Contemporary South African Debates S.
1 total work
Part one deals with the growth and mutation of apartheid ideology from 1935 to the present. It explores the background to apartheid, the ideology, the implementation and functioning of the apartheid system, and reform-apartheid, the South African government's latest solution to the looming crisis. The authors point out that the apartheid system was not a unique system that sprang full-blown from the heads of Afrikaner nationalists, but was a system that built upon the segregation order which had developed along with the industrialization of South Africa following the discovery of diamonds and gold. It is interesting to note that a coherent blueprint never existed and that Afrikaner nationalists never saw apartheid as an end in itself. In fact, the apartheid system was the result of a pragmatic and tortuous process aimed at consolidating the leadership of a nationalist movement. In part two, the authors look critically at the current South African situation and explore the possibilities for a resolution to the present conflict. Unlike many others who have written on the subject, the authors take an extremely pragmatic approach.
They look at the emerging trends in the political arena and in the economy, and the effects of the sanctions campaign. They also explore the possibility of revolution in South Africa, the prospects for an internationally backed settlement in South Africa, as well as effective internal pressure for change. Drawing on the available literature on other divided societies, the authors then propose a framework within which a resolution may be possible.
They look at the emerging trends in the political arena and in the economy, and the effects of the sanctions campaign. They also explore the possibility of revolution in South Africa, the prospects for an internationally backed settlement in South Africa, as well as effective internal pressure for change. Drawing on the available literature on other divided societies, the authors then propose a framework within which a resolution may be possible.