A comparison of representations of the imperative of higher education change as „transformation‟ versus „decolonisation‟ in South African public discourse
- Authors: Makgakge, Rebecca Dineo
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Education in mass media -- South Africa , Higher education and state -- South Africa , Education, Higher -- Curricula -- South Africa , Discrimination in education -- South Africa , South Africa -- Colonial influence , Educational change -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142498 , vital:38085
- Description: The context of higher education in South Africa which has been shaped by the legacies of the old apartheid system is faced with a paramount task of the continuous process of restructuring and change. In shaping the restructuring and change of the higher education system the concept of transformation has been a constant theme for the post-apartheid government policies. However more recently we have seen the heightened prominence of the concept of change understood as decolonisation of South African higher education – as opposed to “transformation‘. This thesis was concerned with how these concepts of change, “transformation‘ and “decolonisation‘ have been used in debates surrounding higher education in South Africa. The thesis compares and contrasts the ways and context in which they are used. This study of 177 South African newspaper articles taken form independent media stables from the time 2008 to the present provides an analysis of representations of higher education change as “transformation‘ and as “decolonisation‘ evinced in the corpus. This required using both content and framing analysis as a method to analyse the corpus. Three themes emerged from the analysis that are relevant to the comparison between South African higher education institutional change represented as “transformation‘ and South African higher education institutional change represented at “decolonisation‘: the first theme concerns the differences and similarities in how the two terms are defined; the second theme concerns how the two ideas play themselves out when it comes to curriculum change and the final theme concerns the implications of seeing change as “transformation‘ and seeing change as “decolonisation‘ for changing institutional cultures.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Makgakge, Rebecca Dineo
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: Education in mass media -- South Africa , Higher education and state -- South Africa , Education, Higher -- Curricula -- South Africa , Discrimination in education -- South Africa , South Africa -- Colonial influence , Educational change -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/142498 , vital:38085
- Description: The context of higher education in South Africa which has been shaped by the legacies of the old apartheid system is faced with a paramount task of the continuous process of restructuring and change. In shaping the restructuring and change of the higher education system the concept of transformation has been a constant theme for the post-apartheid government policies. However more recently we have seen the heightened prominence of the concept of change understood as decolonisation of South African higher education – as opposed to “transformation‘. This thesis was concerned with how these concepts of change, “transformation‘ and “decolonisation‘ have been used in debates surrounding higher education in South Africa. The thesis compares and contrasts the ways and context in which they are used. This study of 177 South African newspaper articles taken form independent media stables from the time 2008 to the present provides an analysis of representations of higher education change as “transformation‘ and as “decolonisation‘ evinced in the corpus. This required using both content and framing analysis as a method to analyse the corpus. Three themes emerged from the analysis that are relevant to the comparison between South African higher education institutional change represented as “transformation‘ and South African higher education institutional change represented at “decolonisation‘: the first theme concerns the differences and similarities in how the two terms are defined; the second theme concerns how the two ideas play themselves out when it comes to curriculum change and the final theme concerns the implications of seeing change as “transformation‘ and seeing change as “decolonisation‘ for changing institutional cultures.
- Full Text:
Choreographies of protest performance as recruitment to activism and the movement of perception during the 2015 re-emergence of student activism at Rhodes University
- Authors: Qoza, Phiwokazi
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: College students -- Political activity -- South Africa , Student protesters -- South Africa , Student movements -- South Africa , Higher education and state -- South Africa , Performance art -- Political aspects -- South Africa , Protest songs -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141692 , vital:37997
- Description: It has been argued that individuals participate in activism due to an identification with the preferences and interests of an emerging group of actors or in solidarity with a pre-existing network that has resorted to a number of protest repertoires in order to make claims or demands. Additionally, an emerging instance of protest is often linked to an image of previous protest events through the employment of a combination of master frames which function as discursive articulation of the encounter in familiar terms, creating a frame resonance which recruits adherents and constituents. To understand why some bystanders to protest transcended to actors in protest and the development of frames within a protest cycle, a performance ethnography is employed to observe and analyse choreographies of protest which took place at an institution of higher education in South Africa during the 2015 re-emergence of wide-spread student activism. It is found that in encountering an atmosphere of protest there emerged a relation of feeling, referred to as “feeling the vibe or atmosphere”, which those who became protest performers resolved in ways which increased their capacity to act in favour of co-constituting that atmosphere. During the encounter between the bystander body and the atmosphere of protest, non-linear somatic communication, characterised by active and passive gestures and postures, occurred through which protest performers developed contact and connection with other bodies as a result of the displacement of space. This thesis suggests that participation in activism can be about going with the flow of movement in an uncertain and ambiguous moment and is not limited to an identification with the pre-existing organization of preferences and interests as a frame of resonance emerges to signify somatic communication which differentiated bodies in the duration of protest performance. Therefore, this thesis uses the theory of affect to situate student activism in-between the politics of performance and the performance of politics whereupon the rhythm of song creates an opening for the kinaesthetic to create form from spontaneous movement of the body as an event of the movement of perception and the perception of movement.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Qoza, Phiwokazi
