Experts express reservations on SA’s democratic progress ahead of elections

As South Africa yesterday marked Human Rights Day – a tribute to fallen heroes of the Sharpeville massacre – society groups said lack of service delivery eroded key milestones reached.

However, during his speech at Sharpeville’s George Thabe Stadium, President Cyril Ramaphosa said South Africans had “much to celebrate”. Sharpeville township near Vanderbijlpark was the scene 64 years ago of the police massacre of 69 people, part of about 7 000 demonstrating against black pass laws.

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“We recall how many generations of black South Africans were denied the right to life, dignity, equal treatment, vote, to be heard, the right to live where they want, work in the trade of their choice, education, health care and the right to the protection of the law,” said Ramaphosa.

Among the milestones Ramaphosa cited were:

• The full realisation of the fundamental freedoms contained in our Bill of Rights;
• SA’s holding of peaceful, free and fair elections every five years since 1994;
• The independence of the judiciary, vibrancy of the civil society, activism of trade unions and media freedom;
• Scrapping of all discriminatory and oppressive laws; and
• Progressive realisation of social and economic rights contained in the constitution.

While conceding democracy has brought tangible changes compared to apartheid, a Catholic nun and an economy expert, expressed reservations about the country’s current state – likely to be a factor in the 29 May polls.

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Sister Zelna Oosthuizen, SA unit leader of the Congregation of Our Lady of Charity of the Good Shepherd, said the country faced a myriad of challenges, which included:

• Lack of open dialogue to create collaboration, networking and support from municipalities, [councillors] with civil society and faith-based organisations to address basic human rights needs: water, electricity, sanitation, housing and safety;
• Upholding climate rights, crucial to enable human rights to flourish; and
• Children’s rights not sufficiently enforced in families, with government having no means to monitor it – especially the child support grant given to one parent of the child in need.

“Human rights mean the restoration of dignity of each person without discrimination of any kind,” Oosthuizen said.

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“It means Ubuntu: loving your neighbour as you love yourself and speaking out when human rights are violated.”

While welcoming government’s introduction of the national minimum wage, Mervyn Abrahams, programme coordinator of the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group, said despite this intervention, consumer price index (CPI) inflation continue to have a major impact on households.

“Our Bill of Rights speaks about the right of every South African to food and nutrition. Food is about dignity.

“The main driver of CPI inflation, which takes away the value of your money, is food and the price of it,” said Abrahams.

“For the first time in a democratic South Africa, we have a floor for wages. However, much more progress needs to be done in that area, because the level of minimum wage is so much part of the colonial-apartheid trajectory of extreme low wages.

“If you are at a level of a minimum wage this month, you will earn something in the region of R4 300. In a household of seven the basket of basic food costs R5 277, and you can already see the discrepancy.”

SA Federation of Trade Unions general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said in a capitalist economy, basic goods and services are sold as commodities.

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“To access these goods and services, people must have money to buy. The enactment of austerity policies has rendered meaningless some of the rights won during apartheid,” he said.

– brians@citizen.co.za