Thesis (MA (Political Science. International Studies))--University of Stellenbosch, 2007. / Post-apartheid foreign policy has witnessed a fundamental shift in South African foreign policy objectives and strategies as the country has aimed to move from a pariah to a participant in the international community. Since 1994, South Africa has become an active player in the international system and has assumed an increasingly active role in international organisations. One distinct strand of South African foreign policy which has emerged is a commitment to the use and support of multilateralism. Yet, as the country has become increasingly active in multilateral fora, so too, it is argued, has it been torn between the promotion of its own interests and those of its African peers. At times South Africa is seen to vociferously champion African interests, and at others to sideline the interests of its African partners and the notion of the African Renaissance, in favour of its own interests. Yet, whilst inconsistencies in South African multilateral foreign policy exist, this study argues that overall, South Africa has actively and consciously attempted to establish itself as an African middle power within the international system, and to create a distinct niche for itself as “the voice of Africa” in multilateral fora. Employing a Middle Power approach and utilising the concept of niche-building diplomacy this study investigates first, South Africa’s middle power niche in the international system at large, before, secondly, investigating South Africa’s role at the World Trade Organisation. The study concludes that, while South Africa has continually attempted to establish itself as “the voice of Africa” in a range of multilateral fora and has acted in a manner consistent with this stated objective, it has acted contrary to its established niche at the World Trade Organisation since joining this organisation in 1994. Indeed, this study finds that whereas in other multilateral fora South Africa has acted as the standard-bearer of African interests, in the World Trade Organisation it has acted contrary to African interests time and again. The findings indicate that the Middle Power concept in international relations itself needs to be revisited, that South Africa’s role as a middle power in the international system requires greater investigation, and that further research is required on the roles played by other middle powers at the World Trade Organisation.

Thesis (MPhil (Political Science))--University of Stellenbosch, 2006. / Since the end of the Cold War, China has displayed a reinvigorated interest in the African continent. There are differing viewpoints as to whether China’s increasing involvement in Africa is beneficial to the African continent, or whether there are negative consequences. This assignment attempts to answer this question by exploring the nature of China’s political, economic, and aid relationships with the African continent, by highlighting examples from four countries: South Africa, Zimbabwe, Uganda and Sudan. China’s interests in Africa are motivated primarily by economics and diplomacy. In other words, Africa is important to China as a vast source of resources to feed its growing manufacturing base, as well as a source of energy security. In addition, China sees Africa as an important destination for its affordable manufactured goods. China’s interests in Africa, however, are not only confined to economics, but extend to diplomacy as well. China is attempting to position itself as an important power in the international system and, in so doing, promote its own views and policies within international multilateral organisations. Africa plays an important role in this regard, particularly in institutions with ‘one-country, one vote’ arrangements. Thus, China attempts to court African governments in order to secure access to Africa’s vast resources, as well as to garner support for its policies in the international arena. After an in-depth examination of the evidence, it is concluded that China’s engagement with Africa is based on strategic political and economic considerations and fits within a Realist explanatory framework. It is therefore contended that China’s presence on the African continent presents both opportunities as well as threats, although African governments need to be pro-active in order to exploit the potential opportunities. Furthermore, it is concluded that the negative consequences of China’s involvement in Africa are not only attributable to China’s behaviour in Africa, but some of the blame should also be shifted to corrupt African governments and elites who operate within a framework of neo-patrimonial politics which exacerbates corruption and mal-governance on the continent. Such behaviour stalls efforts emanating from ‘responsible’ African leaders to promote good governance and democracy on the continent, for example through institutions such as the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (Nepad) and the African Union (AU).

Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2004. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The downward spiral of Zimbabwe under President Robert Gabriel Mugabe and the slide into lawlessness has excited international opinion. Perhaps even more controversial, has been South African President Thabo Mbeki's obvious reticence to condemn Mugabe's increasing authoritarianism and breach of human rights and democratic standards. South Africa's foreign policy of 'quiet diplomacy' towards Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe has received strong criticism. Whilst both domestic and international audiences expected South Africa to take a stronger stance towards Mugabe because of his increasing violation of human rights and democratic standards, President Mbeki has been notably reticent to publicly criticise Mugabe. Consequently, the South African government has been criticised for condoning Mugabe's behaviour, which in turn has raised questions as to South Africa's commitment to the advocacy of human rights and its attempts to establish a leadership position in Africa. Although both internal and external pressures have given rise to South Africa's strong commitment to the international norm of human rights in 1994, this commitment seemed to weaken as the years passed. The commitment to human rights, that was especially prominent during the Nelson Mandela presidency, has given rise to foreign policy tensions and contradictions within the South African government. South Africa's turn to multilateral mechanisms as the main vehicle for South Africa's principled commitment to human rights has been accompanied by a decline in the priority placed on this principle. This loss of ardour in the commitment to the human rights advocacy, moreover, has seemed to increase during the Mbeki presidency. President Mbeki's desire to playa leadership role in Africa and his vision for African renewal and rebirth have been accompanied by a stronger emphasis on African solidarity as a foreign policy principle. South Africa's commitment to the norm of human rights, however, has thwarted South Africa's attempts to strengthen African solidarity since it required a rejection of the norms of 'state sovereignty' and 'not to speak out against each other'. Since high priority is attached to these norms in Africa, contradictions arose between the norms of human rights advocacy and African solidarity. This study argues that South Africa's policy of 'quiet diplomacy' towards Zimbabwe can only be understood by focusing on the role of norms and identity on South Africa's policy. It aims to illustrate how South Africa's aspiration for continental leadership has constrained its commitment to human rights advocacy, as accentuated by the Zimbabwean crisis. This study explores the role of norms and identity in South Africa's foreign policy decisions towards Zimbabwe by drawing on constructivism as a theoretical framework. The international relations theory of constructivism provides a framework for analysing the potential influence of norms in international relations. Constructivism illustrates that South Africa's freedom of action has been determined by the interplay between policy actors and social forces with very different ideological convictions about the country in the world, the pressures incumbent upon it and the extent to which it can influence world affairs. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Zimbabwe se toenemende ekonomiese en politieke agteruitgang onder die presidentskap van Robert Gabriel Mugabe, asook die geleidelike oorgang na wetteloosheid, het internasionale veroordeling voortgebring. President Thabo Mbeki van Suid-Afrika se ooglopende teensinnigheid om Mugabe se toenemende outoriteit en skending van menseregte en demokratiese standaarde te veroordeel, was selfs meer omstrede. Suid-Afrika se buitelandse beleid van 'stille diplomasie' teenoor President Mugabe van Zimbabwe het dus sterk kritiek uitgelok. Terwyl beide binnelandse en internasionale sfere van Suid-Afrika verwag het om 'n sterker standpunt teenoor Mugabe in te neem in die lig van Mugabe se toenemende skending van menseregte en demokratiese standaarde, was President Mbeki merkbaar teensinnig om Mugabe openlik te kritiseer. Die Suid-Afrikaanse regering is gevolglik daarvan beskuldig dat dit Mugabe se gedrag verskoon, wat weer aanleiding gegee het tot die bevraagtekening van Suid-Afrika se verbintenis tot die bevordering van menseregte en pogings om 'n leierskapsposisie in Afrika te vestig. Alhoewel beide interne en eksterne druk tot Suid-Afrika se sterk verbintenis tot die internasionale norm van menseregte in 1994 bygedra het, het hierdie verbintenis mettertyd geleidelik vervaag. Hierdie verbintenis tot menseregte was veral prominent gedurende die Mandela presidentskap en het spoedig aanleiding tot spanning en teenstrydighede in Suid-Afrika se buitelandse beleid gegee. Suid-Afrika se wending tot multilaterale meganismes as voertuig vir die bevordering van menseregte, het dus gepaard gegaan met 'n afname in die prioriteit wat aan hierdie beginsel geheg word. Hierdie afname in Suid-Afrika se dryfkrag in hul verbintenis tot die bevordering van menseregte, het gedurende die Mbeki presidentskap vergroot. President Mbeki se begeerte om 'n leiersposisie in Afrika in te neem, asook sy visie vir Afrika hernuwing en herlewing, het dus gepaard gegaan met 'n sterker klem op die belang van Afrika solidariteit as 'n buitelandse beleidsbeginsel. Suid-Afrika se verbintenis tot menseregte het egter Suid-Afrika se pogings om Afrika solidariteit te bevorder, verhinder, aangesien 'n verbintenis tot menseregte die verwerping van die norme van 'staatsoewereiniteit' en 'nie teenoor mekaar uit te praat nie' vereis het. Aangesien hierdie twee laasgenoemde norme steeds voorrang geniet in die Afrika konteks, het daar teenstrydighede tussen die norme van menseregte en Afrika solidariteit ontstaan. Hierdie studie argumenteer dat Suid-Afrika se beleid van 'stille diplomasie' teenoor Zimbabwe slegs begryp kan word deur op die rol van norme en identiteit op Suid-Afrika se beleid te fokus. Daar word gepoog om te illustreer hoe Suid-Afrika se aspirasie om 'n leiersposisie in Afrika in te neem, beperk is deur die verbintenis tot die bevordering van menseregte, soos beklemtoon deur die krisis in Zimbabwe. Hierdie studie ondersoek dus die rol van norme en identiteit op Suid-Afrika se buitelandse beleidsbesluite teenoor Zimbabwe met behulp van konstruktivisme as 'n teoretiese raamwerk. Die internasionale betrekkinge teorie van konstruktivisme bied 'n raamwerk vir die analise van die potensiële invloed van norme in internasionale betrekkinge. Konstruktivisme illustreer dat Suid-Afrika se vryheid van aksie bepaal word deur die wisselwerking tussen beleidsakteurs en sosiale kragte met verskillende ideologiese oortuigings oor die staat in die wêreld, die druk wat daarop inwerk en die mate waartoe dit wêreld gebeure kan beïnvloed.

