A threat to democracy

I begin with an apology for yet another post about South African politics, but the events of yesterday cannot go unremarked upon.  It amazes me that they were not reported on any UK network news.  Democracy was hard fought for in this country, and yesterday it faced grave threats.

Last night, President Zuma was to give the annual State of the Nation Address (SONA) to a joint sitting of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces at the parliament in Cape Town.  I wrote yesterday that it would be an interesting political event given the current situation in the country, but I could not have expected the chaos which ensued.

Before the sitting even began, protests began in the media gallery as they discovered that their mobile signals were being jammed by a clocking device, preventing them from live reporting the events.  No decision had ever been taken by parliament to do this, and indeed such devices are illegal for use except by state security departments.  South Africa's constitution expressly provides freedom of information communication in situations such as this.

As soon as the speaker opened the session, MP after MP from the opposition parties raised points of order demanding that the signal be unblocked.  The speaker ordered the Secretary to the Parliament to investigate and eventually the signal blocker was turned off and business could proceed.

Or not, as the case turned out.  President Zuma had barely spoken a few words when it became clear that his microphone was not working, a result of the Parliament staff withdrawing their labour.  This (and the water supply for thirsty MPs) fixed, at last Zuma could deliver the SONA.

Again, maybe not.  Shortly after starting, the President was interrupted the Whip of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) who raised a question of privilege with the Speaker asking when the President was going to pay back money spent on his private residence in KwaZulu Natal that the Protector said he had unduly benefited from.  The Speaker stated that this session was not for questions, and that there would be ample opportunity to question the President at next week's sitting.

Before she had even completed, another EFF member raised the same point, followed by another, at which point the Speaker lost her temper and ordered the member to leave the chamber.  This provoked a number of EFF members to raise points of order asking under which rule the Speaker was ejecting their colleagues, and these members were too asked to leave.  When they refused, the Speaker sent in security forces to remove them.

During this time, the parliamentary TV feed focused on the speaker, but footage was shot by mobile phone from the press gallery which shows plain-clothed, armed security forces violently dragging the entire EFF party from the parliament.  Mercedes Besent, a journalist from SABC who got caught up in the scuffle reported seeing security officials "kicking, beating and dragging" EFF MPs out of the building.  One of the MPs ended up in hospital.

The Leader and Chief Whip of the official opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), then continually asked the speaker whether these security men were parliamentary officials or police.  This was a key issue, DA Leader Maimane said, as one reports to the Speaker while the other reports to the executive, and this would be "unconstitutional".  When the Speaker and Chairwoman refused to say whether they were police or not, the DA walked out of the chamber, followed by the other opposition parties COPE and the UDM.

So, an hour later than planned, and speaking only to his own party, President Zuma was able to deliver his SONA, beginning - without a hint of irony - by commemorating 60 years since the adoption of the Freedom Charter and 25 years sice the release of Mandela.

Understandably, huge controversy has surrounded the events.  Clearly, the EFF were wrong to try and disrupt the business of parliament and the speaker had to take some action to ensure the SONA could go ahead, but was she right to eject members raising points of order without first hearing their point?  Then comes the question of the security forces.  If they were police or private forces entering parliament to remove an entire opposition party, this constitutes a breach of the separation of powers required for a transparent democracy.  Note also that the entire EFF were removed though only a handful of individuals had been asked to leave by the speaker.  With the remaining opposition parties walking out, what kind of scrutiny does it offer to the South African people if only the governing party is present for such an important occasion?  And what about the signal blocker?  On whose authority was that installed and what information were they trying to contain?

Ultimately, media and political attention has focused on these issues rather than the content of the SONA.  With half of South African young people unemployed, the value of the rand sliding, protests against foreign shopkeepers in Soweto continuing, the University of KwaZulu Natal closed due to protests and enforced power cuts due to ramp up tomorrow, I would suggest that the people of South Africa deserve a democracy which holds the executive to account and that all parties and parliamentary authorities need to work together to achieve this.

Former President Thabo Mbeki said of the events, "We are elected by people who want to find solutions; all political parties need to discuss this.  You can't tell a person that you can't ask that question.  Don't use administrative problems to solve political problems.  You've got to confront the political elements and have a political engagement."

The blocking of communications and the use of armed forces to violently remove an entire opposition party cannot be allowed in a free, democratic society.  This, combined with an opposition unable to hold the executive to account, constitutes a real threat to democracy.

SONA: A show like no other

Okay, I'll admit it: I'm a bit of a political anorak.  My Sky+ planner is wall to wall political commentary, I never miss PMQs and a General Election means taking annual leave so that I can stay up all night to watch all the analysis.  Though much of it is derided as pointless theatre, the way politicians manouever themselves around various issues fascinates me.  It's much more interesting than any film.

At around 5pm GMT tonight, one of the most interesting speeches for a political anork will take place: South Africa's State of the Nation Address (SONA), the President's annual speech to the nation.  In addition to the overarching political climate, events of the last few days make this the most eagerly anticipated SONA since 1994 and the way President Zuma tackles it could be one of the most interesting pieces of posturing in global politics.

On the one hand, today's SONA comes just one day since South Africa marked 25 years since the release of Nelson Mandela, suggesting it should be a cause for celebration for the people in general and Zuma's ANC party in particular, however other things in the last week have not gone so well.

