The thesis traces Southern African security dimensions from the Cold War and the period of apartheid in South Africa to the post-apartheid era. It makes an attempt to investigate the prospects of Southern Africa becoming a security community and the processes and practices underlying these efforts. Using the constructivist theory approach to international relations, the thesis argues that the preoccupation with principles of sovereignty and non-interference, a lack of political will and the absence of common values that could help SADC institute binding rules and decision-making are the main blocks that prevent the region from asserting itself as a security community. All these militate against the idea of mutual accountability among SADC member states and have a negative impact on the institutional and functional capacity of SADC. This also prevents SADC from dealing with the emerging non-military human security threats in the region. In consideration of this, the thesis argues that the idea of security community building in Southern Africa remains not only a regional issue, but also requires the involvement of extra-regional actors.

The Elective Conference of the African National Congress (ANC) of 2007 that took place in Polokwane remains an important event since 1994 (Fikeni 2009). The economic policy of the ANC and candidature of Mbeki and Zuma for the presidency contributed to the growing of factionalism in the ruling party that culminated in the 2007 conference. The study investigates and analyses the development of factions and ideological contestations that seemed to punctuate the ANC towards its 2007 National Congress that took place in Polokwane. It examines the roots and causes of factionalism in the ANC with a specific focus on the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM). It also investigates the extent to which the conservative policies such as Growth, Employment and Redistribution (GEAR) contributed in the divisions and factionalism prior the 2007 polokwane conference. The study departs from the premise that history of the ANC is riddled with factionalism and ideological contestations that have been well documented. Furthermore, the political infighting within the ANC impacts on governance structures and the local government level. The study seeks to demonstrate the effects of the 2007 power contestations between Zuma and Mbeki on the NMBM. To this effect, the study demonstrates how the leadership contestations in the ruling party impacted on the service delivery in the city. For the purposes of analyzing and making sense of the nature of power plays within the ANC it draws from the theories of factionalism to illustrate that the link between the growing of factionalism and the one party dominant system.

This study assessed the Local Government Turnaround Strategy (LGTAS), from a governance perspective, in addressing service delivery challenges in local government, with specific reference to the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM). The research study comprises six chapters. The research is based on the assumption that one of the biggest challenges facing most municipalities in South Africa is lack of universal access to water and electricity, sanitation, refuse removal systems and local economic development. As a result of these challenges, the NMBM has implemented the NMBM Turnaround Strategy so that it can fulfill its constitutional developmental mandate conferred on it by the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa of 1996. The research study provided a brief historical background on the development and transformation of local government in South Africa. This research adopted both the quantitative and qualitative approaches. The purpose of the research study was to describe and explore the 2009 Local Government Turnaround Strategy (LGTAS) with specific reference to the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM). The evaluation of the LGTAS of the NMBM will therefore be fundamentally descriptive, but highly exploratory in nature. The empirical survey was employed for purposes of the study and the interpretation of the research findings were analysed and described. As a metropolitan municipality, the NMBM has been entrenched with a responsibility to promote developmental progression within its locality (Integrated Development Plan: 2007). This research also identified the strengths and the weaknesses of the LGTAS as it is regarded as critical in successful service delivery. It is envisaged that this research will assist the NMBM, and other municipalities’ country-wide, to identify challenges that they are faced with and deal with it accordingly in terms of the objectives identified in the LGTAS. Furthermore, this research study envisages promoting sustainable development within the NMBM as well as improving the efficiency and effectiveness of service delivery that will ensure communities of their well-being and dignity. Various recommendations are presented, based on the findings primarily from the literature review and empirical survey, on how the existing status quo of the NMBM can be changed to enhance service delivery and be aligned to the Batho Pele principles. If these recommendations are adopted, the NMBM will be able to deal more effectively and efficiently with the developmental obstacles it currently faces.

