Early American Echoes in South Africa?
If Nelson Mandela was South Africa’s George Washington, Thabo Mbeki was his John Adams — a short, touchy, fiercely intelligent infighter doomed to labor in the shadow of the great man.
Jacob Zuma, who is expected soon to be the third democratically elected president of Africa’s most influential country, is no Thomas Jefferson — though he, like Jefferson, may ultimately play an important (if unwitting) role in the birth of a real two-party system in a nascent democracy.
Right now, South Africa is effectively a one-party state. Since the first democratic elections in 1994, the share of Parliament controlled by the African National Congress, the party of Mr. Mandela, Mr. Mbeki and Mr. Zuma, has increased to 69.7 percent from 63 percent.
With that majority, the party can pass any law or even rewrite the country’s remarkable Constitution. With that level of support, Mr. Zuma can crush efforts to limit his power. That trend has already started, with the disbanding of the Scorpions anticorruption unit; libel suits against Mr. Zuma’s critics including political cartoonists; and open expressions of disgust at judges by party officials.
Three months ago, Archbishop Desmond Tutu pointed out the danger, saying the party needed “a viable opposition” because “democracy flourishes where there is a vigorous debate.”
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Jacob Zuma, who is expected soon to be the third democratically elected president of Africa’s most influential country, is no Thomas Jefferson — though he, like Jefferson, may ultimately play an important (if unwitting) role in the birth of a real two-party system in a nascent democracy.
Right now, South Africa is effectively a one-party state. Since the first democratic elections in 1994, the share of Parliament controlled by the African National Congress, the party of Mr. Mandela, Mr. Mbeki and Mr. Zuma, has increased to 69.7 percent from 63 percent.
With that majority, the party can pass any law or even rewrite the country’s remarkable Constitution. With that level of support, Mr. Zuma can crush efforts to limit his power. That trend has already started, with the disbanding of the Scorpions anticorruption unit; libel suits against Mr. Zuma’s critics including political cartoonists; and open expressions of disgust at judges by party officials.
Three months ago, Archbishop Desmond Tutu pointed out the danger, saying the party needed “a viable opposition” because “democracy flourishes where there is a vigorous debate.”