This study investigates the representation of post-apartheid discourses and decolonial messages of The Thinker magazine. It further examines how the magazine in question confronts and negotiates the aftermath of apartheid and coloniality. Particularly, the nature of these discourses and narratives in the context of a new dispensation in South Africa. South Africa experienced the brunt of apartheid and it is currently still grappling with the condition of coloniality. The latter manifests itself into the dimensions of power, knowledge and being. For this reason, a de-linking option from coloniality and apartheid becomes imperative if a new consciousness, liberatory trajectory and social justice are to be attained. Accordingly, the study sought to determine whether African Renaissance could be used as a de-linking tool/option. Taking into account The Thinker‘s messages from the year 2010 to 2016, the study examines whether the magazine promotes a decolonisation narrative. The study sought to provide a contribution to knowledge insofar as discourses of decoloniality and social justice in South Africa are concerned. The study employs a cultural studies lens, in particular, the principle of radical contextualism and Steward Hall’s model of articulation. Cultural studies was used because of its transdisciplinary/interdisciplinary and flexible approach to social phenomenon under study. A mixed-methods approach in the form of a sequential transformative design was employed, however, the qualitative aspect (thematic analysis) was prioritised as dictated by the research question and objectives. It was proven in this study that quantitative elements can be applied successfully within a decolonial inquiry. Hence, the methodological contribution of the study in that regard. The study found that The Thinker highlights the continuation of the atrocities of coloniality and apartheid in post-apartheid South Africa. It is thus suggested by the text that a decolonial trajectory and thinking is needed given the aftermath of apartheid and the condition of coloniality. Furthermore, African Renaissance can be used to reaffirm and repudiate the dominant discourses of coloniality and apartheid if employed authentically by its proponents. However, the text points out the challenges that may hinder the processes of decolonization and liberation such as the self-serving and corrupt leadership that perpetuate the status quo at the expense of the interests of the people. / Communication Science / M.A. (Communication)

L’institutionnalisation des études postcoloniales et l’essor récent du champ décolonial ont mis en évidence la reconnaissance dont bénéficient aujourd’hui les intellectuels issus d’anciens territoires colonisés. Parmi eux, Ngugi wa Thiong’o et Valentin-Yves Mudimbe sont des figures respectées dont les écrits, aussi bien théoriques que fictionnels, cherchent à résoudre les crises générées par l’expérience coloniale. Conscients que celle-ci ne s’est pas achevée avec la vague des indépendances, ils maintiennent éveillé dans leurs œuvres le désir utopique qu’elles avaient vu naître, celui de concevoir un monde nouveau où les relations entre les peuples et les individus seraient renégociées, et ce, malgré les désillusions de la période qui leur succéda. Pourtant, la survenue, en 1994, du génocide des Tutsi du Rwanda aurait bien pu symboliser l’échec de leurs entreprises de détachement épistémique avec la modernité occidentale. Celui-ci consistait en effet en la réitération, sur le continent africain, d’un crime semblable à celui qui avait poussé nombre d’intellectuels à vouloir rompre avec l’ordre dont la Shoah était la conséquence. Néanmoins, bien au contraire, les textes de Scholastique Mukasonga témoignent de la reprise de l’impératif formulé par Ngugi wa Thiong’o et Valentin-Yves Mudimbe, à savoir le besoin de parvenir à une décolonisation des subjectivités pour initier une renaissance africaine. L’étude de chacune de leurs trajectoires a pour ambition de montrer la complémentarité de ces deux processus dans leurs œuvres qui, séparément, ouvrent la voie à de multiples futurs possibles pour l’humanité. / The institutionalization of postcolonial studies and the recent development of decolonial studies have highlighted the recognition that intellectuals from former colonized territories enjoy today. Among them, Ngugi wa Thiong'o and Valentin-Yves Mudimbe are respected figures whose writings, both theoretical and fictional, seek to resolve the crises generated by the colonial experience. Aware that this did not end with the wave of independence, they kept alive in their works the utopian desire, that of conceiving a new world where relations between peoples and individuals would be renegotiated, despite the disappointments of the postcolonial regimes. However, the 1994 genocide of the Tutsis in Rwanda could well have symbolized the failure of their epistemic detachment efforts with Western modernity. This consisted in the repetition, on the African continent, of a crime similar to the one that had pushed many intellectuals to want to break with the order of which the Shoah was the consequence. On the contrary, Scholastique Mukasonga's texts bear witness to the repetition of the imperative formulated by Ngugi wa Thiong'o and Valentin-Yves Mudimbe, namely the need to achieve a decolonization of subjectivities to initiate an African renaissance. The study of each of their trajectories aims to show the complementarity of these two processes in their works which, separately, open the way to multiple possible futures for humanity.