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: College students -- Political activity -- South Africa , Student protesters -- South Africa , Student movements -- South Africa , Higher education and state -- South Africa , Performance art -- Political aspects -- South Africa , Protest songs -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: text , Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/141692 , vital:37997
- Description: It has been argued that individuals participate in activism due to an identification with the preferences and interests of an emerging group of actors or in solidarity with a pre-existing network that has resorted to a number of protest repertoires in order to make claims or demands. Additionally, an emerging instance of protest is often linked to an image of previous protest events through the employment of a combination of master frames which function as discursive articulation of the encounter in familiar terms, creating a frame resonance which recruits adherents and constituents. To understand why some bystanders to protest transcended to actors in protest and the development of frames within a protest cycle, a performance ethnography is employed to observe and analyse choreographies of protest which took place at an institution of higher education in South Africa during the 2015 re-emergence of wide-spread student activism. It is found that in encountering an atmosphere of protest there emerged a relation of feeling, referred to as “feeling the vibe or atmosphere”, which those who became protest performers resolved in ways which increased their capacity to act in favour of co-constituting that atmosphere. During the encounter between the bystander body and the atmosphere of protest, non-linear somatic communication, characterised by active and passive gestures and postures, occurred through which protest performers developed contact and connection with other bodies as a result of the displacement of space. This thesis suggests that participation in activism can be about going with the flow of movement in an uncertain and ambiguous moment and is not limited to an identification with the pre-existing organization of preferences and interests as a frame of resonance emerges to signify somatic communication which differentiated bodies in the duration of protest performance. Therefore, this thesis uses the theory of affect to situate student activism in-between the politics of performance and the performance of politics whereupon the rhythm of song creates an opening for the kinaesthetic to create form from spontaneous movement of the body as an event of the movement of perception and the perception of movement.
- Full Text:
Walking the Spatial Triad: how do Rhodians experience Rhodes University as a place?
- Authors: Mtolo, Siyathokoza
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/36082 , vital:24476
- Description: Globally and locally the documentation of the experience of the tertiary education institution as a place in the human or cultural geography sense of the word is an under-utilised academic exercise. Locally, however, with the 2015 #RhodesMustFall moment which highlighted South Africa's tertiary education institutions as places of meaning and accompanying experience, the documentation of such overlooked place experience became ever more pressing. The purpose of this thesis is to document how some members of the population of one South African tertiary education, the Rhodians of Rhodes University, experience that university as the place that it is to them. This is a phenomenological documentation of experience as the thesis makes it a point to look at a selection of Rhodians and their experience of emplacement in the place that is Rhodes University. In-depth mobile interviews, closely related to transect walks, were conducted with 12 Rhodians randomly selected in the hope for maximum sample variation. The interviews were conducted with the aid of a camera recording each participant’s daily transit route through campus as they reflected on their experience of Rhodes University as the place it is for them. The thesis finds that the experience of Rhodes University as a place is highly informed by the university's built and decorated environment being a visual experience that is both walked through as part of living in the place, and wherein people find themselves engaging in social relations with other Rhodians. The thesis also finds that the experience of Rhodes University as a place is also highly informed by previous experiences of places as visual and social activity entities - that the participants bring other places with them into this place. The Rhodians who participated in this research experience the placeness of Rhodes University as an emplacement that is part old, part modern, part intrigue, and part contest. Socially the university is found to be both challenging and negotiable in line with what the individual Rhodian is and is not willing to do in accordance with their emplacement and its social demands. Ultimately, the experience of Rhodes University as a place is highly determined by the individual Rhodian's past experiences of emplacement and the expectations that they bring with them which shape what their present place is to them.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Mtolo, Siyathokoza
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/36082 , vital:24476
- Description: Globally and locally the documentation of the experience of the tertiary education institution as a place in the human or cultural geography sense of the word is an under-utilised academic exercise. Locally, however, with the 2015 #RhodesMustFall moment which highlighted South Africa's tertiary education institutions as places of meaning and accompanying experience, the documentation of such overlooked place experience became ever more pressing. The purpose of this thesis is to document how some members of the population of one South African tertiary education, the Rhodians of Rhodes University, experience that university as the place that it is to them. This is a phenomenological documentation of experience as the thesis makes it a point to look at a selection of Rhodians and their experience of emplacement in the place that is Rhodes University. In-depth mobile interviews, closely related to transect walks, were conducted with 12 Rhodians randomly selected in the hope for maximum sample variation. The interviews were conducted with the aid of a camera recording each participant’s daily transit route through campus as they reflected on their experience of Rhodes University as the place it is for them. The thesis finds that the experience of Rhodes University as a place is highly informed by the university's built and decorated environment being a visual experience that is both walked through as part of living in the place, and wherein people find themselves engaging in social relations with other Rhodians. The thesis also finds that the experience of Rhodes University as a place is also highly informed by previous experiences of places as visual and social activity entities - that the participants bring other places with them into this place. The Rhodians who participated in this research experience the placeness of Rhodes University as an emplacement that is part old, part modern, part intrigue, and part contest. Socially the university is found to be both challenging and negotiable in line with what the individual Rhodian is and is not willing to do in accordance with their emplacement and its social demands. Ultimately, the experience of Rhodes University as a place is highly determined by the individual Rhodian's past experiences of emplacement and the expectations that they bring with them which shape what their present place is to them.
