Comments on: South African democracy and turmoil: a primer http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/10/10/south-african-democracy-and-turmoil-a-primer/ now with extra source Tue, 24 Nov 2009 14:02:31 +1100 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.6 hourly 1 By: Bob Gosford http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/10/10/south-african-democracy-and-turmoil-a-primer/#comment-10011 Bob Gosford Thu, 01 Jan 1970 10:00:00 +0000 #comment-10011 Dr Louw,<br />I've just come back from 3 or so weeks in and out of South Africa, mainly in Cape Town. It was only my second trip but I arrived just as the most recent stoush between Mbeki & Zuma broke out. I have a post at my Crikey blog The Northern Myth (http://blogs.crikey.com.au/northern/2008/09/28/australia-is-soboring/) that refers to some of these events. While I was in SA for business unrelated to the current crisis (a birding conference and giving seminars to the law faculty at UCT) I spent a bit of time talking to South Africans (black, white & coloured in the unfortunate nomenclature used in SA) about these events and most were horrified at the prospect of a Zuma-led government...which appears to be a foregone conclusion after the upcoming 2009 elections.<br />I did a long interview, that I have yet to transcribe, with a professional-class Afrikaans South African who is in the process of moving he and his family to Australia - predictably Perth. He is gutted about what has happened to his suburb and city (Cape Town) as recently as the last twelve months. He also related that he knew of at least 6 of his friends who were moving their families to Australia, Canada, the US and the UK etc. One of the issues he raised is that the BEE policy is effectively forcing a brain-drain from the country - because absolute preference is given to blacks against white or coloureds...<br />What most disturbed me about Nicholson's judgment, as I note in my post, was that he made damning judgments (which as you note bought down Mbeki's government) without giving Mbeki, or the others against whom adverse findings were made, any right of appearance...in Australia this would never have happened and Nicholson's judgment wouldn't be allowed to stand on appeal.<br />Thanks for the post - I think that things in SA are tenuous at best and that there is every chance that the country could descend into chaos...quickly.<br /><br />Bob Gosford<br />The Northern Myth<br /> Dr Louw,
I’ve just come back from 3 or so weeks in and out of South Africa, mainly in Cape Town. It was only my second trip but I arrived just as the most recent stoush between Mbeki & Zuma broke out. I have a post at my Crikey blog The Northern Myth (http://blogs.crikey.com.au/northern/2008/09/28/australia-is-soboring/) that refers to some of these events. While I was in SA for business unrelated to the current crisis (a birding conference and giving seminars to the law faculty at UCT) I spent a bit of time talking to South Africans (black, white & coloured in the unfortunate nomenclature used in SA) about these events and most were horrified at the prospect of a Zuma-led government…which appears to be a foregone conclusion after the upcoming 2009 elections.
I did a long interview, that I have yet to transcribe, with a professional-class Afrikaans South African who is in the process of moving he and his family to Australia - predictably Perth. He is gutted about what has happened to his suburb and city (Cape Town) as recently as the last twelve months. He also related that he knew of at least 6 of his friends who were moving their families to Australia, Canada, the US and the UK etc. One of the issues he raised is that the BEE policy is effectively forcing a brain-drain from the country - because absolute preference is given to blacks against white or coloureds…
What most disturbed me about Nicholson’s judgment, as I note in my post, was that he made damning judgments (which as you note bought down Mbeki’s government) without giving Mbeki, or the others against whom adverse findings were made, any right of appearance…in Australia this would never have happened and Nicholson’s judgment wouldn’t be allowed to stand on appeal.
Thanks for the post - I think that things in SA are tenuous at best and that there is every chance that the country could descend into chaos…quickly.

Bob Gosford
The Northern Myth

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