Defining a relevant architecture in South Africa

Architecture in South Africa is at a crossroads. Afteryears of repression and isolation during which contemporary architecture lost its way, there is now a desperate need for architects to respond to the social a nd cultural challenges of a society riven by massive material contrasts. Within architecture schools, a student body more representative of society than hitherto is engaged in projects which reflect the very diverse needs of the community. Central to the effectiveness of such teaching programmes is the presence of teachers fully engaged in practice, creating a responsible architecture fora renewed nation

The dark side of democracy popular sovereignty, decolonisation and dictatorship

This paper argues that we must look to the politics of popular sovereignty,‎ and in particular its unfolding in the period after the Second World War, for ‎the origin of the postcolonial condition, its specific vulgarity and temporality.‎ Following Arendt, the paper proposes that as a democratic practice popular‎ sovereignty transforms the ’people’ into absolutist subject, one that is necessarily ‎simple, at one with itself and exercising supreme authority over its territory.‎ Where such a people cannot be convened or institutionalised, democracy‎ tends either towards dictatorship or oligarchy or society itself fragments and ‎is at risk of dissolution. This has especially been the case on the African continent‎ where the new states that emerged after independence from European ‎Empires (and from settler-colonialism) were home to multitudes of great and ‎wide heterogeneity, without long histories of living together in common and‎ without, therefore, traditions and institutions of collective decision-making.

Democracy, cities and space: South African conceptions of local government

A dissertation submitted in the Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, in the fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Master of Arts in Political Studies. Johannesburg 1997.In 1988 the Soweto People's Delegation and the councils of Soweto, Diepmeadow and Dobsonville began to negotiate an end to the rent boycott and the crisis in the provision of services. Discussions between civic bodies and local government officials - which eventually resulted in the Soweto accord - were increasingly infonned by the slogan 'one city, one tax base'. In the wake of the accord, other parties to similarly established negotiations commonly based their approach on the 'one city' slogan. As a result, local government negotiations and the institutional arrangements that followed were increasingly infonned by this notion. [Abbreviated Abstract. Open document to view full version]AC201

The Sublime Object of Blackness

Le sublime objet de la « négritude ». – Cet article traite d’une publicité parue dans l’un des plus importants journaux sud-africains. Cette publicité suggère qu’il existe une conspiration d’extrême droite blanche contre le Président Thabo Mbeki, conspiration destinée à discréditer son leadership et le leadership des Noirs en général. On défend ici l’idée que cette publicité est à la fois le reflet et le signe avant-coureur d’une forme radicalement nouvelle de nationalisme. À travers l’usage qui est fait du terme « Noir », le Président et le gouvernement deviennent des objets quasi religieux et infaillibles.This paper considers an advert placed in one of the major South African Sunday newspapers. The advert in question proposes that there is a white, right-wing conspiracy against President Thabo Mbeki, to discredit his leadership and the leadership of Blacks tout court. We will suggest here that the advert both reflects and is a harbinger of a radically new form of nationalist politics in South Africa. In the way that the term Black is invoked, the Presidency and the government are transformed into quasi-religious objects that are immune to proof and to criticism

Mining for Voices: Reframing Hydraulic Fracturing as a Public Health Issue

Introduction: Hydraulic fracturing extracts fossil fuels from rock formations by injecting chemicals underground. While 80% of studies demonstrate risks or actual harms to health from fracking, Pennsylvania does not require chemical disclosures. Fracking accelerates climate change, a phenomenon linked to increases in health emergencies. With 1.6 million Pennsylvanians living within 1 mile of active oil or gas development sites, there is considerable risk. In 2012, Pennsylvania banned physicians from discussing health impacts of fracking, an order struck down in 2016. Following the gag order, deficits in physician knowledge and urgency may remain around fracking. Outlining a precautionary approach to fracking policy might alleviate these gaps. Objective: We aim to develop new approaches to fracking as a public health issue, to increase understanding and engagement and drive policy changes. Methods: Through a policy paper, a precautionary approach to fracking will be contextualized with another public health issue, marijuana-intoxicated driving. A qualitative review of 12 studies on marijuana and driving was conducted to provide a framework for precautionary fracking policies. This work is a partnership with Physicians for Social Responsibility. Results: Examination of literature revealed inconclusive evidence for links between marijuana intoxication and impairment of driving-related function and for links between marijuana intoxication and motor vehicle crashes. Despite that, national policy cautions against marijuana-intoxicated driving. This will be applied to a policy paper outlining a precautionary approach to fracking. Discussion: Our future paper will educate and engage physicians in public health concerns around fracking and drive the implementation of precautionary policy measures