The mass media's role in informing the American public is critical to public support for government policies. The media are said to set the national agenda. This view is based on the assumption of selective coverage they give to news items. Media coverage also influences the salience the public attaches to issues. However, media agenda effect has been challenged by Lang and Lang (1983). These scholars, in their media agenda-building theory, argued that the success of media effect on national agenda is dependent on group support. In order to test this theory, time-related data on South Africa crises, media coverage"of South Africa, American public reactions, congressional, and presidential apartheid-related activities, between 1976 and 1988, were analyzed. Congressional anti-apartheid policies were the dependent and others, the independent variables. The theory made analysis of the data amenable to the additive adopted to test for the significance of the interactive variables, indicated that these variables were negatively related to congressional anti-apartheid policies. The additive model was subsequently analyzed. The time series multiple regression analysis was used in analyzing the relationships. Given autocorrelation and multicollinearity problems associated with time series analysis, the Arima (p, d, q) model was used to model the relationships. This model was used to indicate support, or nonsupport, for the time series regression analysis. The result of the additive model indicated that South African political crises were negatively related to congressional anti-apartheid actions. It also showed that the relationship between the American public reactions and congressional anti-apartheid policies was greater in comparison to all other independent variables. The presidential actions taken against South Africa were negatively related to Congress' anti-apartheid actions. Television had the greatest relationship with congressional anti-apartheid actions compared to newspapers and magazines.

D.Com. (Economics) / Please refer to full text to view abstract

This research analyses the impact and materiality of South Africa’s choice not to ratify the CISG on its trade as well as relations with other states. As the point of departure, the broader events leading up to the creation of the CISG will be examined as well as UNCITRAL’s mandate and the development of trade in the local and global context. At present, the CISG has been ratified by 85 states. The decisions by common law jurisdictions such as the UK and India not to ratify the CISG as well as the delay by Brazil and Japan will be discussed. The legal, business and political or policy reasons for and against the ratification of the CISG are investigated which focuses on aspects such as legal certainty, uniformity of laws and the reduction of legal costs. An investigation is carried out regarding the historical foundations of the South African law of contract to this framework sets the tone for a comparison between the South African law and the provisions of the CISG. Lastly, a comparison is drawn between the provisions of the CISG and the South African law with specific emphasis on the remedies of specific performance and the right to claim damages which culminates in an overall conclusion that the South African law is compatible with the CISG insofar as remedies for breach of contract are concerned. / Mercantile Law / LL. M. (International Economic Law)

This thesis examines South Africa's foreign relations, viewed from a South African perspective, with the black African countries beyond southern Africa from 1961 to 1994. These relations were determined by the conflict between Pretoria's apartheid ideology on the one hand, and African continental rejection of South Africa's race discrimination policies and its exclusion from the community of African states on the other. The documentary material used primarily stems from the Department of Foreign Affairs archive in Pretoria, supplemented by research conducted in other archives. Furthermore, we conducted interviews and correspondence, and consulted the relevant primary and secondary literature. Given the main source of information, we chose to make this work a case study in Diplomatic History. In consequence, and constituting the core of the study, Chapters 3 to 6 explore the interaction between South Africa and the black African states in a chronological order. At the same time, we draw on the analytical concepts from the academic disciplines of Political Science and its derivative, International Relations, to comprehend developments more fully. We discuss the significance of the approaches from these two disciplines in both the Introduction and Chapter 2. In particular, we emphasise that this study is about Pretoria's foreign policy, involving state and non-state actors, and we suggest that the unequal status between South Africa and the other African states constitutes an inherent factor in the relationship between them. The Conclusion examines the role of the state and non-state actors in determining Pretoria's foreign relations and the relevance of the structural imbalance between South Africa and the black African states in this context.

