranted mass surveillance of Americans has thrown the communications surveillance activities of governments into sharp relief.
Can the abuses that are taking place in the United States (US) happen in South Africa too? The communications of South Africans are probably already being caught in the NSA dragnet, given that cloud services like Google, Microsoft and Yahoo...
Many people would argue that they are not racist, however, Al Jazeera's The Stream delves deeper into the issue. Their feature this week examines subconscious racism. It is a form of racism that is subtle, yet as, if not more, damaging than overt racism. Listen to this panel of experts unpack the problem of stereotyping and implicit racial biases. "Implicit bias is not benign, it has very serious systemic impacts. Individuals can be decent and still perpetuate these injustices,"...
The American city of Detroit has filed for bankruptcy. Thousands of public workers are now fighting to protect their pensions and medical benefits as the city threatens massive cuts to overcome an estimated $18 billion in debt. Detroit’s bankruptcy "is an example of a failed economic system," says economist Richard Wolff, professor emeritus of economics at University of Massachusetts. "There are so many other cities in Detroit’s situation, that if the courts decide...
Frank Meintjies -
It’s much too early to start election predictions; but it is opportune to discuss the content and quality of electioneering. How parties conduct elections leaves deep marks, for better or worse, on our democracy. It can either highlight or neglect the pertinent issues facing major social groups. It can help grow a democratic culture or weaken it.
We need an electioneering process with as much light as heat. We need a lead-up to the actual elections that includes good debate, quality...
Arturo Lopez-Levy -
Nelson Mandela has long enjoyed the support of Fidel Castro, and many right-wing Cuban Americans have never forgiven the anti-apartheid leader for it.
Ethics has never been a forte of the pro-embargo Cuban-American lobby. But the U.S.-Cuba Democracy PAC has reached a new low.
Capitalizing on South African president Nelson Mandela’s health problems, embargo supporters have constructed a false parallel between the multilateral sanctions against South Africa’s apartheid regime...