It is important that the story of organisations like the End Conscription Campaign be recorded. The narrative of the struggle against apartheid has become a site of contestation. As the downfall of apartheid is still a relatively recent event, the history is still in the process of formation. There is much contestation over the relative contributions of different groups within the struggle. This is an important debate as it informs and shapes the politics of the present. A new official narrative is emerging which accentuates the role of particular groupings, portraying them as the heroes and the leaders of the struggle. A new elite have laid exclusive claim to the heritage of the struggle and are using this narrative to justify their hold on power through the creation of highly centralised political structures in which positions of power are reserved for loyal cadres and independent thinking and questioning are seen as a threat. A complementary tradition of grassroots democracy, of open debate and transparency, of “people’s power”, of accountability of leadership to the people fostered in the struggle is being lost. It is important to contest this narrative. We need to remember that the downfall of apartheid was brought about by a myriad combination of factors and forces. Current academic interpretations emphasize that no one group or organisation, no matter how significant its contribution, was solely responsible. There was no military victory or other decisive event which brought the collapse of the system, rather a sapping of will to pay the ever increasing cost to maintain it. The struggle against apartheid involved a groundswell, popular uprising in which the initiative came not from centralised political structures, orchestrating a grand revolt, but from ordinary South Africans who were reacting to the oppressive nature of a brutally discriminatory system which sought to control every aspect of their lives.4 Leaders and structures emerged organically as communities organised themselves around issues that affected them. Organisations that emerged were highly democratic and accountable to their members. There was no grand plan or centralised control of the process. As Walter Benjamin warned in a different context, but applicable here: “All rulers are the heirs of those who have conquered before them.” He feared that what he referred to as a historicist view constructed a version of history as a triumphal parade of progress. “Whoever has emerged victorious” he reminds us “participates to this day in the triumphal procession in which the present rulers step over those who are lying prostrate. According to traditional practice the spoils are carried along in the procession.” 5 He was warning of just such a tendency, which has been repeated so often in the past, for the victors to construct a version of history which ends up justifying a new tyranny. To counter this tendency it is important that other histories of the struggle are told – that the stories of other groups, which are marginalised by the new hegemonic discourse, are recorded.This aim of this dissertation is thus two-fold. Firstly it aims to investigate “the story” of the End Conscription Campaign, which has largely been seen as a white anti-apartheid liberal organisation. The objective is to provide a detailed historical account and periodisation of the organisation to fill in the gaps and challenge the distortions of a new emerging “official” discourse.Secondly within this framework, and by using the activities and strategies of the organisation as evidence for its suppositions, the question of the role played by the ECC in the struggle.

Cde President, Willie Madisha, Cde Zwelinzima Vavi, General Secretary and all COSATU national office-bearers, leadership of COSATU affiliates, leadership of the ANC present, Cde Jeremy Cronin and the SACP delegation, local and international guests, cde delegates. As the SACP we are deeply honoured by the invitation to come and address your congress. This occasion might go down in history as one of the most important congresses in the history of this Federation, this, the 8th Congress of the Congress of South African Trade Unions.

This booklet is intended to serve as a report-back to those organisations which were party to the Conference for a Democratic Future (CDF) and to those who were unable to be present. It is also intended to act as a guide to action for 1990 and beyond. The CDF was a historic gathering of the forces for change represented by 4600 delegates from over 2100 organisations. These range form Bantustan parties on the one end of the political spectrum to ultra leftist groups on the other end. But perhaps the most significant presence was from organisations like Five Freedoms Forum, NAFCOC, the Hindu Seva Samaj, that of traditional leaders and the hundreds of other community organisations which are rapidly becoming an active component of the mass struggle for change. Also significant was the strong worker representation from a range of trade unions, including eight affiliates of NACTU whose leadership had turned down the invitation to be part of the Conference. The Conference for a Democratic Future was a major step in the overall process of building unity in action and maximising the isolation of the regime. It was, in this sense, not an isolated event. The year 1989 had taken unity in action to new heights with the Defiance Campaign and the mass marches. The process leading up to the CDF was intended td be more important then the Conference itself. Likewise, in the post-Conference period, the follow-up process should be given the importance it deserves. At the end of the day, it is this follow-up process which would determine the actual success or failure of the CDF exercise. The Declaration adopted at the Conference represents the strategic orientation of the broad forces for change. It calls for the intensification of the struggle and for the placing of the question of political power on the agenda of our united mass action. The Conference resolutions collectively contain the elements of a programme of action. Without exception, each resolution is a call to action. The task of all participants of the Conference is to translate these resolutions into Mass United Action. The adoption of the Harare Declaration should act as the starting point of a process which takes its content to the masses of our people in all comers of the country. The demand for the Constituent Assembly should become a popular demand of the people. By adopting the resolution on international pressure, the Conference sends an unambiguous signal to the world community on how the people of South Africa view their role in the struggle to end apartheid. The follow-up to the Conference should also be a continuing search for whatever common ground exists between the broad forces for change. This search must take place not only at a national level, but mere importantly at a regional and local level. Let us bear in mind the words of the Declaration: “The moral appeal of the Democratic Movement has never been greater”. by an MDM delegate on the CDF Convening Committee. / Includes the Harare Declaration: declaration of the OAU Ad-hoc Committee on Southern Africa on the Question of South Africa (Harare, Zimbabwe, August 21, 1989)

