Keyword: Election 2009

Deepening Democracy Demands Making Difficult Choices

Picture: jungeldrumsonline Ebrahim-Khalil Hassen - The anti-colonial writer, Rabindranath Tagore reminds us, "The only real gift is the gift of strength, all other offerings are vain." To illustrate this he tells the story of the lamb and the Lord. The lamb constantly besieged by beasts, which are more powerful, turns to the Lord and asks, "Lord, how is it that all creatures seek to devour me?" The Lord replied "What can I do, my child? When I look at you, I myself am so tempted." Tagore, a nationalist and a...

The Thoroughly Democratic Logic of Refusing to Vote

Picture: Abahlali baseMjondolo Richard Pithouse - Poor people’s movements like the Landless People’s Movement in Johannesburg, the Anti-Eviction Campaign in Cape Town and Abahlali baseMjondolo in Durban and Cape Town, along with a host of smaller community organisations around the country, have announced their refusal to vote in the coming election.  This is not a new phenomenon.  In the 2004 national elections, activists in the Landless People’s Movement were beaten, arrested and tortured after they announced an...

Immigration's Contribution to South Africa's Development: Is it a Good Thing?

Picture: secretlondon123 & Dr. John2005 Saliem Fakir - The issue of immigrants and expatriates came up as a topic in a recent election speech given by ANC president Jacob Zuma at a meeting hosted by the labour union, Solidarity. Zuma spoke to concerns about South Africa's brain drain and the need for South Africa either to attract skills back into the country or encourage immigration. The topic is unlikely to disappear for elections to come. If ever there was a need for a good immigration policy, it is now. But controlled immigration needs to be...

South Africa's Political Parties and Climate Change: Who Gets the Thumbs Up, Who Get the Thumbs Down?

Picture: Indeed Motivation Michelle Pressend - The success of the recently held Earth Hour, which 35 countries including South Africa participated in, is testimony to the growing understanding of the relationship between human energy consumption and climate change. Energy consumption is at the heart of global warming. However and more importantly, we need to examine the issue more broadly. The planetary ecological crisis, commonly referred to as climate change, is a systemic dilemma stemming from unsustainable economic growth and...