South Africans queue to vote in the 2016 municipal elections. The governing ANC is accused of wanting to generate ‘fake news’ to influence voters.
Reuters/Mike Hutchings
The planting of messages and countering narratives in the media is not new. It’s part and parcel of contemporary politics especially during elections. The internet simply makes an old problem worse.
Demonstrators protest against censorship by the South African Broadcasting Corporation.
Reuters/Mike Hutchings
It’s vital that the problems at the South African Broadcasting Corporation be fixed in the public interest and for democracy, given its wide media reach in the country.
Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma has set her sights on becoming the president of South Africa.
Reuters/Akintunde Akinleye
Dlamini-Zuma is an ambiguous, ambitious figure, an operator and bureaucrat with good credentials. But, she offers nothing new and can’t shake off claims that she’s just a shoe-in for her ex-husband.
The problem for Jacob Zuma’s political theology is that far too many members of South Africa’s ruling ANC have been experiencing a dramatic loss of faith in a party they see as no longer righteous.
Demonstrators march against corruption in Cape Town. South Africa has some way to go to plug a public accountability deficit.
Reuters/Mike Hutchings
South Africa’s end of term report at the helm of the Open Government Partnership shows that it failed to meet key targets it set for itself. But it also shows improvements in some areas.
Cyril Ramaphosa celebrates his election as deputy president of South Africa’s embattled governing ANC.
Reuters/Mike Hutchings
Cyril Ramaphosa is in pole position to become president of South Africa’s ruling ANC, 20 years after he lost the position by Thabo Mbeki. But, it won’t be easy. Neither will rebuilding the party.
Suppoters of outgoing South African public protector, Thuli Madonsela, outside her offices ahead of her last media briefing.
Reuters/Siphiwe Sibeko
Far from the limelight, South Africa’s public protector has been instrumental in assisting individuals who grapple with unfair treatment from government departments and other public institutions.
A tone of bitter disillusionment dominates the book, which combines self-deprecating anecdotes with reflections on the unique strangeness of policing a post-apartheid South African city.
Lack of support for beneficiaries of land reform in South Africa has seen many new farmers fail to live off the land.
Siphiwe Sibeko/Reuters
South Africa’s government makes much of its efforts of putting more land in the hands of the previously disenfranchised black majority. Yet, many beneficiaries continue to wallow in poverty.
US President-elect Donald Trump has displayed behaviour that will resonate with autocrats in Africa.
William Philpott/Reuters
Besides worries that Donald Trump might not make Africa a priority of his presidency, his temperament and views bode ill for democracy on the continent.
The ANC got rid of one president , Thabo Mbeki (right) in 2008. The groundswell against incumbent Jacob Zuma is growing.
Mike Hutchings/Reuters
The fallout at the meeting of South Africa’s governing ANC clearly exposed how the party’s factionalism has spilled over into government. This is likely to paralyse governance even further.
Zuma arrives in Havana for the funeral of Fidel Castro on November 29 after surviving an attempt to oust him.
Rolando Pujol/EPA
There are early signs of the emergence of a third force for good in South Africa in the likes of the Save SA movement and Socio-Economic Future of South Africa convened by the Archbishop of Cape Town.
A woman arrives for Nelson Mandela’s memorial. The idea of a rainbow nation has been futile.
EPA/Jim Hollander
Despite the noble goals of the new South Africa and its ideals of racial harmony, racial tensions remain a major problem in the country. Prejudice and bigotry persists even in universities.
Members of the National Union of Metal Workers of South Africa protesting against youth unemployment.
Reuters/Rogan Ward
South Africa’s problem is that its constitution is a perfect brochure of the nation it aspires to be. But the contractors entrusted with its future have an entirely different project in mind.
Can President Jacob Zuma continue to cling to power?
Mike Hutchings/Reuters
The former public protector’s report has stirred national consciousness. Jacob Zuma is swimming against the tide. Is he sinking, or might he still pull the trick of a proverbial cat with nine lives?
Will Jacob Zuma take South Africa down with him?
EPA/Peter Foley
Even after seven years of incompetence and dodgy dealing, Jacob Zuma’s presidency has yet to reach its nadir.
The criminal case against South African finance minister Pravin Gordhan, right, is an example of President Jacob Zuma’s abuse of state institutions.
GCIS
The use of the prosecuting authority and the police in ANC succession struggles has a long history. What’s different in the Zuma era is the symbiosis between elite police and the prosecution service.
South Africa and Ethiopia are part of a wave of protests sweeping across parts of Africa that are known as Africa Uprising.
Reuters/Tiksa Negeri
The growing revolt against South Africa’s president, amid state capture allegations, is not an isolated event, but part of a much wider pan-African uprising led by the continent’s disaffected youth.
South Africa’s planned withdrawal from the ICC is considered a detraction from Nelson Mandela’s “inspiring legacy”.
Jim Bourg/Reuters
The ICC has made important advances by investigating cases outside Africa and completing ones that further define what is not allowed in war. South Africa’s withdrawal is concerning, but not fatal.
Chief Research Specialist in Democracy and Citizenship at the Human Science Research Council and a Research Fellow Centre for African Studies, University of the Free State