Thesis (M.A. (Political Science)) -- University of Limpopo, 2014 / The study was about the South African Communist Party (SACP) and its entry into SA politics after 1990. The main question is whether it should contest elections independently of its Tripartite alliance partners led by ANC in democratic SA. As a democratic country it allows any party to participate in the elections. Given that space SACP can contest and triumph electorally thus assume the reins of government. For SA to become socialist, SACP has to campaign and triumph electorally for this to happen. The study followed a qualitative research paradigm. Purposeful sampling was used to collect data through in-depth interviews with information-rich respondents who have specialist knowledge about the study. Interviews and document analysis were used for data collection. For this reason, open-ended questions in the form of an interview guide were used to solicit information, perceptions and attitudes towards and about SACP. A tape recorder was used to capture information from these interviews. The recorded data was transcribed and coded into themes one by one which in turn formed part of the research portfolio. From the study findings contemporary SACP is a product of the revisionism that has come to characterise the post-Cold War. It is not surprising why the party then is not ready to contest election alone.

This study illustrates the link between foreign policy, public diplomacy and the media, with reference to the South African Government’s refusal in 2009 and 2011 to issue visas to the Dalai Lama. The research question is: How do the South African media frame foreign policy and how do administrators react to this actuality? As there seems to be a void in South African international political communications, this is where this study purports to contribute. The aim is to investigate how the media frames foreign policy, specifically regarding the case study. Therefore, the media, human rights and foreign policies, and the diplomatic practices of the South African government are studied. The objective is not necessarily to prove or disprove the causal effect of media and public opinion on foreign policy but rather to illustrate the interaction between these elements in the case of the South African government’s denial of visas to the Dalai Lama. / Political Sciences / M.A. (International Politics)

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Johannesburg, March 2017. / This thesis follows the development of a particular set of large technical systems in South Africa from the late apartheid era into the age of democracy. During apartheid technological prowess, upheld by the network of state corporations or parastatals, bolstered the authoritarian rule of the white minority government in South Africa. The economic and political liberalisation of the late 1980s challenged the power of the parastatals and altered the underlying rationale of infrastructure development. In particular I describe the transformation of Iscor and Eskom, two of the country’s major parastatals, and their activities in the Waterberg coalfields, an isolated region on the country’s north-western border. While Eskom’s activities in the region began in the 1980s they gained public notoriety with the construction of the Medupi power station two decades later. The obstacles that Eskom faced at Medupi represent the main challenge of developing large technological infrastructures in the democratic, post-colonial order, where the fruits of infrastructure development demand to be spread beyond the bounds of an elite minority. But the eventual completion of some power generating units in 2015 at Medupi demonstrates that failure is not inevitable. I argue that this success is due to the fact that the autonomous parastatal network negotiated the political and economic liberalisation of the early 1990 by incorporating the changing socio-political conditions into its operations. The parastatal network retained a momentum, in the sense first described by the historian of technology Thomas Hughes, which was also a product of the “locked-in” nature of investment in the infrastructure project. Because of the large capital investment required for the infrastructure development, proceeding tenaciously against the odds to see the project to completion was cheaper than retreat for those involved. / MT2018

