Opposition and democracy in South Africa

Abstract

This collection of essays, drawn from a variety of political perspectives, and presented to a conference funded by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, is the first consolidated attempt to explore opposition in post-apartheid South Africa. After discussions of the nature of political opposition and appropriate forms and styles in a fragile democracy, analyses run through the alleged narrowing of space for opposition parties under the ANC hegemony, the electoral prospects for the newly formed Democratic Alliance and the nature of this new formation, the use and misuse of race as a category of opposition, the scope for internal opposition within the ANC and finally the potential for the emergence of a labour-led opposition which could challenge the ruling party, from the left. Written by scholars who are all based in South Africa, this book testifies to the continuing vigour of debate about democracy in that country, and enriches discussion about legacy of apartheid.