History Matters

May 21 2012 at 11:11am By Mary Corrigall Mary Corrigall FOR almost as long as heads of state have been the subject of official commissioned portraits they have been the subject of unsolicited satirical representations. Naturally, the former is designed to portray the leader in the best light as possible. In the case of the [...]

Mandela’s membership of the Communist Party: what needs to be reassessed? by Tom Lodge The evidence that Stephen Ellis refers to about Mandela’s membership of the Communist Party is pretty definitive. It is based upon recollections of party members some of whose testimony is derived from first hand experience. Joe Matthews was a member of [...]

Aspects of some expereinces of women in the struggle for liberation in the MK: 1976 – 1988: A case study of 10 women Download the thesis here: Table of contents and Dedication pages Aspects of some expereinces of women in the struggle for liberation in the MK

Between June 14 and June 23, 2011, a delegation of 11 scholars, activists, and artists visited occupied Palestine. As indigenous and women of color feminists involved in multiple social justice struggles, we sought to affirm our association with the growing international movement for a free Palestine. We wanted to see for ourselves the conditions under [...]

Recent calls for nationalisation of mines and expropriation of land  without compensation have  evoked a sense of anxiety  and discomfort in  sections of  South African society,  the international financial sector and observers of South Africa’s policy processes. These ideas are said to be to be based on the Freedom Charter, adopted by the Congress of the People, on [...]

Côte d’Ivoire: No War, but No Security AfricaFocus Bulletin Jun 10, 2011 (110610) (Reposted from sources cited below) Editor’s Note “Between May 13 and 25, Human Rights Watch interviewed 132 victims and witnesses to violence by both sides during the battle for Abidjan and in the weeks after Gbagbo’s arrest. Killings, torture, and inhumane treatment [...]

By Jane Duncan Christopher McMichael is a PhD candidate in the politics department of Rhodes University. His research investigates the ways in which the international governing body of football, FIFA, used the security arrangements for the 2010 World Cup to cannibalise public funds to the benefit of the Association and its sponsors. South Africa had [...]

by Raymond Suttner With Ma Albertina Sisulu’spassing, many feel they havelost a political figure, but alsosomeone who meant much more thanthat, who sensitively but where necessary firmly, guided others on a path thatwould help them as human beings.Ma Sisulu was warm and generallysmiling while she hugged and kissed allher children. She combined this withstrict ethical norms [...]

KWANELE SOSIBO for the Mail & Guardian  | JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – Apr 21 2011 00:00 Chalk inscriptions still mark Voortrekker Street in Ficksburg’s Market Square where Andries Tatane died after police allegedly beat and shot him during a march to the Setsoto local municipality offices on Wednesday last week. Phillip Selokoe, his former high [...]