South Africa’s history is filled with war and violence. European colonisation began with the Dutch in the 17th century. They were followed by the British, who lived uneasily and sometimes at war with the conservative religious fundamentalist descendants of the Dutch settlers, the Boers or Afrikaners. In 1948 the Afrikaners’ political party, the Nationalist Party, won the elections and kept power until 1994. The Nationalist Party introduced apartheid - racial segregation laws - which caused enormous hardships for the non-white population. After the massacres at Sharpeville (1960) and Soweto (1976), these two place names became symbols which many, not least Olof Palme, referred to when they denounced the apartheid regime.
The African National Congress (ANC) was organised in 1912 and in the beginning relied on non-violent tactics. After the Sharpeville Massacre the ANC was banned. The organisation then chose to go underground and start an armed struggle, which led to the regime launching a merciless witch-hunt against its critics. Arbitrary arrests, torture, and murder were used routinely.
In the early 60’s the Swedish labour movement became involved in the struggle against the apartheid regime, and contributed in many ways to its fall. As early as 1961 then Prime Minister Tage Erlander took part in an ANC meeting in Lund (in southern Sweden) on what Sweden could do in the struggle for freedom, and Olof Palme did not spare words when he spoke against apartheid. The labour movement was among those strongly involved in ISAK (the Isolate South Africa Committee), and as a result Sweden was the first country visited by Nelson Mandela when he was freed from prison.
Nelson Mandela, the leader of the ANC’s armed branch, was arrested in 1962 along with several other party members. They were imprisoned for 27 years. During that period the struggle against apartheid continued, and with the help of growing international support they finally triumphed over the apartheid regime. Nelson Mandela and his fellow prisoners were freed in 1990.
The ANC won the first democratic elections in 1994 and Nelson Mandela became President of South Africa. In 1995 an extensive campaign for reconciliation began, when the Truth and Reconciliation Commission was created. Thabo Mbeki, another ANC leader, succeeded Nelson Mandela as president in 1999.
Since 1994 three democratic elections have been held in South Africa. The South African constitution, which came into effect in February 1997, is one of the most liberal in the world, and includes a comprehensive Bill of Rights. Despite this, South Africa continues to be deeply divided by class and ethnic background. Around 40 percent of South Africans live in poverty, which in the long-term can threaten the country’s stability.
President Mbeki’s economic policies have led to widespread dissatisfaction within the ANC. This conflict was exacerbated by the trials of former Vice President Jacob Zuma for corruption and rape. He was freed by the courts in both cases. Despite the serious allegations against him, many within the ANC see Jacob Zuma as the party’s presidential candidate in the 2009 elections.
Analysis
Today South Africa is a multi-ethnic democracy, with a free press and a well-developed civil society, which plays an important role in democratic development. The ANC, which has won every election since the fall of apartheid, still dominates the political landscape. The government’s ability to deal with the country’s deep social problems has been questioned. Most of the injustices inherited from the apartheid era remain, five percent of the population is estimated to own ninety percent of all material resources, at the same time that nearly half of all South Africans live under the subsistence level. Whites, Indians, and Coloured have generally higher standards of living than Blacks, although there is a growing Black middle class and upper class. Poverty and unemployment have led to drug abuse and criminality. Women and children are especially vulnerable, and sexual violence is very common, both within the home and outside it.
Civil society is well-developed, even if the political opposition is weak. The ANC dominates the political scene. Conflicts with the labour movement, the media, traditional leaders, and the white minority have increased in recent years. The government is accused of economic policies that don’t help the poorest. Critics also charge that the government hasn’t kept its promises to improve education, healthcare, and housing construction.
Around six million people in South Africa are living with HIV, around 20 percent of the adult population. More than one-third of all women who visited a women’s clinic in 2005 were infected. The HIV epidemic has meant that in 2005 five times as many women between the ages of 25 and 34 died compared to 1997. Society is affected on all levels, from the many children are orphaned to the decline in economic development, productivity, and consumer demand, at the same time that the healthcare system is threatened with collapse. President Mbeki has been criticised severely for his unwillingness to recognise the link between the HIV virus and AIDS, and for not making AIDS medicines available to all who need them. Mbeki’s politics are believed to have delayed the fight against HIV/AIDS. During the trial of former Vice President Jacob Zuma, he admitted that he had had unprotected sex with a 30 year younger HIV-infected woman, but claimed that he had not raped her. His statement that “it was enough to shower afterwards” has led many activists in South Africa to believe that the fight against HIV/AIDS has taken a major step backwards.
Development Co-operation
The Palme Center and its member organisations work in South Africa is primarily with projects dealing with developing democracy, popular and labour education, children and young people, the environment, and health. But all of these projects have in time come to be highly affected by the HIV/AIDS problem.
Together with employers, the unions have a key role in adopting measures at work places. The Palme Center works with the Labour Research Service, which is carrying out a study into how HIV/AIDS is treated in working life. The study will be used to spread knowledge about HIV/AIDS, as well as to provide support for those who are infected.
Since 2001 the Palme Center has had far-reaching cooperation concerning HIV/AIDS with the Education and Training Union (ETU), a South African umbrella organisation which works to strengthen democracy and civil society. The ETU has so far helped some 120 municipalities in all of South Africa’s provinces to develop local HIV/AIDS strategies. The many participants range from health agencies to non-governmental organisations. The ETU also supports local organisations with courses and workshops, as well as the production and distribution of information material. The goal is to change existing values and attitudes, which will lead to slowing the spread of HIV/AIDS, as well as combating domestic violence.
The Palme Center also supports the Children’s Rights Center (CRC) with its organisational development, education programmes, and increasing work with young girls.
ABF has a popular education project with the South Africa Study Circle Association (SASCA). The goals include using study circles as a method to spread knowledge to new local groups in the Eastern and Western Cape.
Within the framework for party support, the Palme Center organises parliamentary exchanges between the Swedish Social Democrat Party and the ANC. The Social Democrats in Kalmar, Skåne, and Söderköping work with projects to strengthen local capacity and the ANC’s democratic structure. The Young Social Democrats in Norrköping are trying to recruit and activate more young people to the ANC Youth League to strengthen the influence of young women and men in the party. They are especially looking to young people in the townships.