Thesis (MPhil)--University of Stellenbosch, 2003. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: South Africa is a land of stunning beauty and scenic wonder, with contrasts ranging from arid semi-desert areas to lush green forests; from flat plains to towering mountains. Socially and economically it is likewise a country of extreme contrasts (MacDonald 2002: 13). The South African Constitution, as adopted on 8 May 1996, grants every citizen basic, inalienable human rights. Under certain circumstances, however, some of these rights can come to stand in direct opposition to one another leaving us with a dilemma to choose between two compelling actions. In this context, the right to a secure, ecologically sustainable environment and the right to food and water is in conflict. The greatest challenge to face South Africa is to eradicate poverty and develop its people while ensuring that the natural environment is not destroyed in the process. There must be development for this generation, but not at the price of destroying the natural environment for the next generation. We have ample examples from the apartheid era of damage done both to people and to the environment through the "homeland policy". Millions of people were forced to eke out an existence on land that could not carry the number of people consigned to these remote areas. Erosion, deforestation and poverty are the heritage. There are increasing demands for development, but these demands are infinite while the resources of the world are finite. The question now arises whether the right to a safe environment or the right to sufficient food and water, both enshrined in the Constitution should be given preference. I aim to show that Holmes Rolston III's article "Feeding People versus Saving Nature?" and the points made in Hardin's "Tragedy of the Commons" fail to satisfy public norms and therefore fall short to help us in solving this dilemma. l propose the bioregional management approach that focuses upon the political means to promote restoration and maintenance of the natural systems that ultimately support the people and nature in each area. I believe that this strategy could succeed in solving the impasse that the South African society has reached in solving this very complex dilemma. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Suid-Afrika is 'n land van ongelooflike skoonheid met kontraste wat wissel van droe semi-woestyne tot geil groen woude; van gelyk vlaktes tot hoe berge. Sosiaal en ekonomies is dit tegelyk 'n land van ekstreme kontraste (MacDonald 2002: 13). Die Suid-Afrikaanse Konstitusie, soos aanvaar op 8 Mei 1996, verseker elke burger van basiese, onvervreembare regte. Onder sekere omstandighede, egter, kan sommige van hierdie regte met mekaar in direkte konflik wees, en die dilemma bring mee dat ons tussen twee belangrike maar konflikterende optredes moet kies. In hierdie konteks is die reg op 'n veilige, ekologies volhoubare omgewing, en die reg tot voedsel en water, in konflik met mekaar. Die grootste uitdaging waardeur Suid-Afrika in die gesig gestaar word, is die gelyktydige uitwissing van armoede en die ontwikkeling van sy mense, terwyl verseker word dat die natuurlike omgewing nie in die proses vernietig word nie. Daar moet ontwikkeling wees vir die huidige generasie, maar nie teen die prys van die vernietiging van die natuurlike omgewing vir die volgende generasie nie. Ons het talle voorbeelde uit die apartheid-era van die skade wat aangerig is aan mense en hul omgewing deur die tuisland-beleid. Miljoene mense is geforseer om 'n bestaan te maak in gebiede wat nie die groot getalle wat na hierdie verafgelee areas gedwing is, kon akkomodeer nie. Die nalatenskap hiervan is erosie, ontbossing en armoede. Daar is toenemende eise vir ontwikkeling, maar hierdie eise is oneindig terwyl die bronne van die wereld eindig is. Die vraag wat nou ontstaan, is of daar voorkeur gegee moet word aan die reg tot 'n veilige omgewing of die reg op voldoende voedsel en water, soos wat beide hiervan beklemtoon word in die Konstitusie. Ek poog om aan te toon dat Holmes Rolston III se artikel "Feeding People versus Saving Nature?" en die punte gemaak in Hardin se "Tragedy of the Commons" nie daarin slaag om openbare norme te bevredig nie en dus nie daarin slaag om die dilemma te oorkom nie. Ek stel voor dat die dilemma benader moet word vanuit 'n bio-regionale perspektief waarin daar gefokus word op die politieke middele om die restorasie en voortbestaan van natuurlike sisteme te bevorder waardeur die mense en natuur in elke area uiteindelik ondersteun word. Ek glo dat hierdie strategie daarin sal slaag om die impasse op te hef waarin die Suid-Afrikaanse samelewing verval het in hul poging om hierdie komplekse probleem op te los.