TRANSFORMATION: THE CHANGING CONTEXT OF ACADEMIA IN POST-APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA

The transformatory paradigm of post-apartheid South Africa hasleft few of the country's institutions free of critical scrutiny.Higher education has been no exception. As elsewhere in Africaunder new post-colonial governments, South African universitieshave a relatively high profile on the agenda of change. Thisinterest has been spurred not only by the ANC government's awarenessof its large share in the funding of universities but also becauseof the political imperatives engendered by the disaffectionagainst the historically white universities (HWU's) among itsyouth constituency. This article assesses the current interplaybetween universities and their new environment and focuses onthe following issues central to the debate on university transformation:the higher education heritage of apartheid; the impact of thechanging racial profile of students at HWU's; perceptions ofthe role of universities; affirmative action staffing policies;competing claims by universities, the government and the privatesector on scarce black and especially African human resources;the negative implications of the African brain drain from universitieson civil society; and the question of Afrocentrism versus Eurocentrism.Where relevant these issues are examined against the backdropof the African experience. In doing so a number of yet to beresolved problems are highlighted.     

CIVILIAN CONTROL OF THE MILITARY IN BLACK AFRICA

‘The real lesson of Liberia is that if it can happen here,in a country that has not had a coup in 133 years, it can happenanywhere on this continent and at any time.’ An American diplomat in Liberia, quoted in Newsweek, 28th April1980.     

'ONE CHIEF, ONE VOTE': THE REVIVAL OF TRADITIONAL AUTHORITIES IN POST-APARTHEID SOUTH AFRICA

During the apartheid era, chiefs were maligned as puppets ofbantustan rule. In ANC-related circles, it was widely assumedthat chieftaincy would not survive in the post apartheid era.But the institution of traditional leadership has proved highlyflexible. Rather than being phased out as relics of pre-modemtimes, chiefs are re-asserting themselves in the new South Africa.Chiefs have survived throughout this century with a strategyof shifting alliances. Towards the end of the 1980s, chiefswere re-orienting themselves towards the ANC, rightly perceivedas the new ruling party-in-waiting. Combining the resourcesof tradition with a discourse of liberation politics and development,they were able to explain constitutional and other legal guaranteesfor the position of traditional leaders and their representationsin the local, provincial and national administration. For itspart, the ANC had an interest in wooing chiefs to its side inorder to prevent the emergence of a conservative alliance wheretraditional leaders could join forces with the bantustan elites.The article analyses these developments, discusses the mainthemes of debate and concludes with a briefcase study of chieftaincyissues in the Northern Transvaal.     

THE RAJ RECONSIDERED: BRITISH INDIA's INFORMAL EMPIRE AND SPHERES OF INFLUENCE IN ASIA AND AFRICA

This provides a detailed explanation of how the Indian Empire was organised and run. But its main purpose is to argue that the British Indian Empire was in fact much larger than historians of the Raj normally realise because the Empire should be taken to include the Gulf Arab states, Bhutan, Nepal, Afghanistan, the Aden Protectorate and the British Somaliland protectorate.     

Studies in War-time Organisation: (2) THE RESIDENT MINISTRY IN WEST AFRICA

One of the purest types of "functional" organisation, initiatedfor purely temporary purposes, and, with the alteration in thewar situation, almost inevitably gravitating to more long-distanceplanning, is the Resident Ministry in West Africa. This articlewas written, at our invitation, by a member of Lord Swinton'sHeadquarters staff, who wishes it to be understood that he iswriting in a purely private capacity.     

EUROPE AND THE PROMOTION OF DEMOCRACY IN POST COLD WAR AFRICA: HOW SERIOUS IS EUROPE AND FOR WHAT REASON?

The ending of the Cold War brought new topics on the agendaof the international aid donors. Questions of democracy andhuman rights were voiced with rising intensity not least bythe European Union and by individual European countries. However,when it came to implementing the ambitious principles, boththe EU and the bilateral donors lacked a ‘serious’commitment. This is indicated by European policies towards SouthAfrica, Kenya, Niger and Algeria. The policies of the Europeanstowards Africa in the 1990s have primarily been influenced bysecurity concerns and thus by the narrow national interestsof individual donors. This is particularly manifest in the caseof France which has a dominating position within the developmentcooperation of the EU. Thus, only in very few exceptional instancesis it in the national interest of European donor states to promotemoral issues such as democracy and respect for human rights.In the 1990s such themes have become little more than the rhetoricof politicians and treaties, just as it was during the ColdWar.     

THE RENAISSANCE FACTOR IN SOUTH AFRICA AND THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF AFRICAN REGIONAL GOVERNANCE (1999-2008)

ABSTRACT

This article examines a likely South African hegemony in Africa between 1999 and 2008. Hegemony is admittedly difficult to define in African regionalism studies, as it is counter intuitive to Pan-Africanism discourse. However, this article aims to show that hegemony can be a credible argument in explaining the South African driven changes that occurred in African regionalism between 1999 and 2008. The article locates key characteristics which underpin arguments of South African hegemony during the study timeline. It argues that Thabo Mbeki's governance philosophy of African renaissance was the central piece of South African Africa foreign policy that distinguishes this period from any other before or after it. By establishing hegemonic credibility in South Africa's interaction with Africa in this period, the article demonstrates how South Africa was able to contribute to transformational governance changes in Africa. This also holds lessons for South African regional ascendancy in the future.     

