Vol 4 Issue 5
Labour
Student Employment at University: Skills development or Labour Exploitation?
by Brian Zondo
The tutorship institution in the School of Sociology
and Social Studies at UKZN is a case study herein and example of this
super-exploitation claim, mentioned above. Undoubtedly the School has
one of the largest student in-take per faculty at UKZN, translating to
a theoretically bigger operational budget. Furthermore tuition fees are
religiously increasing at a rate of 5 to 10% annually, (see 2007 UKZN
Fees schedules) yet incredible to note, is that hourly rates for tutors
and graduate assistants have been cut by almost 50%. This equation is
devoid of economic logic and rather represents a managerial regime that
has total disregard for tutors and the dignity of their work. <read more>
Society
The Basic Income Grant: An extensive engagement with poverty alleviation tactics and challenges
by Siyanda Nombika
While
the Basic Income Grant has not been implemented, because it has not yet
been granted approval by government, the civil society organizations
view the B.I.G. as a potential future positive contributor towards
poverty alleviation and they are calling for its introduction. However,
even though contribution towards poverty alleviation is anticipated,
some of the features and potential impact of the B.I.G. remains
unchallenged, thus leaving unpacked realities which make it unclear as
to whether the B.I.G. will lessen poverty or create undesirable
consequences <read more>
Labour
Italian Social Cooperatives
by Sabeeha Maithir
The mammoth task of
poverty alleviation places much strain on governments around the world.
In Italy, it has been found that cooperatives brought relief to the
financial strain on the national system of social welfare. Like South
Africa, Italy had rather high unemployment rates. Cooperatives were
developed to supply welfare services to the economically weaker layers
of society. The primary objective of the Italian Social Cooperative is
to facilitate integration of the disadvantaged back into society,
through job creation <read more>
Editorial
The end of a credible South Africa
by Azad Essa
Indeed, the imagery of a
nation that narrowly avoided bloodshed through tactical Gandhiism by all sides
are what make up bedtime stories in troubled places as far afield as Kashmir
and Armenia. In fact, no matter how
hard Manto tried to match perceptions of South Africa's intellectual capacity
with those preconceived, dangerous, and racist stereotypes of Africans with the
help of her beetroot fantasies, and no matter how many times the media has
showcased Zuma publicly exposing his medialized macho Zulu ego, and belief in
shower cure-alls across the globe, South Africa's hold on the moral high ground
was secure.
Until
last week, that is. <read more>
Book Review
Hats off to Reflexive Sociological Texts: Undressing Durban (2007)
by Shafinaaz Hassim
Edited by Rob Pattman
and Sultan Khan, both lecturers in Sociology at UKZN, the collection of
essays allows the reader a guided tour behind the scenes of Durban's
tourist façade in order to reach beyond the one-dimensional lure of
tourist-getaway brochures.'Undressing Durban' effectively undresses
Durban as a metaphor of SA-tourism in order to uncover the theatres of
challenge within the city <read more>
Vol 4 Issue 4
Interview
'Thabo Mbeki must reconsider his position'
Azad Essa speaks to Grace Kwinjeh, Chairperson of the Zimbabwe Diaspora Forum
The Zimbabwe Diaspora Forum (ZDF) was launched in 2005 to bring together a plethora of Zimbabweans civil society organizations and individuals. It is platform to initiate dialogue, network and build a community of Zimbabweans abroad committed to lobbying for a new democratic Zimbabwe. While the world waits with bated breath too witness how Robert Mugabe deals with a new expected MDC victory, Zimbabweans in exile just cannot wait to get back home <read more>
Local
Thoughts on the electricity crisis
by Patrick Craven
The electricity crisis raises some very fundamental issues. It is not just a matter of the extreme inconvenience of power cuts but the future of our economy, jobs and people's living standards.
That is why the idea of an Energy Summit should be supported; it could be a way to grapple with the real long-term issues, as opposed to much of the current 'debate', which is too much concerned with who is to blame for the mess we are in and short-term, 'panic' measures to keep our heads above water meantime <read more>
Africa
The Power of Food and Fuel
by Shafinaaz Hassim
On a recent trip to Malawi the social scientist in me could not help but notice how far advanced the country was in relation to South Africa in terms of power failures, regal fuel prices and ludicrous inflation rates. And, with wry abandonment, I quickly realised the folly of not taking into consideration that we might be following in hot pursuit of such trends. <read more>
Culture
Writers imagining another world at the Time of the Writer Festival
by Ashshema Hosany
Serving as a cultural marker of our times, the now well-acclaimed Time of the Writer 2008 Festival was hosted by the city of Durban on the 25th to the 30th March.
This 11th session brought together an eclectic group of eighteen writers, poets, investigative journalists, publishers and political thinkers from ten different African countries. Hosted by the Centre for Creative Arts at the University of KwaZulu Natal, the festival has earned its reputation as a hot seat of critical thinking, provocative words and political beliefs from some of Africa's most celebrated writing personalities. A wide-ranging line-up of workshops, publishing forum, prison writing programmes, youth interactions, discussions, book launches and readings, were major draw cards for various segments of the general public, as well as an ideal literary platform for exchange of ideas and opinions <read more>
Editorial
South Africa is not immune to food riots
by Azad Essa
The latest fad doing the rounds these days: hints on how cash strapped South Africans ought to save, well, cash. In these particularly harsh economic times where $1 will buy you up to three loafs of bread in Harare, but just one loaf and perhaps a couple of chappie bubble gum in Durban - even Black Economic Empowerment candidates have asked their rock star wives to take it easy on the SUV pedals.
So has the meltdown finally begun? <read more>