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Accelerated development programmes for Black academics: Interrupting or reproducing social and cultural dominance?
- Authors: Booi, Masixole
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3338 , vital:20483
- Description: A wide body of research literature on transformation of higher education institutions in South Africa has focused on institutional reform and restructuring, change in employment legislation and policies, transforming institutional culture(s) and student and staff demographics (Portnoi, 2009:373; Viljoen and Rothmann, 2002:3; Badat, 2007; 2010; Cloete, Muller, Makgoba and Ekong, 1997; Nieman, 2010). The literature on transformation of higher education institutions shows that the underrepresentation, recruiting and retaining of blacks and women in senior posts is still the major challenge faced by the project of transforming higher education, particularly in Historically White Institutions (HWIs). Universities have introduced a variety of ‘accelerated development’ programmes to meet this challenge and accelerate the entry into academia of black academics. The present study draws on Pierre Bourdieu’s notions of cultural capital, field and social capital to interpret the lived experiences of participants in the Accelerated Development Programme (ADP) of one HWI. In particular the study is interested in how, in the participants’ experience, they, as members of the programme, have or have not been able to contribute to the transformation of the culture(s) of the institution. The study critically examines the assumption that the institutional practices, values and norms can be changed only by socialising ‘new’ lecturers into an already existing dominant culture rather than seeing the need to socialise existing lecturers into a new culture informed by a democratic ethos.
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- Authors: Booi, Masixole
- Date: 2016
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/3338 , vital:20483
- Description: A wide body of research literature on transformation of higher education institutions in South Africa has focused on institutional reform and restructuring, change in employment legislation and policies, transforming institutional culture(s) and student and staff demographics (Portnoi, 2009:373; Viljoen and Rothmann, 2002:3; Badat, 2007; 2010; Cloete, Muller, Makgoba and Ekong, 1997; Nieman, 2010). The literature on transformation of higher education institutions shows that the underrepresentation, recruiting and retaining of blacks and women in senior posts is still the major challenge faced by the project of transforming higher education, particularly in Historically White Institutions (HWIs). Universities have introduced a variety of ‘accelerated development’ programmes to meet this challenge and accelerate the entry into academia of black academics. The present study draws on Pierre Bourdieu’s notions of cultural capital, field and social capital to interpret the lived experiences of participants in the Accelerated Development Programme (ADP) of one HWI. In particular the study is interested in how, in the participants’ experience, they, as members of the programme, have or have not been able to contribute to the transformation of the culture(s) of the institution. The study critically examines the assumption that the institutional practices, values and norms can be changed only by socialising ‘new’ lecturers into an already existing dominant culture rather than seeing the need to socialise existing lecturers into a new culture informed by a democratic ethos.
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“Just trying to live our lives”: gay, lesbian and bisexual students’ experiences of being “at home” in university residence life
- Authors: Munyuki, Chipo Lidia
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Homosexuality and education -- South Africa , Gay students , Lesbian students , Bisexual students , Transsexual students , Student housing , Discrimination in higher education -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2893 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020341
- Description: Higher education in South Africa is faced with a paramount task to help erode the social and structural inequalities that have been inherited from the Apartheid system (Department of Education 1997; Council on Higher Education 2000:12). The findings from the Soudien Report (2008:116-117) point out that the post-Apartheid higher education system in South Africa is characterised by various forms of discrimination and institutional cultures that marginalise some members of institutions resulting in pervasive feelings of alienation. In the South African higher education field, the concept of a “home” for all has been used by a variety of commentators to depict a vision of what transformed, inclusive higher education institutional cultures might look like. In this thesis, I interpret the experiences of residence life on the part of gay, lesbian and bisexual students on a largely residential campus. I ask how gay, lesbian and bisexual students experience being “at home” in the campus’s residence system. The thesis is based on 18 in-depth qualitative interviews with students who self-identify as gay/lesbian or bisexual who have experienced residence life on the campus for a period longer than six months. A wide literature exists on the concept of “home”. Drawing from many different disciplines including anthropology, history, philosophy, geography, psychology, architecture and sociology, I distil the essential features of “at homeness” as incorporating comfort, privacy, security, acceptance, companionship and community. The research was concerned to inquire into how central the idea of home is to human flourishing and then into how gay, lesbian and bisexual students are routinely denied many of the essential comforts associated with being “at home” that heterosexual students have the privilege of taking for granted.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Munyuki, Chipo Lidia
- Date: 2016
- Subjects: Homosexuality and education -- South Africa , Gay students , Lesbian students , Bisexual students , Transsexual students , Student housing , Discrimination in higher education -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2893 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1020341
- Description: Higher education in South Africa is faced with a paramount task to help erode the social and structural inequalities that have been inherited from the Apartheid system (Department of Education 1997; Council on Higher Education 2000:12). The findings from the Soudien Report (2008:116-117) point out that the post-Apartheid higher education system in South Africa is characterised by various forms of discrimination and institutional cultures that marginalise some members of institutions resulting in pervasive feelings of alienation. In the South African higher education field, the concept of a “home” for all has been used by a variety of commentators to depict a vision of what transformed, inclusive higher education institutional cultures might look like. In this thesis, I interpret the experiences of residence life on the part of gay, lesbian and bisexual students on a largely residential campus. I ask how gay, lesbian and bisexual students experience being “at home” in the campus’s residence system. The thesis is based on 18 in-depth qualitative interviews with students who self-identify as gay/lesbian or bisexual who have experienced residence life on the campus for a period longer than six months. A wide literature exists on the concept of “home”. Drawing from many different disciplines including anthropology, history, philosophy, geography, psychology, architecture and sociology, I distil the essential features of “at homeness” as incorporating comfort, privacy, security, acceptance, companionship and community. The research was concerned to inquire into how central the idea of home is to human flourishing and then into how gay, lesbian and bisexual students are routinely denied many of the essential comforts associated with being “at home” that heterosexual students have the privilege of taking for granted.