The South African Council of Churches (SACC) played an extremely crucial role during the struggle against apartheid. The role of the SACC was first and foremost to provide a voice for the voiceless. It managed, among other tasks, to actively fill the void left by movements banned by the illegitimate apartheid government. As a result of its fight against the inequalities that existed in South Africa, its work adopted a political character. In the aftermath of post-apartheid South Africa, the SACC was left with the task of redefining its role within South African society and civil society, specifically. The euphoric sentiment in the mid-1990s was in part reflected in the SACC. However, the conclusion reached by the Council in 1995 was that it would also play a role of 'critical solidarity' which essentially meant that it would not shy away from attacking the government when the need arose. Since 1994, the South African government has implemented a number of policies that do not appear to be in the immediate interest of the majority of South African citizens atld have brought church and state into conflict. This thesis attempts to tackle three issues which are pertinent to the South African situation and which shed light on state-civil society interactions. These issues are HIV I Aids, the question of odious debt and the Zimbabwe crisis. By using both primary and secondary sources, the SACC's responses to government's handling of these matters will be compared with the responses of the South African Catholic Bishops Conference in order to determine their relationships with government. The conclusion of this investigation is that the SACC has in fact managed to maintain a position of critical solidarity. It has been faced with numerous challenges with regard to maintaining the fragile boundary of alliance with government on the one hand, and becoming anti-government on the other. However, by forming alliances with other civil society actors as well as fostering a relationship with government in order to facilitate mediation this dissertation argues that the SACC has become an essential member of South Africa's vibrant civil society.

At the United Nations Conference on International Organization in April 1945 South Africa affirmed the principle of respect for human rights in a Preamble it proposed for inclusion in the Charter of the United Nations. The proposal was approved and the Preamble was accorded binding force. While South Africa participated in the earliest attempts of the United Nations to draft a bill of rights, it abstained on the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights because its municipal legislation was incompatible with some articles. Similarly, South Africa did not become a party to the international human rights instruments the declaration inspired, and avoided an active role in their elaboration. Subsidiary organs of the General Assembly undertook several studies on discrimination in the field of human rights. They provided evidence that racial discrimination in South Africa intensified after the National Party came to power in May 1948 on the platform of apartheid and diverged from global trends in humanitarian law. The gap between the Union and the United Nations widened. At the first General Assembly in 1946, India successfully asked that the treatment of persons of Indian origin in South Africa be inscribed on the agenda. The Indian question was later subsumed in the charge that South Africa's racial policies violated the Charter and in 1952 the General Assembly began to discuss apartheid. South Africa protested that these actions contravened Charter Article 2(7), which prohibited intervention in matters of domestic jurisdiction, and were ultra vires. Criticism of the Union increased in intensity, until in 1960 it culminated in calls for economic and diplomatic sanctions. Research shows that South Africa was the main architect of its growing isolation, since it refused to modify domestic policies that alienated even its potential allies. Moreover, it maintained a low profile in United Nations debates on human rights issues, abstaining on all substantive clauses in the two draft covenants on human rights. These actions were interpreted as lack of interest in global humanitarian affairs. South Africa had little influence on the development of customary international law in the field of human rights but was a catalyst in the evolution of international machinery to protect them. / Jurisprudence / (LL.D)

This work covering the period 1795 to 1948 has four main features. It firstly examines the role of international and domestic factors in determining regional interaction and cooperation between South Africa and Chile. Secondly, it documents the whims of the international community, and more particularly the world powers which was a motivating factor in Chilean and South African politics, economy, society and their bilateral relations. Thirdly it covers the period when Britain rose to world power status. Eventually, this gave way to her displacement by Germany and then ultimately the United States. This study's fourth feature is that it marks the first documented account of direct contact between the inhabitants at the Cape of Good Hope and Latin America. The period ends with a cornerstone in the history of South African-Chilean bilateral relations when direct diplomatic and consular relations were established by both South Africa and Chile in May 1948. / M.A. (History)