Realizing Democracy in Botswana, Namibia and South Africa PDF Download

Author: Kenneth Good
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 180

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Book Description
Analyses political development in three democracies in Africa and relates it to economic growth and economic liberalism.

Author: Kenneth Good
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 202

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Book Description
"This new volume focuses on changing social structure and forces, such as new working classes, civil societies, and ruling and competing elites in the three liberal democracies of Botswana, Namibia and South Africa. It concentrates in particular on those institutions which favour or oppose the achievement of accountable, open, and ethical government. The book seeks to interpret the important distinctions that exist between Botswana and its neighbours. The author argues that even though the south is the most democratic region in Africa, this does not obscure the severe limitations of the liberal model, and the need to establish other and broader definitions of democracy." --Book Jacket.

Author: K. Good
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230001130
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 267

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Book Description
This book critically examines the realities of liberal democracy; its elitism and non-accountability; and its inequalities and injustices. Participatory systems and movements, whether in Athens, seventeenth and nineteenth century England, or South Africa 1970-1990, are more effective in satisfying the democratic aspirations of the people and in curtailing ambitious elites, than what is passed off now as 'democracy'. By interrogating contemporary democratic regimes, in the United States, and in Botswana and South Africa, the severe limitations and constraints inherent in liberal democracy are highlighted. The need for a clear evaluation of what constituted democracy emerges as a powerful message of Kenneth Good's argument.

Author: Pierre Du Toit
Publisher: HSRC Press
ISBN: 9780796916907
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 478

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Book Description
What can South Africa learn from Botswana, arguably Africa's most successful democracy, and Zimbabwe, one of South Africa's closest neighbours? In this comparative study, the author explores these southern African countries with the aim of highlighting those factors that appear to ensure a successful transition to democracy.

Author: Godfrey Kanyenze
Publisher: African Books Collective
ISBN: 9956764396
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 382

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Book Description
The dawn of the twenty-first century heralded an apparent change of fortunes for most sub-Saharan African economies, with annual growth averaging over 5% for fifteen years. However, this was not accompanied by structural transformation: poverty, food insecurity, unemployment and inequality persist. Structural transformation has not been - and indeed cannot be - delivered by market forces and neo-liberal economic policies; it requires a state committed to development, and to achieving it in a democratic way. To what extent do the countries of Southern Africa exhibit the characteristics of such a developmental state? What steps, if any, do they need to take in order to become one? The book answers the questions with respect to South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Angola and Malawi. Godfrey Kanyenze and his colleagues have assembled a distinguished team of writers to take the temperature of the regional political economy, and chart a path for its future development.

Author: National Research Council
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309047978
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 94

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Book Description
The global movement toward democracy, spurred in part by the ending of the cold war, has created opportunities for democratization not only in Europe and the former Soviet Union, but also in Africa. This book is based on workshops held in Benin, Ethiopia, and Namibia to better understand the dynamics of contemporary democratic movements in Africa. Key issues in the democratization process range from its institutional and political requirements to specific problems such as ethnic conflict, corruption, and role of donors in promoting democracy. By focusing on the opinion and views of African intellectuals, academics, writers, and political activists and observers, the book provides a unique perspective regarding the dynamics and problems of democratization in Africa.

Author: Elke Zuern
Publisher: Univ of Wisconsin Press
ISBN: 029925013X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
The end of apartheid in South Africa broke down political barriers, extending to all races the formal rights of citizenship, including the right to participate in free elections and parliamentary democracy. But South Africa remains one of the most economically polarized nations in the world. In The Politics of Necessity Elke Zuern forcefully argues that working toward greater socio-economic equality—access to food, housing, land, jobs—is crucial to achieving a successful and sustainable democracy. Drawing on interviews with local residents and activists in South Africa’s impoverished townships during more than a decade of dramatic political change, Zuern tracks the development of community organizing and reveals the shifting challenges faced by poor citizens. Under apartheid, township residents began organizing to press the government to address the basic material necessities of the poor and expanded their demands to include full civil and political rights. While the movement succeeded in gaining formal political rights, democratization led to a new government that instituted neo-liberal economic reforms and sought to minimize protest. In discouraging dissent and failing to reduce economic inequality, South Africa’s new democracy has continued to disempower the poor. By comparing movements in South Africa to those in other African and Latin American states, this book identifies profound challenges to democratization. Zuern asserts the fundamental indivisibility of all human rights, showing how protest movements that call attention to socio-economic demands, though often labeled a threat to democracy, offer significant opportunities for modern democracies to evolve into systems of rule that empower all citizens.

Author: Pierre Du Toit
Publisher: United States Inst of Peace Press
ISBN: 9781878379504
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 355

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Book Description
Traditional democratic institutions have not easily taken root in African soil. Too often, attempts at cultivating democratic norms have foundered, leaving anarchy or authoritarianism. What, then, are the chances that South Africa's transition from apartheid to democracy will endure? With this question in mind, South African political scientist Pierre du Toit probes the conditions under which democracy can grow. He examines three southern African states that, despite similarities, have very different track records: Botswana, perhaps the most successful democracy in continental Africa; Zimbabwe, where a partial democracy is faltering; and South Africa, just beginning it's bold experiment. Weighing the impact of each country's heritage, ethnic composition, and economic circumstances, du Toit demonstrates that democratic outcomes depend on the nature and strength of the state. Democratic practices are embedded in a broader network of state and societal instiutions; only if these institutions are robust and resilient can democracy flourish.

Author: Nic Cheeseman
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1316239489
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 269

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Book Description
This book provides the first comprehensive overview of the history of democracy in Africa and explains why the continent's democratic experiments have so often failed, as well as how they could succeed. Nic Cheeseman grapples with some of the most important questions facing Africa and democracy today, including whether international actors should try and promote democracy abroad, how to design political systems that manage ethnic diversity, and why democratic governments often make bad policy decisions. Beginning in the colonial period with the introduction of multi-party elections and ending in 2013 with the collapse of democracy in Mali and South Sudan, the book describes the rise of authoritarian states in the 1970s; the attempts of trade unions and some religious groups to check the abuse of power in the 1980s; the remarkable return of multiparty politics in the 1990s; and finally, the tragic tendency for elections to exacerbate corruption and violence.

Author: Kenneth Good
Publisher: Jacana Media
ISBN: 1770096469
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description
Kenneth Good was professor of politics at the University of Botswana when he was expelled from the country. Here, he argues that Botswana's diamonds should be used to diversify the economy and reduce poverty. He also examines the dispossesion of the Bushmen, and the government's grip on power.