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Deepening Democracy through Access to Information

Raymond Suttner

Tribute to Pravin Gordhan: Part two – Pravin Gordhan, the fight for clean government and his “arrogance”

Tribute to Pravin Gordhan: Part two – Pravin Gordhan, the fight for clean government and his “arrogance”

17th September 2024 The allegations of arrogance raised against Pravin Gordhan (PG) relate to his relationship with the State Owned enterprises that had to a large... 

Tribute to Pravin Gordhan: Part one – Pravin Gordhan took on the pain of the oppressed as his own

Tribute to Pravin Gordhan: Part one – Pravin Gordhan took on the pain of the oppressed as his own

16th September 2024 This article is a contribution to the understanding of Pravin Gordhan. It also attempts, albeit in a limited way, to locate him in the context of... 

Evaluating the achievements and problems since the establishment of the GNU – Part Two

Evaluating the achievements and problems since the establishment of the GNU – Part Two

4th September 2024 The reason why it was possible to create the Government of National Unity (GNU) and why it has an element of stability is that the two major... 

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Evaluating what is new, positive and negative about the GNU – Part One

Evaluating what is new, positive and negative about the GNU – Part One

3rd September 2024 Can the new South Africa be reborn? By this I do not mean some romantic notion whereby we return to all that was good in 1994, minus Madiba. I mean... 

It is unclear whether the National Dialogue will be either national or a dialogue – Part 4

It is unclear whether the National Dialogue will be either national or a dialogue – Part 4

26th August 2024 The word national must be interrogated. Will the national dialogue be truly national and what does that mean? And will it be a genuine dialogue and... 

GNU to national dialogue and beyond – Part 3

GNU to national dialogue and beyond – Part 3

22nd August 2024 If the national dialogue is happening, there is no clear process nor indication of the categories of participants I mentioned previously that the... 

From Government of National Unity to National Dialogue and beyond – Part two

From Government of National Unity to National Dialogue and beyond – Part two

19th August 2024 This article represents a continuation of one published two months ago. At the time I saw the Government of National Unity (GNU) as an attempt to... 

How and why I plan to support the GNU – Part one

How and why I plan to support the GNU – Part one

24th June 2024 Watching developments in the Government of National Unity (GNU) over the recent period, I remain hopeful that its being set up will represent a new... 

ANC in minority: trying to understand the path(s) ahead

ANC in minority: trying to understand the path(s) ahead

10th June 2024 The South African public may be somewhat bewildered by the results of the general election. This despite many having wanted, and polls predicting,... 

Elections 2024 - prospects for the future

Elections 2024 - prospects for the future

4th June 2024 South Africa has just completed its general election, the first in 30 years where the ANC has failed to secure a majority of the votes. Before the... 

Israeli genocide continues - with international mainly non-governmental resistance

Israeli genocide continues - with international mainly non-governmental resistance

27th May 2024 In the aftermath of Israel's latest legal defeat at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) last week after an application by South Africa, many... 

For democracy to be meaningful, representative government and popular power need to coexist

For democracy to be meaningful, representative government and popular power need to coexist

21st May 2024 In the previous article, I argued that the ANC had transitioned from being a liberation movement to become a conventional Western political party,... 

ANC collapse relates to breaking from its liberation movement character

ANC collapse relates to breaking from its liberation movement character

13th May 2024 For some time, many people have been preoccupied with the fate of popular struggle, popular agency and popular activities in South African... 

Genocidal war on Gaza, its support base, impact on democracy and levels of opposition (Part 4 of series on the Israeli war on the Palestinians)

Genocidal war on Gaza, its support base, impact on democracy and levels of opposition (Part 4 of series on the Israeli war on the Palestinians)

22nd April 2024 The war waged in Gaza is not between Israel and Hamas (who initiated the current conflict by piercing Israeli defences and killing and taking many... 

Attempts to bring Israel within the norms of legality (Part 3)

Attempts to bring Israel within the norms of legality (Part 3)

3rd April 2024 Some of the states engaged with the Palestinian question have joined South Africa at the ICJ (like Brazil) or brought their own litigation against... 

Israel’s lawless attacks cannot continue if we want international peace (Part 2 of series on Israel’s war against the Palestinians)

Israel’s lawless attacks cannot continue if we want international peace (Part 2 of series on Israel’s war against the Palestinians)

2nd April 2024 I appeal once again that access to humanitarian aid be ensured to Gaza, and call once more for the prompt release of the hostages seized on 7... 

Lawless states and the ‘failure’ of international law – Israel’s war on the Palestinian people

Lawless states and the ‘failure’ of international law – Israel’s war on the Palestinian people

18th March 2024 The misapprehension that ‘might is right’ in international relations was the case in the time of 19th century colonial conquest when territories... 

Voting and other action needed to recover our democracy – Part Two

Voting and other action needed to recover our democracy – Part Two

15th January 2024 There is no ready-made pathway that will easily empower citizens and other residents to better their lives in accordance with the Constitution and... 

Crisis of Electoralism: Do you have a civic duty to vote in South Africa today? – Part One

Crisis of Electoralism: Do you have a civic duty to vote in South Africa today? – Part One

9th January 2024 With elections this year, and most polls predicting the ANC may for the first time since 1994 lose its status as the majority party nationally,... 

Xenophobic attacks repudiate freedom. They must be stopped!

Xenophobic attacks repudiate freedom. They must be stopped!

27th November 2023 The bodies may not have even been recovered from the Albert Street fire before Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshaveni issued a statement... 

New forms of hope and collectivity for universal emancipation in South Africa (Collective and social hope – Part two)

New forms of hope and collectivity for universal emancipation in South Africa (Collective and social hope – Part two)

21st November 2023 Where do we look for a new form of collectivity for universal emancipation in South Africa? If it’s necessary to build a new collective in place of... 