Abstract not available. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2000.

Doctor Educationis / This study investigates how two groups of African pupils, namely the low and high performers in standard 9 mathematics classes in some high schools in Mangaung, construct meaning of their African cultural, individual African identity and performance in mathematics respectively. The observation underpinning this investigation is that social structural factors have not gained much attention in research as bases for explaining differentiated performance in mathematics, hence this study. To arrive at the findings mentioned below, the study used three quantitative instruments namely Mboya's Self-Description Inventory II (MSDI-II), Rotter's I-E scale and Tuekman's Mathematics Attitude Scale (MAS). Four hundred pupils who constituted the sample that responded to these questionnaires were controlled as to confounding variables like, gender, social class, exposure to mathematics and future aspirations relating to this subject. MSDI-II and Rotter's I-E Scale accessed data relating to signification of African individual identity while MAS and one of MSDI-Il's subscale, Maths Ability were 'triangulated' to access data relating to signification of performance in Mathematics. To triangulate findings on these two variables as well as to allow the sampled pupils' voices to be heard, discourse analysis was conducted on the open interviews with the two groups of low and high performing pupils in their respective schools. This qualitative approach also enabled the study to access information relating to signification of African Cultural Identity. No quantitative instrument was found suitable for this purpose. Although the study is careful not to make strong causal inferences between meaning construction (signification) and performance, the results show that (i) low performers are not sure about whether they are Africans or not since according to them African cultural identity implies an obsolete and primitive way of doing things. They are unable to identify with this. High performers see African Cultural Identity as involving lived experiences which challenge them to transform their despised status as Africans (ii) Low performers are not as positive as high performers about Africanness (individual identity) and (iii) they are also not positively inclined towards mathematics and their own ability to perform well therein, while high performers are very positive as they see doing well in mathematics as an act of struggle that would enable them to improve their social standing and that of other Africans. On the basis of the above the study is able to conclude that low performers construct meaning of the mentioned factors in agreement with the dominant discourses that see Africanness as being primitive, incompetent and unable to adequately comprehend the intricacies of modem day subjects like mathematics. High performers on the other hand tend to contest this negative definitions about what it means to be an African (identity, culture and performance in mathematics). They are thus positioned within counter-hegemonic ideology and discourses in as far as their meaning construction is concerned. Grounded on the above findings and conclusions, the study recommends that efforts should not be spared to enable the low performers (and/or pupils at risk of failing) to adopt positive meaning making strategies of high performers. These strategies may be accompanied by enhanced positive feelings about self and what one is capable of, which may in tum also impact positively on performance in mathematics, in particular. The research further argues that this goal may be achieved through curriculum enrichment, guidance, counselling and teaching, couched in the framework of African Renaissance. Therefore further research needs to be conducted that will elaborate clearly (i) what the implications of African Renaissance are on education, teaching, learning and mathematics curriculum in particular, (ii) what are the most effective means of transferring high performers' strategies of meaning construction to the low performers in the context of African Renaissance and (iii) how to strengthen and further sustain the positive meaning making strategies among high performers. Recommendations relating to curriculum enrichment in the context of Curriculum 2005 and Outcomes Based Counselling are also made as well as suggestions for future relevant research based on the concepts generated in this research.

