South Africa under Globalization: Issues in Foreign Policy and Development

Seminar: Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, 11 to 12 November 2009

The transition of South Africa from apartheid to democracy has taken place within the context of a globalization strongly characterized by market oriented economic policies. Against this background, the African National Congress (ANC), with its professed commitment to the values and goals of the Freedom Charter, came to power with just short of a two thirds majority in the first open general election of 1994. It has remained in power, negotiating several changes of leadership and significant internal power and policy struggles, without loosing its initial support base.

The transition to democracy raised many expectations as well as fears, both domestically and internationally. Democratic South Africa geared itself to meet those challenges, seeking to balance the potentially competing claims of the economic and political international arena in the context of globalization, with the more local and regional visions and demands of national and African level economic and political constituencies.

Economically, South Africa has chosen for close cooperation with developed countries, who are the leading players in the world economy, and a number of whom who had been allies of the former apartheid regime. In openly opting for a market led economy, South Africa has pursued a path contrary to the vision enshrined in the Freedom Charter, and which is strongly propagated within the trade unions. The tensions around the path that the South African economy is to take, and whether its explicit market orientation is able to deliver the redistribution that was the basic mandate on which many people see the ANC as having been voted into power in successive elections, is at the heart of the ongoing tensions in the South African polity - and on its streets. While its strong economy and fiscal discipline have enabled South Africa to deliver significant services and grants to those who had not had them under apartheid, the country is still haunted by the worst inequality ratios on the planet, and by serious skills shortages.

The attempt to steer a path and to find an appropriate location between more broadly international and more regional African and southern African concerns, is also at the heart of South African foreign policy. This is perhaps most graphically embodied in the person of former President Mbeki, seemingly almost never in South Africa during his term as President - moving on the world stage, whether at G8 level meetings, or on the African stage, acting as a broker for African conflicts , such as in Cote d’Ivoire, the DRC, Sudan, Zimbabwe. South Africa, as would be/potential international leader, has moved somewhat uneasily between these different levels, as in its controversial term as chair of the security council , and then in its role in AU committees and as ‘broker in chief for Africa’ – which role has had mixed reception in Africa. At a southern African/SADEC level, South African foreign policy has to grapple with the issues of Zimbabwe, and of non-nationals coming to live and work in the country. South Africa has struggled to restrict the movement of non-nationals from the region, and such ‘amakwerekwere’, as they have become known locally, have not always been well received by their, sometimes xenophobic, poverty stricken, South African hosts.

In the African context, with the development imperative driving both domestic as well as foreign policy, new potential foreign investors in Africa, such as China and India, have become a significant focus of foreign policy. This makes for a more diverse and multicentric distribution of power within the global political-ideological economy, leading to possible new alliances, and to the need to scrutinise the changing role in the global (and African) context of groupings that involve such investor countries - such as the G20, the Non-Aligned Movement, IBSA, etc.

The proposed seminar seeks to address the issues related to foreign policy and development in South Africa under globalisation. The seminar will address the following sub-themes, but will allow for papers that do not fall strictly under these topics.

1. South Africa: External Engagement under Globalization
2. Post Apartheid South Africa: Issues of Development and Equity
3. Democratic South Africa: Issues of Governance and Empowerment
4. South Africa: Security Issues under Globalization
5. South Africa: Issues of Identity, Culture and Diaspora

Please submit Abstracts (200 to 300 words) by 5 September and Completed Papers by 11 October 2009, to Professor Ajay Dubey, African Studies Association of India, Centre for West Asian and African Studies, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi, India. Email at [email][email protected]

Accommodation: Delegates will be accommodated at significantly subsidized rates on campus (Rs 1500 per night for the three nights of 9 through 11 November) at visiting faculty accommodation. Please state if you wish to reserve accommodation .

Conference Fee: In accordance with Indian practice, no conference fee will be charged.

Travel Costs: Delegates are requested to find their own airfares to Delhi. The conference organizers are approaching various international funders for travel support, but cannot promise anything at this stage. We would suggest that South African delegates approach their universities, as well as the Knowledge Interchange and Collaboration Programme (KIC) of the National Research Foundation. The conference organizers will be very happy to write supporting letters to those whose abstracts are accepted for the conference to assist them in their search for travel funding. The earlier Abstracts are received, the earlier such approval and supporting letters can be formalized.

The Seminar on South Africa will be preceded by a one day Seminar (10 November) on Asia and Sudan – in which you are very welcome to join us - whether as an interested observer, or as a more active participant!

We look forward to welcoming you to Delhi and to the Seminar/s !

Ajay Dubey, Jawaharlal Nehru University, on behalf of the African Studies Association of India.