Soldiers escort a homeless woman to a gathering point in the Johannesburg CBD during the nationwide Covid-19 lockdown.
Michele Spatari/AFP-GettyImages
The South African National Defence Force has suffered from terrible neglect over the past 25 years of democracy.
Former leader of the Democratic Alliance, Mmusi Maimane. The politics of race in the party ended his tenure.
EPA/Nic Bothma
There is no moral equivalence between apartheid’s use of race categories and their continued use by the democratic government.
Steve Biko is widely considered to be the father of Black Consciousness in South Africa.
EFE-EPA/Sowetan
Black consciousness in South Africa changed blacks and whites.
Mmusi Maimane, leader of South Africa’s main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance.
EFE-EPA/Kim Ludbrook
Because it’s a blend of political influences the transition it is facing has, inevitably, had an existential effect on the Democratic Alliance.
Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi’s replacement as leader of Inkatha Freedom Party after 44 marked the end of an era.
GCIS/Flickr
The IFP’s constitution provides that the nomination of national office bearers be approved by the branches. But this was not done in the nomination of its new president.
South Africans who receive welfare grants vote for the governing African National Congress more than any other party.
EPA-EFE/Kim Ludbrook
The survey findings show that people who had taken part in protests over the last five years were more likely to vote for opposition parties.
South African Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane listens to public complaints in Cape Town.
EPA-EFE
The Public Protector’s Office has become embroiled in political scandals under the current incumbent, Advocate Busisiwe Mkhwebane.
Cyril Ramaphosa led the African National Congress to victory in May. A new law on political funding covers parties, not politicians.
EPA-EFE/Yeshiel Panchia
Secrecy over who funds political parties should trigger fears that government decisions will reflect the wishes of large donors.
Former President Jacob Zuma is fighting a batttle for political capital.
EFE-EPA/Kim Ludbrook/Pool
By positioning himself as a loveable granddad to supporters and the punchline of a joke to his opposition, Zuma adroitly defangs the very serious charges against him.
Deputy President David Mabuza, right, could pose a potential threat from within the ANC to President Cyril Ramaphosa, left.
GovernmentZA/Flickr
The Cabinet signals to the Zuma faction that the Ramaphosa group believes their star is waning and that they are not strong enough to turn the tide.
Glen Mashinini, the head of South Africa’s electoral commission announces the 2019 elections results.
GCIS
The recent election has shown again that the extremism which worries democrats in much of the world has little traction in South Africa.
None of South Africa’s political parties are offering middle class black people a home.
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The black middle class are angry at their exclusion from mainstream economic activity.
South Africans queue to cast their vote in a recent election. The country holds five-yearly national elections on 8 May.
EFE-EPA/Kim Ludbrook
South Africa’s polls have been praised for adhering to international election best practice. But, they are not without problems.
Between 1963 and 1969 Robert Sobukwe spent six years of near-complete solitary confinement on Robben Island.
Book cover
A collection of prison letters provides a peek into the suffering of South African liberation hero, Robert Sobukwe.
South African Finance MInister Tito Mboweni delivering the 2019 budget speech in parliament.
GCIS
South Africa’s finance minister delivered a budget that tried to balance serving the public interest, while maintaining the stability of public finances.
UCT will honour Sarah Baartman by naming a hall after her.
Wikimedia Commons
Sarah Baartman’s name can be elevated to the highest point of the University of Cape Town’s campus, but if her legacy isn’t built into each classroom and interaction the honour is hollow.
The Brexit fallout shows why referenda shouldn’t be considered lightly.
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Referenda have their place in democracy, but can also be misused.
South Africans head to the polls in May 2019 but there are challenges.
Niyazz/Shutterstock
South Africa’s electoral commission’s failure to ensure a credible voters’ roll threatens to undo its legacy of free and fair elections.
South Africa’s Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng.
EFE-EPA/Mike Hutchings
South Africa’s Constitutional Court has performed remarkably well in protecting democracy since 1995.
Pik Botha’s life’s work was dedicated to the protection and entrenchment of apartheid.
Media 24/Alet Pretorius
The sympathetic take on Pik Botha as a man of peace and a frustrated democrat is a travesty.