New energy regime will deepen inequality
If the state and workers collaborate, however, new rules for electricity generation could benefit all as small-scale renewable energy plants add power to the grid – and to the people.
Analysis
Modi regime moves to dispossess Kashmiris of land
The Indian government has enacted new laws that allow non-residents to buy land in Kashmir. It’s a move seen as a blatant attempt to push settler colonialism in the region.
US elections expose flaws in Western democracy
Americans love to promote the myth that they have the corner on government by and for the people, but the latest brouhaha at the polls suggests otherwise.
Impoverished people to reap putrid economic crop
Years of poor management and administration coupled with a devastating Covid-19 lockdown mean that the coming economic storm will hit South Africa’s most vulnerable hardest.
Puffery and confusion mark SA’s recovery plan
A closer look at the numbers in the medium-term budget reveals recycled projects, a U-turn on previous commitments – and shattered hopes for mass economic upliftment.
New agri laws spell catastrophe for Indian farmers
There seems to be no end to the woes of crisis-ridden farmers as the Modi regime introduces agriculture laws that jeopardise their future and could even lead to food shortages.
US election pits democracy against minority rule
As a win at the polls seems to move increasingly out of the grasp of white conservatives, Republicans appear bent on rigging the popular vote and institutionalising white minority rule.
Ballots defeated bullets, what’s next in Bolivia?
The MAS has overcome incredible challenges this year. Now it will have to navigate the disastrous Covid-19 pandemic, rising fascism and an economic downturn.
Bolivia’s socialist win is a triumph for democracy
South Africa can learn much about progressive governance from the South American nation, where the Movement Towards Socialism won back power in a landslide after last year’s coup.
Protected areas need not pit humans against nature
The ever-increasing capitalist onslaught on protected environments will be stopped only if we fundamentally change the way we conceptualise their value and purpose.
Wheeling and dealing for a Covid-19 vaccine
A Covid-19 jab could cost hundreds of rands. Or not. It’s anyone’s guess. Could another pandemic almost a century ago hold clues for handling the coronavirus today?
Fake trafficking news targets migrants
Exaggerated reports on social media of human trafficking syndicates snatching people in broad daylight legitimate xenophobia while deflecting from the real problems in society.
White, liberal and ‘civilised’? The DA wants you
Recent developments in the party show that politically active black people are welcome only if they don’t dare to think for themselves and are prepared to follow, not lead.
Challenging SA media’s use of right-wing populism
Right-wing populism has a seductive appeal to some. But its solutions to social ills are dangerous and paranoid and must be rejected.
Israel’s apartheid perfected and enduring
Israel’s decades-long occupation of Palestinian territories is nothing but a textbook example of apartheid – an offshoot of the South African version, and has taken root.
Italian black lives should matter in Italy but don’t
Being of African descent in Italy means facing systemic racism, irrespective of whether one is a recently arrived refugee or migrant, or was born and raised in the country.
Raising the spectre of pangas and shotguns
White people’s reaction to the killing of a horse at a racecourse in Port Elizabeth is a reflection of their inability to deal with their racist colonial past and with black people as equals.
Hunger, or the social logic of climate breakdown
India’s eastern province of West Bengal is facing food insecurity in the aftermath of a devastating cyclone and Covid-19. Sadly, the state’s inhabitants have been here before.
Why consumer boycotts trump social media outrage
Boycotting a company or brand is far more likely to effect meaningful change. But it requires an ability to mobilise people that is now beyond political parties and many activists.
Xenophobia turns migrants into scapegoats
A report by Human Rights Watch found that South Africans turn against migrants when they are looking to blame somebody for the government’s failure to provide essential services.
Modi widens the assault on India’s democratic forces
The Indian police are increasingly invoking stringent anti-terror laws against Muslims and Left activists who oppose the government’s contentious and religion-based citizenship legislation.