Transcript South Africa - Rutgers University

South Africa
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Background
Foundations of Apartheid
Rise of Opposition
Sanctioning of the State
Transition to Democracy
Legacies of Apartheid
Implementing Reconstruction and Dev. Prgm
Current Situation
Background
First Europeans – French and Dutch settlers
 Known as “Boers” or farmers in Afrikaans
 Fled religious persecution in mid-17 century
 Dutch East India Co. in Table bay
 Southern Cape land is rich and fertile
 Natives: Khoikhoi (SW) & Xhosa (East)
 Constant fights; Europeans with guns
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Background (cont.)
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British came for the location – refueling
Est. British East India Company
1806, captured Cape Peninsula from Dutch
1867, diamond found in Vaal River
Cecil Rhodes built international diamond cartel
Gold found less than 20 years later
By 1900, gold and diamonds made up 60% of export
Background (cont.)
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By 1911, gold mines account of 20% of
economy and employed 215, 000 people
 Tension bet. British and Dutch resulted in a
full-scale Boer War until 1910.
 British won decisively and Union of SA
became a self-governing dominion of
British Commonwealth.
Foundations of Apartheid
1909 Constitution – SA is a segregated
democracy; only whites could vote
 Bet. 1910-1948, SA ruled by relatively
liberal group dominated by English
speakers called United Party (UP)
 White SA get majority of benefits
 Blacks work in mining and domestic
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Foundations of Apartheid (cont.)
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1948, predominantly Afrikaner National Party
(NP) seize control from UP
 Imposed “Apartheid” or “Apartness” in Afrikaans;
shape history for next 50 years
 4 racial groups: whites, coloreds (mixed race),
Indian, Africans
 Segregation; 1913 National Land Act – illegal for
Blacks to purchase land outside designated areas
Foundations of Apartheid (cont.)
Hendrik Verwoerd, a “philosopher” , “.. gives the
Native an opportunity to develop what is his own,
so he can have pride and self-respect as a Native,
instead of being continually humiliated as a failed
and imitation white”
 Many Acts enacted to enforce segregation
 Blacks resettled to disguised “homelands”
 Required to carry passports and travelled hours
each day on cramped buses
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Foundations of Apartheid (cont.)
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1912, 2 years after country formation, a small
group of Blacks formed SA Native National
Congress (SANCC) devoted to advancement of
native population
 Led by missionary-educated lawyers
 SANCC later became African National Congress
(ANC)
 Later ANC is joined by colored African Political
Organization, SA Indian Congress, and SA
Communist Party
Rise of Opposition (cont.)
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ANC leaders -Oliver Tambo, Walter Sisulu, &
Nelson Mandela- supported a large scale passive
resistance campaign in 1952; adherence to nonviolence
 1955, ANC adopted Freedom Charter – “SA
belongs to all who live in it, black or white, …. no
government can justly claimed authority unless it
is based on the will of the people”
 NP track Mandela and Tambo, who were
practicing law together in Johannesburg
Rise of Opposition (cont.)
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In 1963, 8 ANC members were convicted of high
treason and sentenced to life imprisonment
Mandela spend 27 years in prison
Notable personalities include:
Helen Suzman, white professor who was sole
member of liberal Progressive Party in Parliament
Desmond Tutu: Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town
Stephen Biko, founder of Black Consciousness
Movement, died in police custody in 1977
Rise of Opposition (cont.)
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Sharpeville Massacre: police shot and killed 69
peaceful demonstrators led some conservatives to
advocate violence
 1976, security forces shot and killed to children in
Soweto igniting a firestorm that led to 500-1000
deaths.
 In the 70s, gold prices fell and oil prices hiked
hitting SA hard; mining industry hit hard
 By 1978, 5.1% of GDP or 21% of budget devoted
to defense. SA was isolated.
Sanctioning the State
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Chase Manhattan Bank refused to roll out SA
loans
Sullivan Principles, a code of conduct for firms
hoping to advance human rights and equal
opportunity in SA
1986, over Pres. Reagan’s veto, passed
Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act, boycotting
nearly all US commerce with SA
1989, SA Pres. Botha suffered debilitating stroke.
F. W. de Klerk, president of NP took over.
Transition to Democracy
Before Botha’s stroke, he started covert meetings
with Mandela. Bans on ANC lifted in 1990.
 de Klerk and Mandela were aligned in short-term
aims: saw political violence boiling and were
determined to prevent either end of political
spectrum from imposing its wished on the country
 Agreed to conduct negotiating framework – the
Convention for Democratic SA (CODESA)
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Transition to Democracy (cont.)
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Nov. 1993, Population Registration Act ended;
independent homelands reintegrated
Jan. 1994, all white parliament voted interim constitution
establishing SA as a multicultural nation granting
citizenship to non-whites.
1994, SA electorate voted choosing a parliament based on
proportional representation and electing a Government of
National Unity (GNU).
GNU committed to “power sharing” rather than “winner
take all”. Any party that won 5% (20%) of national vote
was guaranteed representation in the cabinet (deputy
presidency).
Transition to Democracy (cont.)
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ANC got 63% of vote in April 1994 election
Truth and Reconciliation Commission in 1995
ANC moved to deliver campaign promise of change and
redistribution with Reconstruction and Development
Program (RDP)
Started with R2.5B in 1995 and R10B 1996.
Est. business plan and build houses for millions of SA.
Pledge to build 1 million houses by 1999 and
electrification of another 2.5 million homes.
Slow implementation. Value of Rand collapsed &
President Mandela ended RDP in March, 1996.
Transition to Democracy (cont.)
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June 1996, a new macroeconomic strategy called
Growth, Employment, and Redistribution (GEAR)
 Obj.: 6% growth by 2000, 1.3 million jobs outside
agriculture, fiscal deficit of 3% of GDP,
privatization, and tariff reduction
 Received tremendous opposition from all sides.
 1999, Thabo Mbeki became President of SA.
Legacies of Apartheid
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6 million SA blacks are unemployed
 9 million considered destitute
 Over 10 million blacks had no access to
running water
 23 million had no electricity
 60% black adults never attended school
 Infant mortality: 7/1000 (whites), 80/1000
(blacks)
Key Indicators (1/23/07)
From Economist Intelligence Unit (Source:Country data)
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Real GDP growth (%)
4.9
4.5
5.1
5.5
5.8
5.3
Consumer inflation
(av; %)
4.6
5.2
4.5
4.3
4.0
3.5
Budget balance (% of
GDP)
-1.5 -2.0 -2.2 -2.1 -1.9 -1.8
Current-account
balance (% of GDP)
-5.0 -4.6 -4.4 -4.0 -3.7 -2.5
Com. banks' prime
rate (av; %)
10.8 11.0 11.0 12.0 12.0 12.0
Exchange rate R:US$
(av)
6.76 7.40 7.85 8.20 8.60 9.00
Source
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Remaking the Rainbow Nation: South
Africa 2002, Rawi Abdelal, Debora Spar,
and Katherine E. Cousins, Harvard Business
School.