South Africa's economy continues to struggle, with the Rand slumping yesterday to a 12 year low and figures today showing a decline in the vital mining industry.  Perhaps as a result of economic conditions, huge rallies were held in Soweto today where African shopkeepers were campaigning against foreign (mostly Asian) shopkeepers being allowed to run their own business.  What began as meetings has developed into mass pickets that are forcing foregin shopkeepers to remain closed and making it impossible for them to leave their own home.  The ANC has been quick to condemn this, committed to its long-term stance of non-racialism.  25 years since apartheid began to fall, care must be taken that it is not built up again in other ways.

Meanwhile, due to maintenance and other problems at some major power stations, South Africa is not able to generate enough power to meet its needs, and the state energy provider Eskom has had to enforce planned power outages across the country over the last few days.  These are set to increase if a solution cannot be found.  Many businesses, including huge store chain Woolworths (more like M&S than the Woolworths we knew in the UK), have warned of the impact this will have on them and the economy.

The President himself is also under huge political pressure over the cost and transparency of "security upgrades" at his Nkandla home.  Will he tackle this head on in SONA or try to ignore the issue?  Some opposition politicians are threatening to break with convention and interrupt SONA if Zuma does not address the issue and it is a guarantee that this will be a hotly contested issue in the next elections.

Add this to the list of wider problems I raised in yesterday's blog post, and the President seems to be between a rock and a hard place when it comes to SONA.  How he will address the variety of issues facing the country and insipre hope and confidence among his people will be an interesting piece of political science.

But all is not grim for the President - despite the problems and controversies, the ANC remains popular and in a recent poll by Ipsos, 53% of South Africans agreed he was doing a good job of running the country.  Contrast that with any of the main political leaders in the UK who routinely run negative approval ratings and that seems rather good.

Watching the media build up to tonight's SONA, the atomsphere seems a mixture of red carpet glamour and volatile tension.  It's no wonder that national broadcaster SABC has dubbed SONA "a show like no other".

Madiba: 25 Years On

Nelson Mandela Square, Sandton, Johannesburg

Twenty-five years ago today, James "Buster" Douglas knocked out Mike Tyson to win the heavyweight boxing crown, Todd Eldredge won the US Male Figureskating Championship and East beat West 130-113 in the NBA All-Star Game.

I was just about to turn five, and was completely unaware of all of these things.  However, despite my young age, I was aware that there was a huge amount of excitement about a man being released from prison on the other side of the planet and that this happening was going to make the world a better place.  I remember watching TV reports showing the man and his wife walking hand and hand, their fists in the air in what I later learnt was the Amandla or power salute.  The man was, of course, Rolihlahla (better known as Nelson) Mandela.  As I grew up, my interest in this man and his country grew and grew and he came to have more and more of an influence on my life.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not one of those who places Mandela on some kind of saintly pedestal.  As I spend time in schools and see children learning about Mandela, one of my real frustrations is when they paint him as some kind of unerring pacifist, but this is far from the truth.  By his own admission, Mandela was no Gandhi - to him non-violence was not a moral principle but a tactic which should only be employed so long as it was useful.  Indeed, Mandela founded the "MK" - the militant wing of the freedom struggle.  However, it was Mandela's response to his release from prison that makes him something of a hero to me.

After 27 years of imprisonment, to emerge not only without bitterness or seeking revenge but to actively build peace, harmony and reconcilliation still blows my mind.  In his first speech as a free man, he quoted his own words from his trial in 1964:

"I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination.  I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live in harmony and with equal opportunities.  It is an ideal for which I hope to live for and to achieve, but if needs be, it is an idea for which I am prepared to die."

Mandela spent the remaining years of his life, many of them as South Africa's elected president, trying to bring about this vision.  Nearly a quarter of a century later, we sat in Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton enjoying a meal and drinks surrounded by South Africans of every background, free from colour bars and all regarded as equals.  We watched black and white children playing together in school grounds and met many confident, empowered young people from all of South Africa's ethnic groups.  On the face of things, job done.

Or is it?  While apartheid seems a long time ago and South Africa enjoys a rich multiculturalism and a democracy open to all, there are clearly still remnants of old divisions.  Much of the service industry and most low-paid jobs are still occupied solely by black Africans, while much of South Africa's wealth still rests with the white community.  The dominance of the ANC in government has led many to distrust the authorities while corruption within the state seems commonplace.  Many townships are still languishing in poverty, and many are no-go areas for police making them hotbeds for violent crime.  The justice system is creaking, with delays so long in bringing some suspects to trial that witnesses can no longer remember what they witnessed.

Today, Kathadra, a fellow prisoner of Mandela, said, "It is disheartening and of great concern to me that, 25 years on, we still see blatant acts of racism being perpetrated.  We have made significant progress since 1994, but racism still lurks under the surface... It worries me when [young people] are being separated in classrooms based on race... We need to pay more attention to youth development so that young people can become agents of non-racialism."

Another of Mandela's comrades, Laloo Chiba, claimed to be "extremely disturbed to see that racial discrimination carries on in a big way.  I never thought that evidence of racism would be so rife 20 years after democracy."

25 years after the release of Madiba (to use his clan name), there is much to celebrate in what has been achieved in this wonderful country, but it is perhaps also an occasion to be reminded that the ideal which Mandela stood for has not yet been fully achieved and that we should all show something of Mandela's resolve and do all we can to fight injustice and its causes.

To quote Sello Hatang, CEO of the Nelson Mandela Foundation,

"Some of the responsibility that we carry most is that of reconcilliation, the issue of equality and also non-racialism.  Twenty-five years ago, we said we would build a non-racial society.  Are we there yet?  Madiba says that one question that should bother each one of us when we wake up in the morning is, 'Am I doing enough to help build a country of my dreams?'"