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The ‘obesity epidemic’ : an analysis of representations of obesity in mainstream South African newspapers post-1997
- Authors: Malan, Chantelle Therese
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Obesity -- South Africa , Obesity -- Press coverage -- South Africa , Obesity -- Social aspects -- South Africa , Discrimination against overweight persons -- South Africa , Social medicine -- South Africa , Agent (Philosophy) , Social control -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2892 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1019751
- Description: This study of 449 newspaper articles from South Africa from 1997 provides an analysis of the representations of obesity evinced in the corpus. The research argues that obesity is overwhelmingly framed as being diseased and that there are four main refrains within this frame, namely, statistics on obesity, the naturalisation of negative assumptions about fat, the social dysfunction of fat and the use of crisis metaphors to describe fatness. This framing lends itself to representations of obesity which are raced, gendered and classed. Fat bodies are portrayed as being in deficit and fat people as lacking agency. The disproportional focus on black bodies in the corpus can be attributed to assumptions of ‘incivility’ which are premised on racial stereotypes which construct black people as being unintelligent, irrational, lacking agency and being largely dependent on others to survive. This disproportional focus on black bodies can also be understood in the context of emerging markets. This study argues that the medicalisation of obesity has contributed to many oversimplifications and contradictions in the representation of obesity in the corpus, which seem to go unquestioned, such as the conflation of weight and health, something I argue is one of the main contributors to the negative consequences of the dominant framing of obesity. Framing obesity as medicalised also promotes fat shaming and acts as a form of social control which maintains existing power relations through the use of discursive practices for the identification and control of deviants. These representations are problematic chiefly because they promote the dehumanisation of fat people, but also because that they do not promote good health as they claim to do.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Malan, Chantelle Therese
- Date: 2015
- Subjects: Obesity -- South Africa , Obesity -- Press coverage -- South Africa , Obesity -- Social aspects -- South Africa , Discrimination against overweight persons -- South Africa , Social medicine -- South Africa , Agent (Philosophy) , Social control -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2892 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1019751
- Description: This study of 449 newspaper articles from South Africa from 1997 provides an analysis of the representations of obesity evinced in the corpus. The research argues that obesity is overwhelmingly framed as being diseased and that there are four main refrains within this frame, namely, statistics on obesity, the naturalisation of negative assumptions about fat, the social dysfunction of fat and the use of crisis metaphors to describe fatness. This framing lends itself to representations of obesity which are raced, gendered and classed. Fat bodies are portrayed as being in deficit and fat people as lacking agency. The disproportional focus on black bodies in the corpus can be attributed to assumptions of ‘incivility’ which are premised on racial stereotypes which construct black people as being unintelligent, irrational, lacking agency and being largely dependent on others to survive. This disproportional focus on black bodies can also be understood in the context of emerging markets. This study argues that the medicalisation of obesity has contributed to many oversimplifications and contradictions in the representation of obesity in the corpus, which seem to go unquestioned, such as the conflation of weight and health, something I argue is one of the main contributors to the negative consequences of the dominant framing of obesity. Framing obesity as medicalised also promotes fat shaming and acts as a form of social control which maintains existing power relations through the use of discursive practices for the identification and control of deviants. These representations are problematic chiefly because they promote the dehumanisation of fat people, but also because that they do not promote good health as they claim to do.
