Participation in Politics Essay Flashcards
What are the factors for Participating in South African Politics?
- Voting
- Protesting
- Using the Media
- Joining A Political Party
What is your background information for Participating in South African Politics?
- SA has many political opportunities
- Similar to the Uk, the governing party is the election winner
- Leader of the governing party becomes the PM/President so control decisions
What is your knowledge for voting?
- All citizens 18+ can vote every 5 years to elect the NA and 9 Provincial Legislatures
- SA use the Party List system which is a representative electoral system
- There are many parties on the ballots but the ANC continue to dominate
What are examples for voting?
- The ANC have won the most seats in 7 post-Apartheid elections
- Voter turnout has feel from 87% in 1994 to 58% in 2024
What is your analysis for voting?
- The representative voting system encourages people to vote as it is likely that their vote will count
- Many voters do not want to vote due to the country being considered a ‘one-party’ state so many have stopped voting
What is your evaluation for voting?
Many parties do not have enough support to overpower the ANC so votes continue to remain for the ANC.
What is your knowledge for protesting?
- The Constitution protects the right to protest
What are examples for protesting?
- 2 million people protest in SA a year
- Tuition fees were stopped for low income households in 2016 due to student protests after plans to raise university tuition fees
What is your analysis for protesting?
- SA is considered to be the protest capital of the world and protests are very effective in influencing government decisions
- Many people are discouraged from protesting due to increased authoritarianism under the ANC
What is your evaluation for protesting?
South Africans revel in opportunities to protest and influence the government but they are restricted due to attempts to place barriers by the government when protests undermine their work.
What is your knowledge for using the media?
- The Constitution protests the right to freedom of press
What are examples for using the media?
- SA were 38th of 180 countries for freedom of press
- SA has 24million Facebook users, 9million X users who express their opinions online
- Zuma tried to ban journalists from photographing his home after the state funds scandal
What is your analysis for using the media?
- There is increased threats towards freedom of speech which contradicts the protections
- There is contradiction to the protection due to there being attempts of prevention when there is threats of scrutiny of formation of a bad government reputation
What is your evaluation for using the media?
South Africans are not afraid to use their platforms but the government have been seen to try and find work arounds for the bad press they may receive.
What is your knowledge for joining a political party?
- South Africans can join a party to influence politics
- Being part of a political party allows people the opportunity to to vote on the party leader, have a say on policies and volunteer to campaign during elections
- There are far more parties in SA due to the registration process being easy and there being a representative voting system
What are examples for joining a political party?
- In 2018 the ANC voted to elect Ramaphosa as their party leader who them went on to become president
What is your analysis for joining a political party?
- Being part of a political party allows people to choose the ways and extent to which they participate, they can aim to progress in the party if they wish
- The easiness of the system motivates people to participate
What is your evaluation for joining a political party?
Joining a political party opens up opportunities for South Africans and is a very active way to participate even if their party is not the winner.
