THOUGHT LEADERSHIP - The African Mirror

Nov

11

2024

Being black in the world: a tribute to pioneering South African psychologist Chabani Manganyi

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

PROFESSOR Noel Chabani Manganyi, who has died at the age of 84, was a torchbearer in psychology, literature and African intellectual thought. He was the first registered black clinical psychologist trained in apartheid South Africa, and among the first black South Africans to achieve this level of academic qualification in psychology. At the time, access to higher education for black South Africans was severely limited. Manganyi was known for his commitment to the advancement of psychological sciences and fight for justice during apartheid. Apartheid was the South African government’s policy of racial oppression, enforced from 1948 to 1994. It entrenched…

Nov

08

2024

By RANGWEZI NENGWEKHULU

Farewell to Professor Chabani Manganyi: Literary giant, guardian of national memory

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

PROFESSOR Chabani Manganyi’s last days were filled with virtual silence. Silence because he suffered from a form of dementia and had lost the ability to both recognise a lot of people and things, and also, at times, the ability to speak. Visiting him, which I did religiously every two months or so, took an effort. The recognition that I had to make, that the brain that gave South Africa such a rich heritage in terms of writings, academic work and leadership, was withering infront of our eyes, was hard to accept. Many of his colleagues simply stopped going to see…

Nov

08

2024

By The African Mirror

Botswana’s new president: who is Duma Boko and what does he stand for?

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THE electoral defeat delivered to the Botswana Democratic Party led by Mokgweetsi Masisi was met with incredulity in neighbouring states. Not many expected the party that had run the country comfortably since independence in 1966 to be so roundly defeated in national elections on 30 October 2024. Of the 61 seats in the national assembly, the Umbrella for Democratic Change coalition won 36 seats, the Botswana Congress Party 15. The Botswana Patriotic Front won five seats, the Botswana Democratic Party four, and an independent candidate won one seat. Batswana cast their ballots for opposition leader Duma Boko, who is largely…

Nov

07

2024

By GIBSON NCUBE

Zimbabwe’s public historian Pathisa Nyathi has died – he restored the erased history of the Ndebele people

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP, EDITORS CHOICE

WHEN an elderly person dies, a library has burned down – the saying is a cliché but has never been truer than in the case of Pathisa Nyathi, who passed away at the age of 73 on 2 November. Nyathi was a living library and archive of Zimbabwean history, cultural practices and African philosophy. Through his work, he documented and preserved the customs and traditions of Zimbabwean people, especially the Ndebele. As a scholar of African literature and cultural production, I had the opportunity to interact with him. We were preparing a co-edited book called Power, Politics & Production: Essays…

Nov

01

2024

By CHRISTOPHER ISIKE and SAMUEL OYEWOLE

US-Africa relations under Biden: a mismatch between talk and action

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

IN his first year in office, US President Joe Biden committed to resetting US-Africa relations based on a doctrine of equal partnership. He sent his secretary of state, Antony Blinken, to Kenya, Côte d'Ivoire and Nigeria. The visit was used to outline the administration’s policy outlook towards Africa. It laid the ground for the official US-Africa policy commitment that Blinken launched the following year in South Africa. Since then, there have been high-level engagements between the US and African countries to deepen ties. They included visits by top cabinet members of the administration: vice-president Kamala Harris, secretary of Defence Lloyd…

Oct

31

2024

By ANTHONI VAN NIEUWKERK

BRICS+ could shape a new world order, but it lacks shared values and a unified identity

BRICS NEWS, THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

THE last two summits of Brics countries have raised questions about the coalition’s identity and purpose. This began to come into focus at the summit hosted by South Africa in 2023, and more acutely at the recent 2024 summit in Kazan, Russia. At both events, the alliance undertook to expand its membership. In 2023, the first five Brics members – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – invited Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to join. All bar Saudi Arabia have now done so. The 2024 summit pledged to admit 13 more, perhaps as associates…

Oct

29

2024

By MATHATHA TSEDU

Tribute to Vho Makhadzi Phophi Mphephu Ramabulana

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

IT was between 2 and 3 am on October 1, 1969, when that lightning struck. In its wake, a shrill scream shattered the pre-dawn. It was Mulati, the daughter of Vho Makhadzi Muofhe Mphephu, calling for Vhavenda Raedani Ramabulana, brother to Muofhe and her chief counsellor. It turned out the lightning had struck the hut in which both Mulati, her mother, and a daughter of her elder sister, were sleeping. And the force of that lightning strike had carried Muofhe through the roof of their hut, and her body deposited outside the hut, dead. The gaping hole in the thatch…

Oct

29

2024

By BRENDON J. CANNON

Somaliland elections: what’s at stake for independence, stability and shifting power dynamics in the Horn of Africa

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

SOMALILAND is due to hold a presidential election on 13 November 2024. The results of the election will be important for two main reasons. First, what the leadership outcome will mean for Somaliland’s democratic credentials. Second, it will have implications for Somaliland’s push for recognition as an independent state. Thirty-three years ago, Somaliland declared its unilateral withdrawal from the Somali Union. It is an independent state in reality but unrecognised in law. Like other unrecognised states such as Taiwan, it doesn’t fly a flag at the United Nations in New York. It also suffers from a lack of access to…

Oct

26

2024

By MPHO MATHEBULA

Naked protests in South Africa: a psychologist explores the emotional power of this form of activism

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

NAKED protests are a form of public demonstration where individuals, often women, use the symbolic power of their naked bodies to challenge injustices. These protests have become an increasingly visible form of resistance, particularly in response to state violence, economic exploitation, and the oppression of women by men. While naked protests might seem provocative or shocking, they have a long and storied history in Africa. They are not only a powerful statement but also a direct challenge to norms in society around decency, control and vulnerability. As a research psychologist, I was drawn to the study of naked body protests…

Oct

24

2024

By CYRIL RAMAPHOSA

BRICS countries must undertake bold steps towards a mutual, shared and equitable prosperity

BRICS NEWS, THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

OUR story is a story of solidarity, mutual respect and mutual benefit. BRICS is an inclusive formation that has the ability to change the trajectory of the Global South. To do this, we must realise the full potential of our economic partnership to ensure sustainable development for all. We must undertake bold steps towards a mutual, shared and equitable prosperity. Like most of the world, South Africa desires the smooth operation of supply chains, trade, tourism, and financial flows free from external influence in a multipolar world. Working together, BRICS has an important role in addressing the key challenges of…