Democracy & Social Justice

On 27 April, people across South Africa commemorate Freedom Day – a public holiday marking our country's transition to democracy in 1994. Exactly nineteen years later, 150 people gathered in Khayelitsha to assert their fundamental and hardfought right to hold our leaders accountable in advancing the basic rights of all people, but particularly those in historically disenfranchised communities. The subject of the day: communal toilets servicing thousands of households in informal settlements across the City of Cape Town.

On 27 April, people across South Africa commemorate Freedom Day – a public holiday marking our country's transition to democracy in 1994. Exactly nineteen years later, 150 people gathered in Khayelitsha to assert their fundamental and hardfought right to hold our leaders accountable in advancing the basic rights of all people, but particularly those in historically disenfranchised communities. The subject of the day: communal toilets servicing thousands of households in informal settlements across the City of Cape Town.

A strong parliament requires a civil society that is informed, organised, self critical, responsive and most importantly, tenacious in its efforts to engage with it as an institution. We hope that this small publication contributes to this project.

The conference was jointly hosted by the Black Sash; Community Law Centre, UWC; Corruption Watch; Heinrich Böll Foundation; Ndifiuna Ukwazi; Parliamentary Monitoring Group; Section 27; Social Justice Coalition; South African Council of Churches; Treatment Action Campaign; and the Women's Legal Centre

Inequality remains a lived reality for many women across Africa. The articles brought together in this edition of Perspectives reflect on the strengths and shortcomings of strategies for fostering gender-responsive political governance.

The video profiles comprise the stories of African women politicians who, under different conditions, political systems, and in their own way, have tried to use their political platforms to advance women’s rights.

On March 21 about 15,000 to 20,000 learners, parents, community members and activists marched to Parliament to remind Minister Angie Motshekga about her promise of adopting minimum norms and standards for school infrastructure by 01 April 2011.

In February 2010 Equal Education (EE) made a written submission on the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill in response to a call for public comments on the Bill. EE made eight specific comments and recommendations on the Bill. The amended Bill, now titled "Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill 2010" incorporated seven out of EE's eight recommendations.