CITIZEN PARTICIPATION IN SAUDI ARABIA: A STUDY OF THE MINISTRY OF LABOUR

The effects of Arab Spring led to widespread dissent among Saudi citizens, culminating in governmental fear of civil revolt. Thus, the Ministry of Labour introduced many developmental policies such as localisation, women employment that aimed to develop the country and satisfy the needs of citizens to offset rising inflation. These policies were said to be in the best interests of Saudi citizens. This study has therefore intended to investigate the extent to which the Ministry of Labour engaged and consulted with its citizens prior to the introduction of those policies. This study found that Saudi citizens participated via social dialogues, together, social media and digital communication in democratic governance. However, there is a gap in the perceptions of the Saudi elite and citizens regarding the significance of citizen participation in Saudi governance. It was discussed that complete democratic governance cannot be adopted due to autocratic nature of Saudi Arabia.     

IDENTITIES AND THE STATE IN PAKISTAN: A STUDY OF MENTALITY

This paper examines Pakistan's identity as a state, a religious community, a developmental enterprise, and a primordial society. It argues that over time Pakistan's state and developmental identities have weakened while its religious and primordial identities have gained in strength. This change in the balance has grave implications for Pakistan in terms of the working of the state and its legitimacy in the eyes of its own people. There is therefore a need to rehabilitate the state and developmental identities at a functional level, which means investing in improving the quality of governance and policy planning in Pakistan over the long-term.     

AFRICAN RENAISSANCE AND NEGOTIATION OF YORUBA IDENTITY IN THE DIASPORA: A CASE STUDY OF NIGERIAN STUDENTS IN CAPE TOWN

ABSTRACT

Drawing on poststructuralist discourse analysis and Hall's (1990) notion of diaspora cultural identities, this article explores the discontinuation and maintenance of Yoruba identity options by students at three Western Cape Province universities. Interviews and observations data are used to consider how different forms of representations and cultural practices associated with Yoruba in Nigeria lead to equally fragmented and hybrid lifestyles and identity options in the Diaspora due to the changed socio-cultural conditions. The argument shows the ruptures and fragmentation of Yoruba cultural elements as students try to fit into the South African socio-cultural contexts while trying to live ‘home’ life away from home. It also shows cultural appropriation by local South Africans who claim Nigerian [Yoruba] affiliation through wearing Yoruba attire and partaking in Nigerian [Yoruba] cuisine. The authors argue that identities are produced across national and ethnic boundaries not only through language choices, but also through dress, food and other semiotic resources, and that to promote the ideals of an African renaissance, there is need to recognise that Africa is a consequence of not just similarities, but more so of various critical points of profound difference and discontinuity. The article concludes that African renaissance entails embracing shared African cultural heritage and differences as the norm; and transnational competition, interdependency and interconnectedness are critical ingredients for the technological and socio- economic development of Africa.     

THE GRAND MAGAL IN TOUBA: A RELIGIOUS FESTIVAL OF THE MOURIDE BROTHERHOOD OF SENEGAL

The grand magal is the annual festival of an indigenous SenegaleseMuslim brotherhood, the Mourides. It takes place in Touba, theholy city of this religious order. The paper examines the grandmagal as an expression of the Mourides' popular culture andpiety. It emphasizes the different rituals which shape thisannual celebration and analyzes the meaning of the festivalboth within broader Senegalese society and in respect to thestate. It demonstrates that the pilgrimage should be situatedin the political sphere if it is to be understood fully.     

FROM 'NATIONHOOD' TO REGIONALISM TO THE NORTH WEST PROVINCE: 'BOPHUTHATSWANANESS' AND THE BIRTH OF THE 'NEW' SOUTH AFRICA

Although majority rule has been achieved in South Africa, thefinal years of one ‘independent’ bantustan, namelyBophuthatswana, and their aftermath, illustrate the problemsof creating a unified identity. Ironically, in the death throesof apartheid, a Pandora's box of ethnic and regionalist claimswas opened. Although these claims were tied to the maintenanceof privileges gained by a tiny minority created through apartheidpolicy, Bophuthatswana had also been sustained by an ideologywhich, although at times highly contradictory, was also indicativeof the space given to twenty years of bantustan nation-building.This article provides a reinterpretation of these complex territoriesby showing how, in the 1990s, in the wake of fundamental politicalchanges in South Africa, the Bophuthatswana regime reshapedits nation-building discourse into a distinctive regionalistcoalition based upon socio-economic and ethnic criteria. Moreover,unlike previous approaches to the region, it shows how contestedterritorial claims were integral to this regionalist movement.Whilst the Bophuthatswana regime finally imploded and its regionalistcoalition was absorbed into South Africa's North West Province,the legacy of the bantustans for South Africa is replete withambiguity. In the post-apartheid era of transition to the NorthWest Province, some of these fault lines, termed ‘Bophuthatswananess’,are discussed. The continuing influence of their core of ‘Batswanaarbiters’ raises pertinent questions concerning the obstaclesto inclusive nation-building.