Tag: racism

David Coltart is one of the most prominent political and human rights figures in Zimbabwe. Born and schooled in Zimbabwe, he trained in law at the University of Cape Town, and has served as principal defence counsel for a wide range of Zimbabwean politicians who have fallen afoul of Robert Mugabe’s regime.

South Africans are nervous about the future of our country, largely because of the multiple crises we face and the uncertainty about the outcomes of the 2024 election. We are looking down the barrel of overwhelming challenges in virtually every aspect of government and society and a sense of negativity and hopelessness is gathering momentum.

When André de Ruyter took over as Eskom CEO in January 2020, he quickly realised why it was considered the toughest job in South Africa. Aside from neglected equipment, ageing power stations and an eroded skills base, he discovered that Eskom was crippled by corruption on a staggering scale.

Living in South Africa, racism is at the centre of our history and day to day experiences. We hope that currently, the colour of our skin won’t affect how we are treated but, it’s in all our faces, constantly, even in spaces where your merit should be enough but here, we are again, being white and being wrong is sneezed at but being black and being wrong is punishable by ‘death’.

Do you wake-up with a feeling of dread? Do you find yourself wishing it was home time before you even leave for the office?

Based on exclusive interviews with De Ruyter, Oberholzer and other key figures, Sabotage: Eskom under Siege is a story of conspiracy and subterfuge at South Africa’s ailing power utility, uncovering the power struggles that threaten the country’s very survival.

Virtually every aspect of our lives in South Africa has serious need for change. From politics to education, health care, gender issues, workplace culture and productivity, unemployment, corruption, crime, poverty, race relations and the inequality gap.

The Department of Home Affairs recently issued a directive terminating the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit. The permit was introduced in 2009, allowing holders to apply for an alternative visa or face deportation after a year.

January is always a time of reflection and introspection. We set goals for ourselves, we plan how we will grow our businesses and we focus on making the year at hand our best year yet. Given the past two years, there’s an even greater sense of urgency this year in terms of improving ourselves and our businesses. The question is, where do we begin?

This extraordinary account of imprisonment shows with exacting clarity the awful injustices of the system. Sylvia Neame, activist against apartheid and racism and by profession a historian (see the three-volume, The Congress Movement, HSRC Press, 2015), has not written a classical historical memoir.