Article Abstract:
The Southern African Study Group at the Royal Institute of International Affairs has no fixed research agenda, but meets monthly to discuss developments in the region and their likely impact on UK and Western policies. Panel discussions in May and Jun 1997 focused on the nature of democracy in southern Africa. Many of the region's most democratic regimes are states where one political party significantly dominates the others, such as South Africa's African National Congress. The effectiveness of democracy under such a system depends on the extent of intraparty openness and competition.
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Article Abstract:
The African National Congress is being urged to take a more active role in South Africa's power politics. Supporters of the ANC find it has slowed in pursuing 1994 campaign planks now that it has taken office. A Government of National Unity now exists, with a multiparty coalition cabinet dominated by the ANC. The ANC ministers are competent and attentive to global economic realities, but this diminishes the image of effective leadership by Nelson Mandela. Supporters can be satisfied, to prevent new opposition movements.
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Article Abstract:
Negotiations at the Conference for a Democratic South Africa appeared to be progressing well until May 1992, but a number of disagreements between the African National Congress (ANC) and government negotiators simmered beneath the surface. ANC leaders eventually decided to launch mass protests to pressure the government. The ANC's demands were for the security forces to be placed under stricter and more neutral control. Exactly how political power is to be shared is the basic question now facing South Africans.
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