“A better life for all”

Ten years ago we celebrated the birth of a new South Africa . The ANC government was elected on the promise of “a better life for all”. In this section, we report and analyse key achievements of the past decade. Read about progress with regard to access to services, land redistribution and restitution. We also reflect on less positive developments – the growing inequality and poverty and the difficulty that this creates in the provision of basic services. While the new Labour Relations Act was lauded as ‘worker-friendly’, we reveal less beneficial aspects of it and disclose how recent interpretations in the courts are further gnawing away at these rights. The ANC government’s plans to privatise have seen heated battles between itself and workers. The current strike at Equity Aviation displays why workers are so mistrustful of the process. An interview with a member of the committee set up last year by government to investigate the soaring prices of basic foodstuffs, gives insight into steps that government has taken to try to protect the rights of consumers against profiteering by producers. Industry policy in the automobile industry has been given top marks by many for increasing exports. We point out areas where it is failing.

DISCUSS:

What progress has been made in the past 10 years?
Where has government failed?
Where must it put more efforts in the future?
What do the different political parties say on how they will right the problems that this country faces?