CFP: Democracy in South Africa

CFP: 1 December 2008

The journal Representation invites papers for a special issue on Democracy in South Africa, guest edited by Professor Laurence Piper (School of Politics, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.)

South Africa’s transition from the racist oligarchy of apartheid to a non-racial, democratic state based on human rights is widely hailed as one of the ‘miracles’ of recent times. However, due to recent events real concerns have begun to emerge over the robustness of this fourteen year old democracy. These worries arise in part due to the vicious leadership contest within the ANC that has allegedly compromised the independence of key state institutions while presenting an uninspiring choice between an ‘authoritarian Africanist’ and an ‘opportunist populist’. The victorious candidate, Jacob Zuma, is presented respectively as a champion of the left, a trojan horse for Zulu nationalism, or a megalomaniacal populist. The real Zuma remains a mystery. What is more, there is little understanding of what his rise means for democracy in South Africa.

It is virtually common cause that democratic consolidation requires some combination of three sets of variables : a growing economy that reduces inequality; stable and predictable democratic institutions and a supportive political culture. In the last while South Africa has appeared vulnerable on all fronts:

•    Economically speaking, the 5% growth of Mbeki’s second term has begun to slow, and fuel and food inflation is placing significant pressure on consumers, and on a job market which has only just begun to reduce an unemployment rate around 33%. As reflected in the recent xenophobic attacks on foreign nationals, economic pressures on the poor are acute and rising, and South Africa looks unlikely anytime soon to reach the threshold levels of growth beyond which the risk of democratic collapse is insignificant. When one adds an estimated five million HIV/AIDS-related deaths in the next ten years, the economic challenge looks even more daunting.  If the rise of Zuma represents the rise of the left, or at least of trade unions, what are the implications for the growth and social development central to consolidation?

•    Politically, post-apartheid South Africa has appeared quite stable, not least due to the electoral dominance of the ANC, but recent developments, especially the centralisation of power in the Presidency, pose the question whether this strength is now a weakness. Parliament is widely regarded as the plaything of the executive, and other state institutions are either weak or vulnerable to the whims of party leadership. Most immediately under threat is the much vaunted ‘independent judiciary’ as Zuma’s corruption trial begins. How robust really are post-apartheid political institutions, especially to populist tendencies? Is there any chance for meaningful electoral competition if disillusionment with the political process continues to grow, or is the rise of Zuma itself a form of elite alternation internal to the ANC rather than at the polls? If so, is this necessarily good for democracy in South Africa?

•    In respect of values and political culture, how deeply is the script of democracy written on the hearts of the people? On the one hand, popular protest at the poor service delivery and unresponsiveness of local government, as well as forms of activism around HIV/AIDS, all suggest powerful popular agency for basic human rights and democratic values like inclusion and accountability. On the other hand, the recent xenophobic attacks, and the ethnically-flavoured nationalism and conservative patriarchal values demonstrated by many Zuma supporters paint a very different picture of popular values and practice. Perhaps most intriguing of all is the failure of popular dissatisfaction to translate into voting patterns – at least not yet. Is the ANC still trading on its liberation identity, and how much of this dividend does it have left? Are there perhaps other conservative forms of local power that intervene in this relationship between popular mobilisation and voting? And last but not least, are we seeing the popular stirrings of what will emerge as a powerful social movement sector to challenge state-centred governance?

Finally, recent developments in respect of Zimbabwe, and longer-term post-apartheid developments such as the emergence of the African Union (AU) and its programme of Nepad, as well as the strengthening of regionalism through SADC, point to the increasing economic and political interdependence of South Africa in the region and the continent as a whole. What impact do African processes of decision-making such as the NEPAD peer-review and AU Peace and Security Council processes have on South African democracy? Is it accurate to see South Africa as a regional power strong enough to champion the agenda of democracy and good governance in Africa, or is regional and continental integration a retarding force on democratic change?

Submissions

The editor is seeking contributions that address the present state of democracy in South Africa, and this covers political and social representation at all levels from national government to local authorities. The present state of democracy, what the future may hold, its impact on Southern Africa, the state of the ANC and other parties etc. are some of the areas that could be the focus of a paper for this number of Representation.

Papers must be submitted electronically to both the editorial assistant (Ed Phelps) and Professor Laurence Piper by 01 December2008.

For other details see Instructions for Authors.

About Representation:  Journal Aims and Scope

Representation is a journal of longstanding repute.  It has been publishing since 1960 and has a general interest in all matters relating to the theme of representative democracy and to this end it has established itself as a recognised journal of record and comment both in the UK and internationally. While building on its present strengths, the new editors wish to expand the journal’s remit and introduce more normative concepts of democracy and representation, to consider more than parliamentary versions of representation and to broaden the geographic scope of the journal.

This change in scope follows two paths. Firstly, it seeks contributors who are interested in exploring the interface between democratic practice and theory. In particular, this focus seeks contributions that apply theoretical insights to actual examples of current practice.   Some examples of areas where theoretical discussions could make a significant contribution to the actual current practices are debates within topics such as: (i) overcoming the democratic deficit, (ii) ensuring adequate representation for women and minorities in liberal democratic pluralist societies, (iii) finding ways of modernising elections, and (iv) voter education and (v) debating the need, extent and plausibility of democratic institutions at a trans-national, or even global, level.

Secondly, while not neglecting the current focus of the journal, we would like to expand its international coverage so that the journal will offer our readers insights in the state of democracy worldwide.

We hope that the widening of the journal’s scope will bring with it a new set of readers and especially those working on the interface between theory and practice.  Representation will offer a place for debates and scholarship, both empirical and normative, on democrat practices around the world. The introduction of the theoretical dimension does not preclude a focus on empirical studies of non-electoral forms of representation and decision-making. Indeed, it is just these areas where we believe a theoretical input would be valuable. As in the past, the new editors of Representation are interested in furthering links with national and international groups involved in the study of elections, representation and voting systems and will continue to publish high quality papers on elections, institutions and electoral systems.

Representation – the journal of representative democracy - has the following aims:-
·        To continue to publish cutting edge articles about the study of elections and voting systems throughout the world.
·        To encourage debate on democrat practices around the world.
·        To critically explore the interface between democratic practice and theory.
·        To produce special issues devoted to questions of democracy and representation; whether they be in a single- country or region, or across a wider subject such as representation of minorities.
·        To attract an audience of academics and students, journalists, election practitioners and all those interested in the nature of representative democracy including informed lay readers.