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"Totally unacceptable" : representations of homosexuality in South African public discourse
- Mutambanengwe, Simbarashe Abel
- Authors: Mutambanengwe, Simbarashe Abel
- Date: 2014
- Subjects: Independent Online , Homosexuality -- South Africa , Sexual minorities in mass media -- South Africa , Mass media and gays -- South Africa , Homophobia -- Press coverage -- South Africa , Electronic newspapers -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2882 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013259
- Description: The 1996 Constitution of South Africa is ranked as one of the most liberal and democratic constitutions in the world. The right to freedom of sexual orientation, equality and the freedom of association amongst other rights is in its Bill of Rights and are thus inherently assured and protected in post- apartheid, democratic South Africa. However, the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community continue to face discrimination and prejudice despite this newly established constitutional order. The present study is interested in how, in the light of the equality clause in the South African constitution, homosexuality is represented and constructed in the South African media. The thesis examines representations of homosexuality between the years 1999-2013 in articles collected from the Independent Online media site which incorporates 30 newspapers. The approach focuses on the topics, overall news report schemata, local meanings, style and rhetoric of the news reports. The results of the study show that negative attitudes towards homosexuality are framed in three main ways: homosexuality is represented as "unAfrican"; "ungodly" and "unnatural". I argue that rather than extreme forms of violence (such as "corrective rape" and murder) directed against LGBT citizens being interpreted as the aberrant behaviour of a few, these need to be understood in the context of the circulation of the above justificatory narratives.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Mutambanengwe, Simbarashe Abel
- Date: 2014
- Subjects: Independent Online , Homosexuality -- South Africa , Sexual minorities in mass media -- South Africa , Mass media and gays -- South Africa , Homophobia -- Press coverage -- South Africa , Electronic newspapers -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2882 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013259
- Description: The 1996 Constitution of South Africa is ranked as one of the most liberal and democratic constitutions in the world. The right to freedom of sexual orientation, equality and the freedom of association amongst other rights is in its Bill of Rights and are thus inherently assured and protected in post- apartheid, democratic South Africa. However, the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community continue to face discrimination and prejudice despite this newly established constitutional order. The present study is interested in how, in the light of the equality clause in the South African constitution, homosexuality is represented and constructed in the South African media. The thesis examines representations of homosexuality between the years 1999-2013 in articles collected from the Independent Online media site which incorporates 30 newspapers. The approach focuses on the topics, overall news report schemata, local meanings, style and rhetoric of the news reports. The results of the study show that negative attitudes towards homosexuality are framed in three main ways: homosexuality is represented as "unAfrican"; "ungodly" and "unnatural". I argue that rather than extreme forms of violence (such as "corrective rape" and murder) directed against LGBT citizens being interpreted as the aberrant behaviour of a few, these need to be understood in the context of the circulation of the above justificatory narratives.
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Losing, using, refusing, cruising : first-generation South African women academics narrate the complexity of marginality
- Authors: Idahosa, Grace Ese-Osa
- Date: 2014
- Subjects: Women in higher education -- Research -- South Africa , Women college teachers -- Research -- South Africa , Sex discrimination in higher education -- Research -- South Africa , Feminism and higher education -- South Africa , Marginality, Social -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2880 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013148
- Description: While existing literature shows a considerable increase in the numbers of women in academia research on the experiences of women in universities has noted their continued occupation of lower status academic positions in relation to their male counterparts. As the ladder gets higher, the number of women seems to drop. These studies indicate the marginalization of women in academic settings, highlighting the various forms of subtle and overt discrimination and exclusion women face in academic work environments. In this study I ask how academic women in South Africa narrate their experience of being ‘outside in’ the teaching machine. It has been argued that intertwined sexist, patriarchal and phallocentric knowledges and practices in academic institutions produce various forms of discrimination, inequality, oppression and marginalization. Academic women report feeling invisible and retreating to the margins so as to avoid victimization and discrimination. Others have pointed to the tension between the ‘tenure clock’ and the ‘biological clock’ as a source of anxiety among academic women. Where a masculinised presentation of the self is adopted as a solution to this dilemma, the devaluation of the feminine in the academic space is confirmed. However, experiences of academic women are not identical. In the context of studies showing the importance of existing personal and social resources, prior experience and having mentors and role models in the negotiation of inequality and discrimination, I document the narratives of women academics who are the first in their families to graduate with a university degree. These first-generation academic women are therefore least likely to have access to social and cultural resources and prior experiences that can render the academic space more hospitable for the marginalised. Employing Spivak’s deconstruction of the concept of marginalisation as my primary interpretive lens, I explore the way in which, in their narratives, first-generation academic women negotiate marginality. These narratives depict a marginality that might be described, following Spivak, as ‘outside/in’, that is, as complex and involving moments of accommodation and resistance, losses and gains, pain and pride.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Idahosa, Grace Ese-Osa
- Date: 2014
- Subjects: Women in higher education -- Research -- South Africa , Women college teachers -- Research -- South Africa , Sex discrimination in higher education -- Research -- South Africa , Feminism and higher education -- South Africa , Marginality, Social -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2880 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1013148
- Description: While existing literature shows a considerable increase in the numbers of women in academia research on the experiences of women in universities has noted their continued occupation of lower status academic positions in relation to their male counterparts. As the ladder gets higher, the number of women seems to drop. These studies indicate the marginalization of women in academic settings, highlighting the various forms of subtle and overt discrimination and exclusion women face in academic work environments. In this study I ask how academic women in South Africa narrate their experience of being ‘outside in’ the teaching machine. It has been argued that intertwined sexist, patriarchal and phallocentric knowledges and practices in academic institutions produce various forms of discrimination, inequality, oppression and marginalization. Academic women report feeling invisible and retreating to the margins so as to avoid victimization and discrimination. Others have pointed to the tension between the ‘tenure clock’ and the ‘biological clock’ as a source of anxiety among academic women. Where a masculinised presentation of the self is adopted as a solution to this dilemma, the devaluation of the feminine in the academic space is confirmed. However, experiences of academic women are not identical. In the context of studies showing the importance of existing personal and social resources, prior experience and having mentors and role models in the negotiation of inequality and discrimination, I document the narratives of women academics who are the first in their families to graduate with a university degree. These first-generation academic women are therefore least likely to have access to social and cultural resources and prior experiences that can render the academic space more hospitable for the marginalised. Employing Spivak’s deconstruction of the concept of marginalisation as my primary interpretive lens, I explore the way in which, in their narratives, first-generation academic women negotiate marginality. These narratives depict a marginality that might be described, following Spivak, as ‘outside/in’, that is, as complex and involving moments of accommodation and resistance, losses and gains, pain and pride.