This study on "The road to constitutionalism and democracy in post-colonial Africa: the case of the Democratic Republic of Congo" revolves around a major research problem: What has been the road to constitutionalism and democracy in Africa since independence and how can constitutionalism and democracy be established and consolidated on the African continent? The importance of the problem and its implications for the life of millions of African people and the state of the literature still dominated by persons foreign to Africa make constitutionalism and democracy one of the most fascinating and challenging intellectual projects, particularly among African scholars. This work is a contribution to the development of knowledge and to the building and consolidation of constitutionalism and democracy in Africa. It revisits and critically examines the concepts and the various discourses and voices we have heard form both inside and mostly outside the continent. It highlights the African struggle, explores the major trends, and stresses the challenges and prospects for constitutionalism and democracy in Africa. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is a case study. The research deals with the unfinished struggle of the people of the Congo and explains why the Congo has gone from DRC to DRC via Zaire, from one crisis of the Congo in the 1960s to another crisis of the Congo since the early 1990s and why the DRC history has been rehearsing in a vicious circle of coups and countercoups, rebellions, unsuccessful national conferences, authoritarian and unconstitutional regimes. Central to the crisis in many African states, including the DRC, is the crisis of constitutionalism and democracy and the failure of the post-colonial state. The study ends with the conclusion that constitutionalism and democracy also belong to Africa and constitute a prerequisite for African survival and renaissance. / Constitutional and Public International Law / LL.D.

This thesis is an endeavour to participate in the call for the African Renaissance from a missiological perspective. The study observes how the debate about this African ‗dream‘ persists in the domain of intellectuals and political leaders. It recognises as timely the opportunity to contribute theologically to the development of the renaissance concept. It also observes that ordinary people have jumped onto the African Renaissance bandwagon albeit for reasons that are mainly sentimental. Hence a two-fold appeal to protagonists of the African Renaissance movement: firstly, to be inclusive of all stakeholders especially ordinary people who should be both participants and co-beneficiaries; secondly, to consider spirituality as an indispensable factor in birthing this African ‗dream‘. To help arrive at a well-considered argument the study discusses a brief history of Africa‘s economic, social and political development. Central to this history is how the human factor, actively or inadvertently, and the natural factors have devastated the continent thus necessitating a rebirth. The study notes how especially the political economy and issues of good governance of African states are key concerns to the protagonists of the renaissance movement. It also notes the establishment of structures and policies in addressing these concerns. These interventions are hoped to improve the continent‘s image towards its global counterparts and to lift the hopes of distraught African peoples. The prospect of their success in terms of probabilities and/or perceptions is discussed and Missiologically critiqued. An overview of these endeavours has led to the observation of a lingering chasm of the absence or the apparent sidelining of African spirituality as a necessary component of the African Renaissance discourse. As a major thrust of this thesis the spiritual notion of ‗rebirth‘ is advanced. The basis for this argument lies in the ‗rebirth‘ concept that is inherent in many religions, faith formations and philosophies akin to African spirituality. It is on this understanding that a Missiological dimension is build. In introducing this spiritual dimension towards an African Renaissance a Missiological methodology of a seven pointed praxis cycle is proposed and unpacked. In deconstructing this methodology real models are presented as examples to illustrate Missiology‘s contextual life-long learning philosophy. / Christian Spirituality Church History and Missiology / D. Th. (Missiology)

This work is built on three pillars and seeks to contribute to the understanding of the right to development (RtD) especially from the perspective of human rights non-governmental organisations. First, the right to development, arguably one of the most recent and controversial rights in the architecture of international human rights, shapes the development paradigm in a manner that integrates civil, cultural, economic, social, political and environmental rights of both individuals and groups without distinction. Secondly, in general, social movements – including nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) – play a crucial role as agents for change in any democratic society. Africa, and within it Côte d’Ivoire, is no exception. Thirdly Côte d’Ivoire, an African country once heralded as a success story has been confronted with an internal conflict with impacts which continue to be felt in the form of increased poverty and insecurity. The country strives to resume peace, development and stability but does not appear to have reached the end of the tunnel. The issues confronting this country are similar to those identified by Former South African President, Thabo Mbeki, and others to justify the promotion of the African Renaissance as the vision to pursue. From the perspective of human rights law, these issues are largely covered by the RtD. Therefore, can NGOs in Côte d’Ivoire contribute meaningfully to addressing the challenges facing the country through the pursuit of the RtD? This is the question at the heart of the present work. This thesis establishes two main conclusions. First, in the current context of the Côte d’Ivoire, a shift in focus towards the RtD will enable NGOs be part of the solution to the multifaceted problems Côte d’Ivoire is seeking to overcome. Secondly, no NGO currently has the requisite experience in working on the RtD in Côte d’Ivoire. However, the structural reasons for this vacuum relate in the main to knowledge and capacity. These can be addressed and recommendations are formulated to this end. / Public, Constitutional, & International / LL.D.