Response to general crisis: Social hope and collective action for change in South Africa – Part one

Response to general crisis: Social hope and collective action for change in South Africa – Part one

20th November 2023 When we talk about hope in a political context, one is referring to hope for change that will be transformative, not merely in our individual... 

Rugby World Cup. A one-time aspirant rugby Springbok reflects on the significance of the victory – Part Two

Rugby World Cup. A one-time aspirant rugby Springbok reflects on the significance of the victory – Part Two

7th November 2023 When I got to university, one of the highlights of the year was the InterVarsity rugby match between UCT and Stellenbosch. By that time, I was... 

Rugby World Cup: A one-time aspirant rugby Springbok reflects on the significance of the victory – Part one

Rugby World Cup: A one-time aspirant rugby Springbok reflects on the significance of the victory – Part one

6th November 2023 “The events of the past six weeks are an incredible tribute to the transformation of a symbol that once represented raw Afrikaner nationalism and... 

Demoralisation, passivity and hope – Part Two

Demoralisation, passivity and hope – Part Two

31st October 2023 “… It’s important to emphasise that hope is only a beginning; it’s not a substitute for action, only a basis for it. ‘Not everything that is faced... 

Crisis, despair and harnessing hope – Part One

Crisis, despair and harnessing hope – Part One

30th October 2023 We are living in a time when every second analyst or academic or forecaster advances a plan as to how we can extricate ourselves from the present... 

South African crisis: despair, hope and the prophetic – Part Two

South African crisis: despair, hope and the prophetic – Part Two

17th October 2023 What does one do to improve our conditions? When one reads about the notion of hope, some of it is in dense theoretical books (as in Ernst Bloch’s... 

South African crisis: Addressing despair, hope and the prophetic – Part one

South African crisis: Addressing despair, hope and the prophetic – Part one

16th October 2023 The atmosphere in South Africa in October 2023 is one of pervasive despair, a sense of depression and disillusionment, that things are bad and will... 

The continuing crisis: can we find a way forward?

The continuing crisis: can we find a way forward?

2nd October 2023 “To the oppressed, and to those who suffer with them and fight at their side”- Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed (Penguin, 1996, dedication).... 

Stephen Marais’ memoir raises questions and choices beyond the Struggle

Stephen Marais’ memoir raises questions and choices beyond the Struggle

27th September 2023 The true confessions of an unrehabilitated terrorist.  Anecdotes and Antidotes by Stephen Johannes Marais The genre of prison literature is now... 

The contribution of the UDF and People’s Power to our understanding of freedom – Part Four

The contribution of the UDF and People’s Power to our understanding of freedom – Part Four

4th September 2023 Conditions underpinning successful Popular Power activities and provoking abuses/collapse When one considers the UDF period, we obviously want to... 

The contribution of the UDF and People’s Power to our understanding of freedom – Part three

The contribution of the UDF and People’s Power to our understanding of freedom – Part three

22nd August 2023 The UDF as both an agent of the ANC as well as autonomous actor This is Part three in a series. Read Part one and two. 

The contribution of the UDF and People’s Power to our understanding of freedom – Part two

The contribution of the UDF and People’s Power to our understanding of freedom – Part two

21st August 2023 The current commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the UDF is foregrounding certain elements of the experience of the UDF and underplaying or... 

The contribution of the UDF and People’s Power to our understandings of freedom – Part one

The contribution of the UDF and People’s Power to our understandings of freedom – Part one

7th August 2023 When one looks at the statements made in commemorating 40 years since the formation of the United Democratic Front (UDF) one does not generally get... 

Being a revolutionary or pursuing an emancipatory path in the “15 wasted years” – Series final part 7

Being a revolutionary or pursuing an emancipatory path in the “15 wasted years” – Series final part 7

3rd July 2023 This series was conceived as an attempt to ask what it means to be a revolutionary in South Africa, starting around 1960 with the banning of the... 

Being a revolutionary or believer in emancipatory transformation in post-apartheid South Africa: Part six

Being a revolutionary or believer in emancipatory transformation in post-apartheid South Africa: Part six

28th June 2023 The onset of democratic rule set in motion a completely different framework for politics from that previously practised in the ANC and its allies.... 

Being a revolutionary/pursuing an emancipatory path in period of negotiations: Part five

Being a revolutionary/pursuing an emancipatory path in period of negotiations: Part five

19th June 2023 The period of negotiations was one way - one cannot say that there was any single way - of playing out a revolutionary role. Some would see it as... 

Revolutionary or emancipatory consciousness and action after 1976: Part four

Revolutionary or emancipatory consciousness and action after 1976: Part four

13th June 2023 As indicated, the decade after the Rivonia Trial was not one of the absence of resistance, although in the case of the ANC and SACP cadres, they... 

Revolutionary or emancipatory consciousness and activity from the Rivonia trial to the 1976 uprising: Part three

Revolutionary or emancipatory consciousness and activity from the Rivonia trial to the 1976 uprising: Part three

5th June 2023 This article and those that precede and follow it concern revolutionary (or emancipatory) consciousness and revolutionary activity in the context... 

How meanings of revolutionary/emancipatory consciousness and actions need to change over time: Part two

How meanings of revolutionary/emancipatory consciousness and actions need to change over time: Part two

29th May 2023 As indicated in the first part of this series, the content of the notions revolutionary consciousness and activity are not static... 

Revolutionary or emancipatory consciousness and action before and after 1990/94: Part one

Revolutionary or emancipatory consciousness and action before and after 1990/94: Part one

24th May 2023 There was a time when the word “revolution” was frequently used by cadres and activists in the Struggle against apartheid. It was nevertheless... 

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