MA (History) / Department of Development Studies / The study examines the process of democratic consolidation in South Africa since 1994. This study unpacks the trends, developments and challenges which have taken place since 1994 towards the entrenchment of democracy in the country. The research will explore the nature of the rule of the ANC in the light of efforts, successes and failures in consolidating democratic rule in the country. The major problem which prompted this study is that, claims of South Africa as a democratic state have not been scrutinised by academics, and this study seeks to question the validity of the phrase “New democracy” which is commonly used by both politicians and academics in referring to the government since 1994. The study will be informed by notions of democracy and will utilise the indicators of democracy to locate whether South Africa can be viewed as a true democracy, or if it offers some elements, but neglecting some of the key components of democracy. The other critical issue will be to determine the extent to which democratic institutions have been strengthened in the country. This will be basically a literaturebased study, which depends more on reviewing policies enacted by the government and determining if the policies entail democratic consolidation. The overall assumption is that more still needs to be done towards entrenching democratic institutions that address socio-economic inequalities that persist in the country. Theoretically the study builds from the liberal discourse and its fundamental notions of democracy and good governance

This research examines the impact of formal democracy on the construction of an effective civil society in Ghana. The theoretical and policy role of civil society has received a great deal of attention in the literature. Especially for democratization theorists, the focus has been on the democracy enhancing qualities of civil society—qualities often credited with playing key roles in democratic transitions in Africa. However, the question of what happens to civil society after a democratic transition has not received much attention in the literature. Using a historical institutionalist approach, the study examines how democratic institutions and institutional arrangements affect the development of civil society. After Ghana’s return to formal democracy in 1992, democratic openings, though not immediately transformative, created an expansion in civil liberties and political rights necessary for the emergence of civil society. Paradoxically, state institutions remained weak and it was such weakness—not the strength, as some of the literature suggests, that allowed civil society to develop. Within the legislative and bureaucratic arenas, persistent institutional weakness became an opportunity for civil society to mobilize resources from foreign donors to strengthen the capacity of state institutions. Through programs aimed at enhancing the capacity of state institutions, foreign donors played a critical role in framing the relationship between civil society and the state. A major finding from this research is the symbiotic relationship between civil society and the state. As the case of Ghana demonstrates, where the state provides opportunities for civil society to develop, an effective civil society in turn contributes to building the democratic state. Findings from this research provide theoretical implications for the literature on civil society and democracy by highlighting the role of democratic institutions in strengthening civil society.

This research examines the impact of formal democracy on the construction of an effective civil society in Ghana. The theoretical and policy role of civil society has received a great deal of attention in the literature. Especially for democratization theorists, the focus has been on the democracy enhancing qualities of civil society—qualities often credited with playing key roles in democratic transitions in Africa. However, the question of what happens to civil society after a democratic transition has not received much attention in the literature. Using a historical institutionalist approach, the study examines how democratic institutions and institutional arrangements affect the development of civil society. After Ghana’s return to formal democracy in 1992, democratic openings, though not immediately transformative, created an expansion in civil liberties and political rights necessary for the emergence of civil society. Paradoxically, state institutions remained weak and it was such weakness—not the strength, as some of the literature suggests, that allowed civil society to develop. Within the legislative and bureaucratic arenas, persistent institutional weakness became an opportunity for civil society to mobilize resources from foreign donors to strengthen the capacity of state institutions. Through programs aimed at enhancing the capacity of state institutions, foreign donors played a critical role in framing the relationship between civil society and the state. A major finding from this research is the symbiotic relationship between civil society and the state. As the case of Ghana demonstrates, where the state provides opportunities for civil society to develop, an effective civil society in turn contributes to building the democratic state. Findings from this research provide theoretical implications for the literature on civil society and democracy by highlighting the role of democratic institutions in strengthening civil society.

This study examines the relationship between divided government and women's organizations' political activity. In the literature divided government is associated with political openness leading to a decline in the repression of alternative political views and increased organizational activity. In this thesis I hypothesize that divided government is related to increased participation in political activity by women's organizations. Political activity is expected to increase during periods of divided government due to increased opportunities to influence formal government as political parties and elected officials compete for public support. This study analyzes political activity by organizations associated with the women's movement in two developed democracies, the United States and Ireland during periods of (1) divided government and (2) periods of unified government in each country. This study focuses on activity revolving around the issues of reproductive rights and violence against women, two of the most salient issues to the women's movement. Organizational activity includes participation in protests, letter writing campaigns to political elites, and the endorsement of political candidates or parties by the National Organization for Women (NOW) and The Third Wave Foundation in the United States, and The National Women's Council of Ireland and The Irish Feminist Network in the Republic of Ireland. This study examines organizational activity in two cases of unified government controlling for partisanship of the executive, and one case of divided government in each country case. The findings of this study support the hypothesis that divided government is related to an increase in political activity by women's organizations in the United States. However, more research is needed to address alternative explanations for the level of political activity of women's organizations during periods of unified government. In addition, more research is needed to address explanations of political activity of women's organizations in Ireland.

No description available.