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"How did I get this lucky?" : issues of power, intimacy and sexuality in the construction of young women's identities within their heterosexual relationships
- Authors: McEwen, Caryn
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Foucault, Michel, 1926-1984 -- Criticism and interpretation Heterosexuality Heterosexual women Women -- Sexual behavior Feminism -- Political aspects Sex role -- Political aspects Feminist psychology Sex (Psychology)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2861 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007595
- Description: This thesis seeks to explore how young, educated and seemingly liberated women construct their identities and make sense of their futures around their heterosexual relationships. Using the experiences of eight women participants engaged in long-term heterosexual relationships, combined with relevant secondary literature, issues of sexuality, identity, power and intimacy are discussed. Emphasis is placed on the implications of their identity construction and how they 'perform' their roles as women in society. How their sexual stories reflect their positioning in society is premised by the phrase, 'the personal is political' . Through analysis of the participants' experiences mixed with theoretical arguments, this thesis finds that young women are apparently sexually, economically and intellectually liberated but locked into discourses that provide highly unequal, limiting, disempowering and oppressive understandings of masculinity, femininity and sexuality. They live and experience a reality which is far from liberated.
- Full Text:
- Authors: McEwen, Caryn
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Foucault, Michel, 1926-1984 -- Criticism and interpretation Heterosexuality Heterosexual women Women -- Sexual behavior Feminism -- Political aspects Sex role -- Political aspects Feminist psychology Sex (Psychology)
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2861 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1007595
- Description: This thesis seeks to explore how young, educated and seemingly liberated women construct their identities and make sense of their futures around their heterosexual relationships. Using the experiences of eight women participants engaged in long-term heterosexual relationships, combined with relevant secondary literature, issues of sexuality, identity, power and intimacy are discussed. Emphasis is placed on the implications of their identity construction and how they 'perform' their roles as women in society. How their sexual stories reflect their positioning in society is premised by the phrase, 'the personal is political' . Through analysis of the participants' experiences mixed with theoretical arguments, this thesis finds that young women are apparently sexually, economically and intellectually liberated but locked into discourses that provide highly unequal, limiting, disempowering and oppressive understandings of masculinity, femininity and sexuality. They live and experience a reality which is far from liberated.
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Mapping Grahamstown's security governance network : prospects and problems for democratic policing
- Brereton, Catherine Margaret
- Authors: Brereton, Catherine Margaret
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Democracy -- South Africa , Police -- South Africa , Police administration -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Police-community relations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Crime prevention -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Police patrol -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Private security services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2851 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006323 , Democracy -- South Africa , Police -- South Africa , Police administration -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Police-community relations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Crime prevention -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Police patrol -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Private security services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: The security of its citizens is often regarded as the democratic state's primary raison d'etre. However, with increasing crime and perceptions of insecurity among citizens, along with actual and perceived state policing inadequacies, citizens around the world have sought to make alternative arrangements for their security. The explosion of private alternatives to state policing has resulted in the need for the replacement of former static definitions of policing by more fluid understandings of what policing entails. Policing is no longer an activity undertaken exclusively by the 'state police.' Policing needs to be understood within a framework which recognises the existence of a variety of state, commercial, community groups and individuals which exist within loose and sometimes informal, sometimes formal, networks to provide for the security of citizens. Preceding the country's transition to democracy in 1994 'state' policing in South Africa was aimed at monitoring and suppressing the black population and as a result it conducted itself in a largely militaristic way. When the government of national unity assumed power in 1994 it was indisputable that the South African Police had to undergo major reform if it was to play an effective, co-operative and accountable role in a democratic South Africa. While state policing has unquestionably undergone enormous changes since the advent of democracy in 1994, so too has non-state policing. It is widely accepted that the dividing line between state and non-state policing in South Africa is increasingly blurred. Policing, by its very nature, holds the potential to threaten democracy. Consequently it is important that policing is democratically controlled. According to the Law Commission of Canada four values and principles - justice, equality, accountability, and efficiency - should support policing in a democracy. This thesis is a case study of policing in Grahamstown, a small city in South Africa's Eastern Cape province. It will be shown that the policing problem that currently plagues Grahamstown, and by extension South Africa, is not simply the result of a shortage of providers but rather a problem of co-coordinating and monitoring security governance to ensure that the city does not further develop into a society where the wealthy have greater access to security than the poor.