Since the end of South Africa’s Apartheid era, South Africans have become more aware of hate crimes that discriminate not on the basis of skin colour, but nationality. Among the targets of this xenophobic hate are Mozambican foreign nationals, one of the largest foreign national populations in South Africa. Structured Mozambican communities have been identified, offering support to their members in this environment. This study explores the impact of the xenophobic discourse on the Mozambican identity, particularly within the Mozambican community of Freedom Park, Soweto. Based on the social constructionist acknowledgement of multiple realities, this study used the African worldview as an epistemological framework to inform the methodology appropriate for this participant group. 12 participants, identified through convenience sampling, engaged in one group conversation that explored their understandings of their Mozambican identity and the corresponding impact of South Africa’s xenophobic discourse. Following thematic content analysis, four themes were identified. Participants showed a strong sense of national pride in their shared Mozambican heritage, linked to support from their community and their government. Secondly, participants perceived a positive Mozambican identity that emphasized work- related characteristics. Thirdly, participants showed concern over how South Africans perceive them. Finally, the Mozambican identity was de-emphasized when discussing xenophobia. Participants adopted similar ideas to Mbeki’s African Renaissance, in drawing on the broad categories of ‘blacks’ and ‘Africans’ and redefining the boundaries of belonging. In conclusion, implications for future research and government interventions are discussed / Psychology / M.A. (Clinical Psychology)

This study discusses the African perspective of the role of language in explaining development issues through the medium of drama and theatre in Zimbabwe. The problem of the study is centred on the idea that development was hardly measured through art. The researcher argues that language used in drama and theatre as a form of art can also contribute to development in Zimbabwe. This development can be witnessed through people’s changing lifestyles, acknowledging the importance of their mother tongue in communication and restoring hope in situations characterised by hopelessness and despair. Descriptive research design was used in the study because it allowed the researcher to dig much deeper into the subject. Data from respondents was gathered through the use of questionnaires, interviews and content/textual analysis of some scripts. In interrogating the issues of development through language in drama and theatre, the research was guided by the African Renaissance theory, Theatre for development and Hymes’ SPEAKING model. As a result, the study observes that language, a people’s indigenous language should be placed at the centre of a performance if that message being conveyed is to change or develop them. The key respondents to the study bring out the idea that there is no language which is superior to the other and the choice of language to be used in a work of art should be determined by the circumstances that prevail. Even the language which is used by the smallest population of people should be given space to flourish and be used by its people. Another major finding of the research is that language itself cannot change people but people change themselves through the use of a language that they understand. This calls for the initiative by the indigenous people and the powers that be to make sure that they use their language at different levels so that all facets of development can be witnessed within their lives. In the final analysis, the researcher recommends that policies that allow the total usage of all declared official languages in Zimbabwe. / African Languages / D. Litt. et Phil. (African languages)

Since the end of South Africa’s Apartheid era, South Africans have become more aware of hate crimes that discriminate not on the basis of skin colour, but nationality. Among the targets of this xenophobic hate are Mozambican foreign nationals, one of the largest foreign national populations in South Africa. Structured Mozambican communities have been identified, offering support to their members in this environment. This study explores the impact of the xenophobic discourse on the Mozambican identity, particularly within the Mozambican community of Freedom Park, Soweto. Based on the social constructionist acknowledgement of multiple realities, this study used the African worldview as an epistemological framework to inform the methodology appropriate for this participant group. 12 participants, identified through convenience sampling, engaged in one group conversation that explored their understandings of their Mozambican identity and the corresponding impact of South Africa’s xenophobic discourse. Following thematic content analysis, four themes were identified. Participants showed a strong sense of national pride in their shared Mozambican heritage, linked to support from their community and their government. Secondly, participants perceived a positive Mozambican identity that emphasized work- related characteristics. Thirdly, participants showed concern over how South Africans perceive them. Finally, the Mozambican identity was de-emphasized when discussing xenophobia. Participants adopted similar ideas to Mbeki’s African Renaissance, in drawing on the broad categories of ‘blacks’ and ‘Africans’ and redefining the boundaries of belonging. In conclusion, implications for future research and government interventions are discussed / Psychology / M. A. (Clinical Psychology)