South Africa and Namibia: Aspects of a relationship,historical and contemporary

South Africa occupied Namibia for 75 years. After that occupation ended in 1990, numerous ties between the two countries continued to exist and their economies are still intertwined more than 25 years later. In both countries the liberation movements that fought apartheid and then came to power are still in power. This might suggest that the relationship between the two countries would be a particularly close one. When the leaders of the two countries meet, as they regularly do, they speak of fraternal relations and point to ways in which the two countries are working together to enhance co-operation and regional integration. However, the relationship is a very unequal one, and the small state of Namibia retains suspicions of the regional hegemon, suspicions that have a long history. Areas of tension between the two states therefore remain. This paper considers aspects of their bilateral relations, within the multilateral contexts of the Southern African Customs Union and the Southern African Development Community.     

Exploring the role and place of the Permanent Representative Committee within the African Union

It can be confidently stated that, since its constitutive act came into effect in July, 2001, the African Union (AU) has enjoyed increasing attention at the administrative level from a number of scholars. Most of these scholars focus, however, on the evolution of the AU in general or on the Peace and Security Council and its components and how it links with regional organisations and the United Nations. This article adds to the existing literature by looking closely at the role and place of the Permanent Representatives Committee (PRC) in the decision-making framework of the AU. It also critically analyses the potential of the PRC and the challenges facing it as one of the most important decision-making committees of the AU. Lastly, it examines the evolution of the PRC and its functions. Finally, among other things, the article questions the lack of transparency practised by the PRC and proposes new approaches.     

Are lions democrats? The impact of democratization on economic growth in Africa, 1980–2010

If we look back at the past two decades, timing seems to point to a close connection between democratic reforms and economic growth in sub-Saharan states. Most countries in the area introduced multiparty politics and made dramatic – if incomplete – democratic progress between 1990 and 1994. Quite strikingly, it is exactly from 1994 to 1995 (and particularly from 2000) that the region began to undergo a period of significant economic progress. Because of the undeniable temporal sequence experienced in the region – that is, first political reforms, then economic growth – some observers pointed to a nexus between democratic progress and economic performance. But is there evidence in support of a causal relationship? As of today, no empirical research has been conducted on the democracy–growth nexus in the early twenty-first century's so-called “emerging Africa”. To fill this gap, we discuss the different arguments claiming an economic advantage of democracies, we present our theoretical framework and carry out an empirical analysis of the growth impact of political regimes in 43 sub-Saharan states for the entire 1980–2010 period. Our findings confirm that African countries, many of which had long suffered the combination of authoritarian rule and predatory practices, derived some economic dividends from democratic progress.     

The changing political culture of the African National Congress

The early elite of the African National Congress (ANC) embraced values of moral improvement, individual responsibility and a sense of social consciousness. The ANC now governs South Africa, but with what appears to be a different set of principles. The current scourge of corruption, increasing state control, coupled with a general lack of service delivery point to behaviour of the ruling party which is inward-looking, self-seeking and self-preserving. Arguing that political culture and its accompanying values and attitudes is a prime motivator of behaviour, the paper seeks to understand the changing political culture of the dominant party. To understand the political culture of the ANC we use interviews with ANC parliamentarians and ANC supporters conducted in 2006–2007 and 2013 as well as an analysis of the ANC's Strategy and Tactics policy documents. We contend that the liberal values of the early elites were never fully embedded, but in their stead is a liberationist culture, where the state is normatively understood to be extensive and embodying the will of the people. We argue, that through the resulting centralized determination of the interests of the people, patronage networks, and diminishing of accountability, a system conducive to corruption and the pursuit of personal interest is created.     