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- Authors: Brereton, Catherine Margaret
- Date: 2006
- Subjects: Democracy -- South Africa , Police -- South Africa , Police administration -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Police-community relations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Crime prevention -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Police patrol -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Private security services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2851 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006323 , Democracy -- South Africa , Police -- South Africa , Police administration -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Police-community relations -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Crime prevention -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Police patrol -- South Africa -- Grahamstown , Private security services -- South Africa -- Eastern Cape
- Description: The security of its citizens is often regarded as the democratic state's primary raison d'etre. However, with increasing crime and perceptions of insecurity among citizens, along with actual and perceived state policing inadequacies, citizens around the world have sought to make alternative arrangements for their security. The explosion of private alternatives to state policing has resulted in the need for the replacement of former static definitions of policing by more fluid understandings of what policing entails. Policing is no longer an activity undertaken exclusively by the 'state police.' Policing needs to be understood within a framework which recognises the existence of a variety of state, commercial, community groups and individuals which exist within loose and sometimes informal, sometimes formal, networks to provide for the security of citizens. Preceding the country's transition to democracy in 1994 'state' policing in South Africa was aimed at monitoring and suppressing the black population and as a result it conducted itself in a largely militaristic way. When the government of national unity assumed power in 1994 it was indisputable that the South African Police had to undergo major reform if it was to play an effective, co-operative and accountable role in a democratic South Africa. While state policing has unquestionably undergone enormous changes since the advent of democracy in 1994, so too has non-state policing. It is widely accepted that the dividing line between state and non-state policing in South Africa is increasingly blurred. Policing, by its very nature, holds the potential to threaten democracy. Consequently it is important that policing is democratically controlled. According to the Law Commission of Canada four values and principles - justice, equality, accountability, and efficiency - should support policing in a democracy. This thesis is a case study of policing in Grahamstown, a small city in South Africa's Eastern Cape province. It will be shown that the policing problem that currently plagues Grahamstown, and by extension South Africa, is not simply the result of a shortage of providers but rather a problem of co-coordinating and monitoring security governance to ensure that the city does not further develop into a society where the wealthy have greater access to security than the poor.
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Voluntary associations as schools for democracy? : a case study of the Sibanye Development Project
- Authors: Siwahla, Lindiwe Lillian
- Date: 2002
- Subjects: Sibanye Development Project , Non-governmental organizations , Political participation , Non-governmental organizations--South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2842 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004778 , Sibanye Development Project , Non-governmental organizations , Political participation , Non-governmental organizations--South Africa
- Description: This is an empirical study of a voluntary association with a view to interrogate the theories of civil society and participation and their practice. These theories came to dominate debate on African politics and democratisation following disappointment with structural approaches to development and democracy. Disenchantment with the state whose role was emphasised by the structural approach led analysts and technocrats to turn their attention to human agency; hence the salience of the idea of popular participation in the public domain, and preoccupation with the idea of strengthening civil society. This trend gained momentum after the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall and demise of the communist block, and was accompanied by anti-statist sentiments on a global scale. Civil society organisations are seen as schools for democracy and agents of democratic consolidation, and are accordingly expected to perform two major tasks, namely instilling and disseminating a democratic political culture in and among participants and society at large, and promoting good governance. The aim therefore is to take advantage of the supposed intrinsic and utilitarian benefits of participation. As evident in a number of policy documents and legislation, the incumbent South African government embraces the idea of participatory democracy. However, not all analysts share this confidence in the capacity of civil society to perform these tasks. For some analysts public participation does not always have positive intrinsic benefits. Public participation may instead lead to a corrupted political culture deriving from the participants' attempts to survive in a public sphere characterised by manipulation and subtle political control, and it is civil society organisations lacking in organisational strength that are particularly vulnerable. The study revealed that unity between practice and theories of participation and civil society is a complex matter fraught with a number of ambiguities and contradictions. It revealed that though participation in the voluntary association in question does have educative benefits, those benefits do not extend to all the participants. In addition, the quality of that education is contingent upon a number of factors, some internal, others external. The internal and external factors reinforce one another. The internal factors pertain to the organisational dynamics of the voluntary association itself, and the external factors to the nature of the relationship between the voluntary association concerned and public authorities and other civil society organisations. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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- Authors: Siwahla, Lindiwe Lillian
- Date: 2002
- Subjects: Sibanye Development Project , Non-governmental organizations , Political participation , Non-governmental organizations--South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2842 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1004778 , Sibanye Development Project , Non-governmental organizations , Political participation , Non-governmental organizations--South Africa
