South Africa is both an economic and political power in Africa and some argue that it is the economic power of the SADC region. Some would go so far as to consider it a Western state in Africa, courtesy of its development patterns that far differ from those of its peers across the continent. As such, and for many other reasons, South Africa should be considered as an influential force for democratization and the rule of law on the African continent.
ME Warren defines democracy as an inclusive, collective, will formation for decision making, aimed at creating a sense of political responsiveness – towards transforming citizens’ preferences into policies and outcomes – while ensuring the political rights and liberties via constraints of the will of the people.
For the benefit of some, when we talk about democratization we refer to the development of majority rule, the development of institutions that are led by the will of people without any form of suppression or interference by the state. It also includes the promotion and protection of human rights. In order to understand the democratization in South Africa it is imperative that we note that since 1994, South Africa has always been led by the African National Congress (ANC), whose foreign policy needs to be scrutinized, as well as their migrant policies and civil activism.
In its founding governing principle in 1994, the ANC envisioned a rainbow society or nation which meant they wanted to preside over a diverse nation that is free from any form of discrimination among their citizens. They worked towards creating a society where black and white people would coexist with equal rights regardless of our painful past. As a result of these objectives, South Africa eventually attracted the positive attention of the modern world, at least those who believed in democracy. In Africa, it also attracted the attention of many states especially the African citizenry, from the despotic states such as Zimbabwe, DRC, Swaziland, Nigeria and many more who viewed the Southern state as dynamic and a force in the right direction toward democratization and globalization.
Looking at the emergency of populist parties like EFF in South Africa post-1994 shows that South Africa might not be a force for democratization, this is supported by the (Mair 2002,p89) who argues that populism tends to promote party-less democracy instead of a constitutional democracy. When we talk about democratization we refer to constitutional democracy but for a while now South African political space is characterised by populist parties lacking policy substance making it difficult for one to view clearly the constitutional values of such parties. Notably, the fact that ANC has been in power since 1994 shows that while the country appears or preaches democracy it is overtly or covertly pushes anti-democracy agendas, also the economic realities of ordinary South Africa bottle the mind on why one will keep such a party for this while in government. It is also prudent that we mention South African migration policies since 1994, in the time of President Nelson, South Africa has faced an increasing influx of African migrants especially those from conflict countries. Under the Mandela administration, many migrants were given an opportunity for documentation but since then the documentation process has been characterized by scandals, corruption and inefficiency which makes one wonder how democratic South Africa is considering that migration makes the core of good governance which is a key component of democracy.
The case of the Zimbabwe Exemption Permit (ZEP) indicates that in some aspects of democracy, South Africa has gone backwards. On the other hand, South Africa as compared to other African states has managed to build independent commissions such as the South African Human Rights Commission, Judiciary Independent Commission, Independent Electoral Commission, Public Protector and many more, these commissions are meant to foster and enhance democracy and despite some short coming within these institutes, one can argue that South Africa is the force for democratization and the rule of law. What is interesting also is that these institutions are open to public scrutiny which makes them democratic to a certain extent. South Africa as a country has the fastest-growing civil society sector as compared to other countries, civil society exists to monitor and enforce the rule of law. It is in South Africa where you find that most African political activists hide from despotic regimes in their country of origin. In South Africa, one can find Arab, Black, White, gay or whatever manner of civil groups pushing their agendas and such is hard to find in most states like Zimbabwe, Swaziland, DRC, Sudan etc and that makes South Africa a force for democratization and the rule of law.
For a number of factors, South Africa can or is indeed a force for democratisation and the rule of law in Africa. Africa is a continent in a forced migration crisis as a result of hunger and wars, as a results most states have adopted the refugee camp system for incoming migrants, generally camp system is inhuman and against the principles of humanity but South Africa on the other hand practices an assimilation system whereby migrants are incorporated into the South African communities, this alone is commendable, modern and positive welcomed by modern developed states which makes South Africa a champion for human rights. It is only in South Africa that a migrant, a refugee can advocate for his rights from the adopting country without oppression or discrimination.
Notably also is the South African foreign policy on the Middle East, a century-long conflict between the State of Israel and Palestine, while both states have the right to co-exist, South Africa publicly in UN forums also voted for the annihilation of the State of Israel which on its own is hypocrisy considering that what is true of A should also be true of B, in this case, democracy should dictate that both states the Israel and Palestine should co-exist and in times of war Israel also has the right to self-defence despite criticism from states such as South Africa and other African states. Therefore, in light of the above, it is clear that South Africa since its inception in 1994 has done a lot in advancing democracy and the rule of law making it an ideal model of democracy in Africa even though to some extent its democratization path is not the of constitutional democracy. It is, therefore, up to individuals to argue if South Africa indeed is a force for democratization and the rule of law in Africa.