Astuteness in Commitment: Rwanda and UN Peacekeeping 1994–2014

Abstract

This article traces Rwanda’s history under German and Belgian colonialism, through independence and genocide to international respectability and membership of the Commonwealth. It examines Rwanda’s impressive contributions to United Nations and African Union peacekeeping forces. There is no single explanation for the magnitude of Rwanda’s contribution. It owes something to Rwanda’s commitment to ‘African solutions for African problems’. Deployment is relatively cheap and allows Rwanda to use its participation for political leverage in international affairs, to attract donors and to benefit financially. Peacekeeping is a factor in the astute foreign policy of Paul Kagame’s government that enhances its authority and stability at home and its prestige abroad.     

非洲猪瘟的疫情分布和传播及其控制

概述了非洲猪瘟在世界范围内的分布、流行和控制情况.认为非洲猪瘟是猪的重大传染病,该病主要流行分布于非洲大陆,并逐步向欧洲、亚洲等世界其他国家蔓延.其传播方式以软蜱、野猪、污染物等媒介以直接和间接方式传播.该病缺乏有效的疫苗预防,有必要在病毒和易感宿主之间采用严格的生物安全措施防止非洲猪瘟疫情蔓延.     

The weak domestic base of South Africa's good global citizenship

The self-appointed role of good international citizen that South Africa has played since 1994 is the external corollary of its supposed good governance at home. Weaknesses in domestic governance have, however, been evident since early in the life of democratic South Africa. These problems have become more acute, and internal dissatisfaction with and external awareness of ‘poor service delivery’ in South Africa have grown since 2009 when Jacob Zuma became president. The article illustrates that South Africa fails to meet core criteria of good governance and considers the implications of weak governance for the Republic's good international citizenship.     

Dumb Barter: A Seminal Form of Negotiation

Negotiation requires communication, but not necessarily verbal exchanges. Adjustments can be achieved incrementally by other means. This article will examine how some parties have managed to strike a deal in situations characterized by total distrust and even hostility, asymmetric power relations, major cultural differences, extreme logistical difficulties in reaching the place in which the trade is to be made, and several additional process risks by employing a type of bargaining known as “dumb barter.” This process presents a distinct paradigm with a specific and unique rationale. Sometimes called “silent trade,” it has been observed in many places (especially West Africa) for more than two millennia. It may well be the oldest form of trade negotiation and is still practiced in some parts of the world. An examination of this unlikely but real and effective process can also provide negotiation theorists with some useful insights into the fundamental nature of negotiation.     

Gender Differences in the Educational Expectations of Urban,Low-Income African American Youth: The Role of Parents and the School

This study examined how youths’ gender is related to the educational expectations of urban, low-income African American youth, their parents, and their teachers. As predicted, African American boys (ages 9–16) reported lower expectations for future educational attainment than did their female counterparts. Parents and teachers also reported lower expectations for African American boys (ages 6–16) than for girls. These findings held even when controlling for academic achievement. Contrary to predictions, the magnitude of the difference in expectations for males vs. females did not increase as a function of youths’ age. In keeping with our hypotheses, parental expectations fully mediated the relation between youths’ gender and youths’ expectations. Finally, certain school-based factors (i.e., positive teacher expectations and positive youth perceptions of the school environment) appeared to protect youths’ expectations from the deleterious impact of low parental expectations.

Visions of Tsafendas: Literary Biography and the Limits of “Research”

Abstract

Research seminar, research cluster, research output. The word is almost a fetish within the contemporary academy—but what does “research” actually mean in a discipline like literature? And what happens when a research project overspills its bounds, or pushes up against disciplinary limits and protocols? In this piece, I explore such questions via the figure of Demetrios Tsafendas, the "mad Greek" who assassinated apartheid Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd in 1966, supposedly acting on instructions from a tapeworm inside him. It is one of the strangest facts in South African history; it is also, of course, a kind of fiction, and one that has been refracted into a range of literary and artistic works. Reading across both official and “creative” archives, I address a range of methodological problems that I encountered in attempting an academic treatment of Tsafendas and his (as the presiding apartheid judge put it) “useless life”.