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?
Saliem Fakir -
On the international scene South Africa plays diplomacy for high stakes. Often in the name of Africa and for itself, but this may receive some heckles from those who know that the game of diplomacy is mostly about enlightened self-interest, as the WikiLeaks diplomatic cables more than capably demonstrate.
South Africa’s joining of the BRICS group (as it will henceforth be known since the announcement of South Africa’s membership to the group on Christmas eve last year),...
Jane Duncan -
In a recent opinion piece entitled 'A threefold crisis, but Zuma is listening', political analyst Adam Habib argued that the balance of power has shifted towards the poor under Jacob Zuma's presidency, leading to the trade union movement and the South African Communist Party (SACP) having more of a say in the affairs of the country. Furthermore, Zuma has proved to be much more responsive to public opinion than his predecessor, Thabo Mbeki, in the process paying attention to citizen and...
Brazil has made history with the swearing-in of its first female president. On 1 January 2011, Dilma Rousseff received the presidential sash from outgoing President Lula da Silva at a ceremony in the capital Brasília. In her inaugural speech, Rousseff paid tribute to Lula and repeated her pledge to eradicate chronic poverty in Brazil.
In the 1960s, Rousseff was a guerrilla resisting Brazil’s military dictatorship. She was imprisoned and tortured for three years.
Amy Goodman of...
Dale T. McKinley -
Editor’s Note: This article is “Part 1” of a two-part series on the nature of black economic empowerment (BEE). “Part 1" here deals with the history of BEE. “Part 2” deals with the more contemporary character of BEE.
Amidst all the usual political propaganda and grandstanding at the ANC’s recent 99th anniversary rally in Polokwane it was none other than Julius Malema who came up with the most honest statement of the day. Defending himself...
Nick Turse -
Does the Pentagon Really Have 1,180 Foreign Bases?
The United States has 460 bases overseas! It has 507 permanent bases! What is the U.S doing with more than 560 foreign bases? Why does it have 662 bases abroad? Does the United States really have more than 1,000 military bases across the globe?
In a world of statistics and precision, a world in which “accountability” is now a Washington buzzword, a world where all information is available at the click of a mouse,...
Canada has long been known as a neutral mediator. The country has often played a nonaligned diplomatic role, but when it comes to foreign policy on Israel, the government of Canada has given up any pretence of neutrality and very publicly picked one side.
In 2008, when Hamas won democratic elections in Gaza, Canada was the first to cut all aid to the Palestinian Authority.
In 2009, during Israel's attack on Gaza, the United Nations Human Rights Council passed a resolution condemning the...