Overcoming the crisis of government

This article describes five weaknesses in the organisation of government that taken together are responsible for what it calls the crisis of government. It then discusses a package of legislative and policy reforms that are underway, including the Public Service Amendment Bill (Republic of South Africa, 2023), the Public Administration Management Amendment Bill (Republic of South Africa, 2023), the Public Service Commission Amendment Act 10 (Republic of South Africa, 2019) and the Public Administration Laws General Amendment Bill (Republic of South Africa, 2021). Do they go some way to resolve the fundamental problems of public administration in South Africa? We argue that these problems also need to be considered through institutionalising public administrations by dealing with contradiction, confusion, capability, centralisation and corruption – the five Cs of the crisis in government.http://www.saapam.co.za/joba.htmlam2024School of Public Management and Administration (SPMA)SDG-16:Peace,justice and strong institution

The Sublime Object of Blackness

Le sublime objet de la « négritude ». – Cet article traite d’une publicité parue dans l’un des plus importants journaux sud-africains. Cette publicité suggère qu’il existe une conspiration d’extrême droite blanche contre le Président Thabo Mbeki, conspiration destinée à discréditer son leadership et le leadership des Noirs en général. On défend ici l’idée que cette publicité est à la fois le reflet et le signe avant-coureur d’une forme radicalement nouvelle de nationalisme. À travers l’usage qui est fait du terme « Noir », le Président et le gouvernement deviennent des objets quasi religieux et infaillibles.This paper considers an advert placed in one of the major South African Sunday newspapers. The advert in question proposes that there is a white, right-wing conspiracy against President Thabo Mbeki, to discredit his leadership and the leadership of Blacks tout court. We will suggest here that the advert both reflects and is a harbinger of a radically new form of nationalist politics in South Africa. In the way that the term Black is invoked, the Presidency and the government are transformed into quasi-religious objects that are immune to proof and to criticism

La cesárea y el parto natural: las opiniones de los profesionales de la salud en la provincia de Buenos Aires

La salud de las madres, los recién nacidos y los niños representan el bienestar de una sociedad y su potencial para el futuro. Las necesidades médicas de estas poblaciones no pueden ser ignoradas sin afectar a toda la sociedad. En el nivel de cuidados básicos, según el Ministerio de Salud de la Nación Argentina (MSAL), el parto no debe ser considerado como un acto médico-quirúrgico sino como un acontecimiento normal de la especie, que admite la presencia de la familia, sin traer riesgos de contaminación, permitiendo el fácil acceso a la tecnología de apoyo en el momento requerido (Uranga et al., 2010). La manera en que una madre da a luz influye en la salud materna-infantil (OMS, 1985). Hoy en día, las tasas de cesárea continúan aumentando en todo el mundo (Villar et al., 2005). Más de 35% en promedio de las mujeres embarazadas en Argentina recibieron cesáreas en 2008, con amplias diferencias entre el sector público y el privado (Gibbons et al., 2010). Aunque el porcentaje ideal no es definitivamente conocido..

On contradiction et al. : overcoming the crisis of government in South Africa

This article describes five weaknesses in the organisation of government that taken together are responsible for what it calls the crisis of government. It then discusses a package of legislative and policy reforms that are underway, including the Public Service Amendment Bill (Republic of South Africa, 2023), the Public Administration Management Amendment Bill (Republic of South Africa, 2023), the Public Service Commission Amendment Act 10 (Republic of South Africa, 2019) and the Public Administration Laws General Amendment Bill (Republic of South Africa, 2021). Do they go some way to resolve the fundamental problems of public administration in South Africa? We argue that these problems also need to be considered through institutionalising public administrations by dealing with contradiction, confusion, capability, centralisation and corruption – the five Cs of the crisis in government.https://journals.co.za/journal/jpadhj2024School of Public Management and Administration (SPMA)SDG-16:Peace,justice and strong institution