"Essays on Social Conflict and Reform" consists of four essays that study the political economy of policy reform. Social Conflict with Passive Groups examines conflicts over the distribution of income where groups that engage in appropriative activities as well as groups that are passive in this respect participate. Democratization, Rent Seeking, and Economic Transition uses a model of social conflict to determine the political and economic reform space and the economic performance in a society undergoing a transition from authoritarian rule to democracy and market economy. Constitutional Constraints and Redistributive Activities analyzes the effects of constitutional constraints against redistribution on the outcome of social conflicts. The Break-up of the Ruble Zone: Undertaking Monetary Reform while Building Democratic Institutions applies the theoretical findings of this dissertation to explain differences in monetary reform between countries in the former Soviet Union. / SITE, Stockholm Institute of Transition

This article presents a contribution to the approach when with political parties at the sub-national level. After the political parties crisis of 1989-1993 the Peruvian political system was reconfigured. Within this framework, regional and municipal elections were held (2002-2014) and showed how regional movements became hegemonic electoral actors at the subnational level. However, these elections also exhibited a high party volatility, both for regional and national parties. Thus, the present work seeks to rethink our approach to the Peruvian party system and democratic institutionality, assuming that instability is its essential characteristic and, from this, to understand democratic consolidation under this scenario. / Este artículo presenta un aporte a la manera de abordar la problemática de los partidos políticos a escala sub-nacional. Luego de la crisis partidaria de 1989 -1993, se reconfiguró el sistema político peruano. En este marco, se desarrollaron las elecciones regionales y municipales (2002-2014), que mostraron cómo los movimientos regionales se volvieron actores hegemónicos electorales en el ámbito subnacional. Sin embargo, estas elecciones también exhibieron una alta volatilidad partidaria, tanto en los partidos nacionales como en los regionales. Así, el presente trabajo busca repensar nuestro acercamiento al sistema de partidos peruanos y la institucionalidad democrática, asumiendo que la inestabilidad es su característica esencial y, a partir de ello, comprender la consolidación democrática desde este escenario.

Ce travail est une réflexion sur la place et le rôle institutionnels du Parlement au Niger ; au-delà de la simple présentation de ses fonctions législative et de contrôle du gouvernement, qui, au demeurant, ont été amplement étudiées, mais intégrées dans une approche dynamique et globale de la question. La première partie traite de l’apport du Parlement dans l’institutionnalisation de l’État nigérien. Il y a, d’abord, le rôle historique de l’Assemblée nationale dans la formation des institutions étatiques du Niger et l’accession du pays à la souveraineté internationale, en 1960. Il y a, ensuite, le fait que les structures de l’institution parlementaire donnent véritablement forme et corps à l’État nigérien. La seconde partie traite de l’apport du Parlement dans la démocratisation de l’État nigérien. Il y a, d’une part, son rôle de modérateur de pouvoir exécutif, en veillant à ce que ce dernier n’abuse pas du pouvoir d’État dans l’exercice de ses fonctions. Être en mesure d’arrêter le pouvoir exécutif, en renversant le gouvernement et/ou en provoquant la destitution du Président de la République. Il y a, d’autre part, la participation des citoyens à l’exercice du pouvoir d’État, à travers le mécanisme d’élaboration de la loi par le Parlement, représentant le peuple souverain. / This study is deals with the institutional place and role of the Nigerian Parliament. It is more than a mere presentation of its legislative and supervisory functions of government, which, have not only been extensively studied, but approached in a dynamic and comprehensive manner.This scientific work is divided into two parts. Part one deals with the Parliament’s contribution to the institutionalization of the State of Niger. It first presents the historical role of the National Assembly in establishing state institutions of Niger and attaining international sovereignty in 1960 before describing how the structures of the parliamentary institution really give shape and body to the government of Niger. Part two deals with the Parliament’s contribution in democratizating the State of Niger. It plays the role of executive power moderator as it ensures that there is no abuse of State power in the exercise of its duties by ousting the government and/or impeaching the President of the Republic. Moreover, citizens can have a say in the exercise of State power through the legislation-drafting mechanism of the Parliament which represents the sovereign people.

Abstract Olsson, Karin (2009). Den (över)levande demokratin. En idékritisk analys av demokratins reproducerbarhet i Robert Dahls tänkta värld. (Sustainable Democracy. Exploring the Idea of a Reproducible Democracy in the Theory of Robert A. Dahl). Acta Wexionensia 185/2009, ISSN: 1404-4307, ISBN: 978-91-7636-677-6. With a summary in English.   Everybody loves democracy. The problem is that while everybody calls himself democratic, the ideal form of democracy is hard to come by in the real world. But if we believe in democracy and believe that it is the best form of government, I argue that we should try to design a theory of democracy that is realisable – and reproducible. This thesis, then, focuses primarily on the question whether we find support in democratic theory for an idea of a self-reproducing democracy. It proceeds by means of an investigation of Robert A. Dahl’s theory of democracy. He is one of the most well-known and highly regarded theorists in the field of democratic research, whose work covers both normative and empirical analysis. When analysing the reproducible democracy, I argue that it is essential to study both normative values and empirical assumptions: the values that count as intrinsic to democracy, the assumptions that are made about man, and the institutions that are needed for the realisable and reproducible democracy. In modern social science man is often pushed into the background. This is also the case in theories of democracy, even though man (the individual) is the one who has the right to vote, the one who has the autonomy to decide – the one who has to act democratically in order to preserve democracy. The study yields the following findings. First, in Dahl’s theory political equality and autonomy come out as intrinsic values. Second, the assumptions made about man show that even if he seems to be ignored, he is always present. When Dahl construes his theory, he does it with full attention to man’s qualities, interests, manners of acting and reacting, and adaptability to the values of democracy. Third, the institutions needed to realise and reproduce democracy go further than the institutions of polyarchy. They need support from the judicial system, political culture, education and the market. Fourth, when it comes down to making democracy work and reproducing democracy, Dahl puts the full responsibility on man as he is not willing to allow too rigid constitutional mechanisms. Fifth, even though Dahl puts the emphasis on the empirical situation of the real world, he does not alter his normative ideals in order to make the theory more adaptive. For him, political equality and autonomy are imperative demands, too important to alter. And the only way to get full procedural democracy is to trust the democratic man.

No description available.