Opinion and Analysis
Why is the Public Investment Corporation bankrolling private education for the rich?
Next month young activists will attempt to make Bhisho the centre of the world. Members of Equal Education (EE) will be present throughout the duration of a court case aimed at securing infrastructure standards for every school in South Africa.
Doron Isaacs
Opinion | 17 October 2012
Understanding the Simelane judgment
The Constitutional Court is proving that there is life after Chaskalson, Langa, O’Regan and Ngcobo. Many feared that new Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng would usher in an era of slavish Executive-mindedness – and that may still come true – but recent judgments of the Court are quite the opposite.
Doron Isaacs
Opinion | 10 October 2012
The immense danger and opportunity of climate change
There’s an astonishing blind spot that afflicts most of South Africa’s elites and intelligentsia, and indeed, our civilisation. It’s particularly tragic that South Africa, which suffered nearly 10 years of HIV denialism, should now also be afflicted by climate change denial.
David Le Page
Opinion | 10 October 2012
Tougher times ahead as tensions ratchet up in Europe
In a world wracked by ongoing economic crises, what is the role of trade unions? And if they focus
solely on “bread and butter issues”, are they, as National Union of Mineworkers spokesman Lesiba
Seshoka says, doomed to fail because “broader policies are shaped at a political level”.
Terry Bell
Opinion | 10 October 2012
The mining industry strike wave: what are the causes and what are the solutions?
In this important paper, Gavin Hartford analyses the root causes of the mining industry strikes and proposes solutions.
Gavin Hartford
Opinion | 10 October 2012
Better politics is essential to fix education
The Limpopo textbooks debacle has exposed the staggering incompetence of Angie Motshekga, the Minister of Basic Education, and Bobby Soobrayan, her Director-General. But a recent incident indicates that they or their colleagues in the Department of Basic Education are also very nasty.
Nathan Geffen
Opinion | 3 October 2012
Cold war echoes and trade union reform
Both the Cold War and the bitter battles between communists and social democrats in
Germany of the Thirties found an echo at the 11th Cosatu national congress in
Midrand last week; an echo that is now being assessed by labour organisations and
activists around the world.
Terry Bell
Opinion | 3 October 2012
Zuma, the bible and the COSATU Congress
Cosatu spokesperson Patrick Craven was amazed at the media interest shown in the
eleventh national congress of the federation. Shortly before the congress opened its
doors, 347 media accreditations had been processed, with additional enquiries still
being dealt with.
Terry Bell
Opinion | 26 September 2012
Why the school closures are wrong
This is an edited version of a speech that was delivered on 15 September at a march in Cape Town against the proposed closure of 27 schools.
Ntshadi Mofokeng
Opinion | 19 September 2012