Liberal Democracy and Peace in South Africa: The Pursuit of Freedom as Dignity

ISBN-13: 9780230108882 / Angielski / Twarda / 2010 / 247 str.

Pierre Du Toit; Hj Kotze

Opis

South Africa's transition to democracy was met by the global audience at first with disbelief, followed later by applause. This transition is as much a peace process as one of democratization. After fifteen years of democracy big questions remain: has a more democratic regime also led to a more liberal society? And has democracy made for a more peaceful society? We address these questions through survey research of public attitudes and values in South Africa covering the transition from 1981 to 2006, and an elite survey covering the years from 1990 to 2007.

Recenzje

"Liberal Democracy and Peace in South Africa provides an extensive analysis of the evolution of elite and public attitudes toward liberal values of trust, tolerance, and respect for state authority to assess the extent to which leadership and broader social change has accompanied the formal, legal, and institutional transition to a democratic system in South Africa. In richly detailed empirical analysis, carefully set in leading theories of democratization and researched with impressive precision, du Toit and Kotzé reveal that for urban poor South Africans, especially, unless economic and social change can yield more profound dignity, the process of democratization remains very much incomplete. In sum, this book combines a compelling argument with rigorous research to tap into the challenges of democracy s consolidation in post-apartheid South Africa, a county which is a critical test case for theories of democratization overall." - Timothy D. Sisk, Professor and Director of the Center for Sustainable Development and International Peace, Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver

"South Africa s transition to democracy has been one of the most dramatic and has shown many skeptics to be wrong. This book by two of the continent s leading political scientists paints a realistic picture of recent developments based on general population and elite surveys extending over more than two decades. It shows some of the achievements in creating a more democratic, egalitarian, and peaceful political culture, but also some of the remaining tensions and challenges. Required reading for everyone concerned!" - Dirk Berg-Schlosser, Ph.D, Philipps University, Marburg, Germany

"This book asks whether democracy has made South Africa a more liberal and more peaceful society. Du Toit and Kotzé seek answers by analyzing changing attitudes and values of the South African public and South African elites in recent decades. In doing so, they provide unique insights into South African society." - Ronald Inglehart, Professor, Center for Political Studies, University of Michigan

Spis treści

Democratization, Liberalization and Pacification The State as Guardian? Society in Transition: An Overview Interpersonal Relations: Trust, Tolerance and Gender Religion, Evil and Liberalization Outsiders

O autorze

PIERRE DU TOIT Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa.

HENNIE KOTZÉ Dean of the Arts and Social Sciences Faculty at the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa.