The number of South Africans slipping into relative poverty between 1996 and 2007 increased substantially, according to figures released by the Institute for Race Relations. Only a few people are benefiting from the market. There are examples of how this has materialised elsewhere.
Yes, the African National Congress’s conference at Polokwane last December was a watershed ushering in a grassroots democracy. But it has also bequeathed a worrying political culture in evidence at this week’s abortive ANC Youth League conference. As delegates boozed, scuffled and stripped for the camera, not a single resolution was passed.
Food prices have the potential to change regimes and the course of history. When Marie Antoinette allegedly said ”Let them eat cake” in 1789, she was wondering why higher bread prices were causing so much trouble in Paris. Analysts say pushing the urban poor beyond their purchasing limits can, and will, cause unrest.
”We are not the Chinese.” This was the message from India this week as Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s government used the first India-Africa Forum Summit in Delhi to redefine the way in which its role in Africa is viewed. The Mail & Guardian‘s Nic Dawes attended the summit.
President Thabo Mbeki’s policy of ”quiet diplomacy” on Zimbabwe has been rejected by his own party. The split between the Union Buildings and Luthuli House on the issue became apparent this week when Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai chose to meet Jacob Zuma and Gwede Mantashe in Johannesburg.
Click on image for full-size view.
A judge on Wednesday wrapped up hearing an opposition petition demanding the immediate release of Zimbabwe’s presidential election results and said he would deliver his judgement on Monday. ”Conscious of the urgency of the matter, I should be ready for a judgement on Monday afternoon,” Justice Tendai Uchena told the High Court in Harare.
The African National Congress’s (ANC) national working committee (NWC) will discuss its youth league’s recent national congress in Bloemfontein next week, spokesperson Jesse Duarte said on Wednesday. ”We will speak at the NWC meeting on Monday,” Duarte said.
Claims by chairperson of the Forum for Black Journalists (FBJ) Abbey Makoe following a South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) finding against the FBJ — which Makoe labelled a ”judicial ambush” — are mischievous and untruthful, the SAHRC said on Wednesday.
The South African National Editors’ Forum (Sanef) has questioned Eskom’s insistence on keeping secret sections of its application for tariff hikes. ”Eskom seeks to destroy the public’s right to know about matters that will significantly increase the cost of electricity,” Sanef said on Wednesday.