Raymond Suttner
If the Public Protector ought to go, who will make it happen?
26th July 2019 Much public commentary since Monday 22 July has concerned the Constitutional Court judgment on the Public Protector (PP), Busisiwe Mkhwebane... →
The threat to democracy (part two) The EFF
16th July 2019 Last week the EFF crossed a threshold, in the violation of constitutional democracy, by approaching Pravin Gordhan at the speaker’s podium and... →
The threat to democracy (part one) – the Public Protector
15th July 2019 Much of the media has been dominated over recent weeks by controversy surrounding reports of the Public Protector (PP) on the conduct of President... →
Peter Hudson, bearer of emancipatory knowledge
5th July 2019 An erudite scholar, complex writer and revered teacher, Peter Hudson bequeathed the enduring value of learn and teach, teach and learn. Through... →
Marking June 16 this year
18th June 2019 Visiting any mall or reading advertising inserts in South African newspapers or emails from various commercial outlets, one learns that June 16 is... →
New cabinet and constructive support for the “new dawn”
3rd June 2019 Many people welcomed the removal of Jacob Zuma as State President and provided constructive support (and criticism) for the Cyril Ramaphosa-led... →
Cyril Ramaphosa’s choices, constraints and the question of trust
20th May 2019 For some time, it has been clear that the ANC operates with at least two contesting centres of power. On the one hand there is that centred around... →
The judiciary, State capture and the future
14th May 2019 Many democrats are wary of an unelected judiciary entering the political fray by deciding cases that have significant political implications. The... →
How do we understand democracy and human freedom?
6th May 2019 Is South Africa a liberal democracy and if so, does that provide the quality of freedom that we require? What is the democracy that we celebrate on... →
The ANC’s representational crises
23rd April 2019 The ANC led by President Cyril Ramaphosa may secure a majority or increase its share of the votes in May 8’s national elections. However, we are... →
Makhanda’s attack on Grahamstown
23rd April 2019 April 22 marks the bi-centenary of the attack on the British garrison in Grahamstown, led by warrior-prophet, Makhanda, in whose honour the town... →
Restoring ethics, trust and compassion into South African politics
8th April 2019 Many feel “depressed” or “disillusioned” and do not know what to do with their vote and do not see a way out of the current dissolute politics.... →
Reclaiming political agency in a time of “choiceless democracy”
3rd April 2019 The ambiguity of ANC hegemony. It is very likely that the national elections to be held on May 8 will be free and fair and also, that the ANC will... →
The Christchurch massacre: leadership in New Zealand and South Africa
25th March 2019 In the wake of the mosque massacres in Christchurch, New Zealand, many have admired the actions of New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern. It... →
25 years of democracy (Part 5): xenophobia repudiates foundational values of democratic South Africa
19th March 2019 Why is xenophobia so important? Some readers may believe that the title of this article places too much weight on xenophobia. It comprises a set... →
25 years of democracy part 4: decline of the liberation project
11th March 2019 The impetus behind the writing of this article has been the exhortation on the part of many well-meaning people to exercise our civic duty and... →
25 years of democracy (part 3): Denial of dignity then and now
25th February 2019 “Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of... →
25 years of democracy (Part 2): Debate, depoliticisation and absence of vision
18th February 2019 There was a time when the struggle in South Africa was suffused with debate, contending positions being examined and questioned and many people... →
25 years of democracy (Part 1): ruptures and continuities
11th February 2019 How is it that what seemed so promising in the inauguration of South African democracy, 25 years ago, has turned sour? Should those who were... →
Zuma’s “nine wasted years” and the question of “renewal”
4th February 2019 A row has broken out in ANC ranks over claims by Cyril Ramaphosa (on which he sometimes wavers) and Tito Mboweni that the period of Jacob Zuma’s... →
#StopXenophobia in all its guises!
30th January 2019 Far from abating, the xenophobic climate in South Africa may be heightening as multiple social and economic crises increase impoverishment and... →
Ramaphosa’s wooing of Zuma: does it spell problems for the country?
21st January 2019 Since the 2017 ANC conference held at Nasrec in Johannesburg, it has been clear that the organisation has not been united behind Cyril Ramaphosa as... →
ANC at 107: history, values and strategies
14th January 2019 The ANC is very preoccupied with its history and it has been drawn on for different reasons at different times. During the freedom struggle that... →
May elections: what is the price of an ANC electoral victory?
7th January 2019 In four months, there will be general elections for national and provincial legislatures. While the other main parties are in disarray, the ANC... →
Has Cyril Ramaphosa’s position weakened and, if so, what are the consequences?
10th December 2018 Until now many observers, including myself, have been at pains to credit President Cyril Ramaphosa and his allies with addressing the need to clean... →
What is at stake in demanding formal educational qualifications in democratic politics?
3rd December 2018 Factional battles as well as tensions over white control in the DA appear to have led to a focus on the DA Chief Whip in the National Assembly,... →
The popular, populism and the crisis of representation
28th November 2018 Democracy is often discussed in a way that seriously limits our understanding of its theory and practice. This was very evident in the Cold War... →
Securing Ramaphosa’s presidency – at what cost?
26th November 2018 There is no need to recapitulate in detail the expectations that many people cherished for the Cyril Ramaphosa presidency. Many of these were not... →
Xenophobic discourse and disease
21st November 2018 Recently, Minister of Health, Aaron Motsoaledi expressed his concern about the influx of illegal immigrants because of the strain this was placing... →
Ethics and scholarship: revisiting why I withdrew a thesis 49 years ago
6th November 2018 On 14 December I will be awarded a Master of Laws (LLM) degree by UCT. This, as many media reports have noted, is 49 years after I first submitted... →
Constitutionalism and the quality of democracy: are we immune to fascism?
30th October 2018 In contemporary South Africa much attention is rightly devoted to restoring legality, constitutionalism and practices that conform to what is... →
The place of the popular and the populist
24th October 2018 It is common in political commentary -locally and internationally- to treat the popular and populist as one. It is important that they be... →
Breaking with Zumaism
8th October 2018 The hope has been repeatedly expressed that the onset of Cyril Ramaphosa’s presidency of the ANC and the country would represent a break with the... →
Gandhi and Mandela: a tentative interpretation
2nd October 2018 Mohandas Karamchand “Mahatma” Gandhi and Rolihlahla Nelson Mandela were very different types of persons in most respects. But it is too easy to... →
Freedom and ethics – then and now
26th September 2018 What did it mean to join the liberation struggle against apartheid, in the difficult times and what does it mean now? Joining the liberation... →
Building mutual solidarity in a time of callousness
17th September 2018 There is no doubt that the current ANC leadership faces great challenges. Having relieved the country of the burden of the Jacob Zuma presidency,... →
Attacks on “foreign nationals” and callous indifference
11th September 2018 “And Jesus said…’Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.”- Matthew 8:20 The recent... →
End or new phase of coalition politics?
3rd September 2018 The results of the 2016 Local Government elections revealed the possibility of the ANC being defeated in the 2019 national elections. This would... →
Accountability, dignity and compassion
21st August 2018 At the core of the South African constitution is a vision of a society that is based on human dignity and the rights of all its peoples. The... →
On whom do we rely for our democratic future?
13th August 2018 Who is the custodian of our democratic and transformational project, who do we look to in order to see it through and safeguard its integrity and... →
“Expropriation without compensation” Where is the plan for addressing land reform?
6th August 2018 Democratic and ethical leadership depends, in the first place, on trust. People need to believe and trust what a leader or organisation says... →
