The South African Civil Society Information Service
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
A nonprofit news agency promoting social justice. Seeking answers to the question:
How do we make democracy work for the poor?
Aid is not the only answer to Africa's problems, says actor and nouveau-activist Ben Affleck. The solution lies in paying attention to Africa; being invested in African issues and trying to understand them. He makes a case against imposing Western models of development on Africa.
Watching the mainstream try to climb inside the head of formidable human rights advocate, Mary Robinson, makes for fascinating viewing. For human interest enthusiasts, Robinson talks about what inspired her monumental human rights journey, in part one (this clip) of the Bloomberg interview. Her exceptional rights-based analysis of politics, socio-economic and development issues in parts 2-6 of the interview, makes watching the entire program, well worth the effort. Find links to the rest of...
Richard Pithouse -
The crisis of social exclusion in our cities is a key factor in the ferment in grassroots political society. It has been central to much popular protest in recent years, to the emergence of well organised grassroots movements to the left of the ANC and, also, the catastrophic pogroms in May.
Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma both support a coercive response to this crisis. Their support for legislation to eradicate shack settlements is, ultimately, support for the state to send in men with...
Glenn Ashton -
At Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Governance, a study group is arguing that the media in Africa doesn’t foster good governance, contending that Africa's Fourth Estate doesn't function.
The global nature of the problem raises some questions about why the Kennedy School of Governance has chosen to make an example of Africa.
After all, the American media practically signed, sealed and delivered the public consensus needed for President George W. Bush to invade...
Fazila Farouk -
The anniversary of South Africa’s decade of democracy signalled a turning point in the way many South Africans view this country.
Since then we’ve been treated to a gaggle of critiques measuring the gains of our democracy.
The overall conclusion has been that it was a decade of poor gains. A decade of missed opportunities. A decade marked by a paucity of ideas about how to achieve real transformation, and most alarming of all, a decade of denial.
Extreme denial...
Pinky Show - The socially conscious cats from the Pinky Show have developed a simple but accurate account of the World Bank and IMF's (International Monetary Fund's) role in globalising our world and particularly its economy. The cartoon is highly recommended for its clarity in demystifying the role of the developing world's super bankers, who far from alleviating poverty, actually aggravate it.