- Description: This is an empirical study of a voluntary association with a view to interrogate the theories of civil society and participation and their practice. These theories came to dominate debate on African politics and democratisation following disappointment with structural approaches to development and democracy. Disenchantment with the state whose role was emphasised by the structural approach led analysts and technocrats to turn their attention to human agency; hence the salience of the idea of popular participation in the public domain, and preoccupation with the idea of strengthening civil society. This trend gained momentum after the 1989 fall of the Berlin Wall and demise of the communist block, and was accompanied by anti-statist sentiments on a global scale. Civil society organisations are seen as schools for democracy and agents of democratic consolidation, and are accordingly expected to perform two major tasks, namely instilling and disseminating a democratic political culture in and among participants and society at large, and promoting good governance. The aim therefore is to take advantage of the supposed intrinsic and utilitarian benefits of participation. As evident in a number of policy documents and legislation, the incumbent South African government embraces the idea of participatory democracy. However, not all analysts share this confidence in the capacity of civil society to perform these tasks. For some analysts public participation does not always have positive intrinsic benefits. Public participation may instead lead to a corrupted political culture deriving from the participants' attempts to survive in a public sphere characterised by manipulation and subtle political control, and it is civil society organisations lacking in organisational strength that are particularly vulnerable. The study revealed that unity between practice and theories of participation and civil society is a complex matter fraught with a number of ambiguities and contradictions. It revealed that though participation in the voluntary association in question does have educative benefits, those benefits do not extend to all the participants. In addition, the quality of that education is contingent upon a number of factors, some internal, others external. The internal and external factors reinforce one another. The internal factors pertain to the organisational dynamics of the voluntary association itself, and the external factors to the nature of the relationship between the voluntary association concerned and public authorities and other civil society organisations. , KMBT_363 , Adobe Acrobat 9.54 Paper Capture Plug-in
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The impact of water as a security issue on the Middle East peace process: 1991-1996
- Authors: Kaniaru, Wanjiku
- Date: 1999
- Subjects: Middle East -- Politics and government -- 1979- , Arab-Israeli conflict, 1993- -- Peace , Water-supply -- Political aspects -- Middle East , Natural resources -- International cooperation
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2785 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002995 , Middle East -- Politics and government -- 1979- , Arab-Israeli conflict, 1993- -- Peace , Water-supply -- Political aspects -- Middle East , Natural resources -- International cooperation
- Description: In recent years, there has been increasing realisation that resource based conflicts constitute one of the most salient threats to the survival of mankind, namely, water. In particular, the fundamental link between water and security can no longer be ignored given the indispensable role of water in the sustenance of human life as well as crucial sectors of agriculture and industry. Since the flow of water does not respect political boundaries, co-operation in the utilisation of dwindling supplies remains the most sustainable option for the future in an era of ecological interdependence. This thesis endeavours to investigate the impact of water as a security issue on the Middle East peace process. This is done within the theoretical framework that is provided by the schools of complex interdependence and new security studies. With the demise of the cold war, and the emergence of an expanded security agenda, water is an important non-military threat especially in the Middle East region. However, even with an expanded security agenda, the case of the Middle East suggests that it remains difficult to discard the hierarchy of security issues advocated by the Realists. The ongoing debate between the schools of complex interdependence and Realism is instructive in determining whether co-operation over water issues, considered "low" politics, is attainable in the absence of resolving "high" politics concerns of territory and security. Given its profound security implications for the Middle East region, water has been accorded a central role in both the bilateral and multilateral peace negotiations. In the context of water scarcity, and rising demographic patterns, the role of water as a facilitator of regional co-operation remains critical. However, for multilateral co-operation over water resources to become a tangible reality, it is the contention of this thesis that both "low" politics issues of water and "high" polities concerns of territory as well as security must be addressed simultaneously.
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- Authors: Kaniaru, Wanjiku
- Date: 1999
- Subjects: Middle East -- Politics and government -- 1979- , Arab-Israeli conflict, 1993- -- Peace , Water-supply -- Political aspects -- Middle East , Natural resources -- International cooperation
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2785 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002995 , Middle East -- Politics and government -- 1979- , Arab-Israeli conflict, 1993- -- Peace , Water-supply -- Political aspects -- Middle East , Natural resources -- International cooperation
- Description: In recent years, there has been increasing realisation that resource based conflicts constitute one of the most salient threats to the survival of mankind, namely, water. In particular, the fundamental link between water and security can no longer be ignored given the indispensable role of water in the sustenance of human life as well as crucial sectors of agriculture and industry. Since the flow of water does not respect political boundaries, co-operation in the utilisation of dwindling supplies remains the most sustainable option for the future in an era of ecological interdependence. This thesis endeavours to investigate the impact of water as a security issue on the Middle East peace process. This is done within the theoretical framework that is provided by the schools of complex interdependence and new security studies. With the demise of the cold war, and the emergence of an expanded security agenda, water is an important non-military threat especially in the Middle East region. However, even with an expanded security agenda, the case of the Middle East suggests that it remains difficult to discard the hierarchy of security issues advocated by the Realists. The ongoing debate between the schools of complex interdependence and Realism is instructive in determining whether co-operation over water issues, considered "low" politics, is attainable in the absence of resolving "high" politics concerns of territory and security. Given its profound security implications for the Middle East region, water has been accorded a central role in both the bilateral and multilateral peace negotiations. In the context of water scarcity, and rising demographic patterns, the role of water as a facilitator of regional co-operation remains critical. However, for multilateral co-operation over water resources to become a tangible reality, it is the contention of this thesis that both "low" politics issues of water and "high" polities concerns of territory as well as security must be addressed simultaneously.
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How green is our future? Thor Chemicals: a case study in South African environmental policy
- Authors: Flint, Adrian
- Date: 1998
- Subjects: Environmental ethics , Environmental policy -- South Africa , Environmental policy -- South Africa -- Case studies , Environmental degradation -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2776 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002986 , Environmental ethics , Environmental policy -- South Africa , Environmental policy -- South Africa -- Case studies , Environmental degradation -- South Africa
- Description: This study focuses on South African Environmefltal policy; in particular its policies regarding hazardous waste. These policies are addressed within the framework of a case study which serves as basis to critically evaluate government environmental policies both past and present. The thesis examines South African environmental policy against the backdrop of competing schools of thought regarding the relationship between growth and development on the one hand and long term environmental security on the other. Development strategies such as Sustainable Development and the government's Growth, Employment and Redistribution as well as philosophies such as Deep Ecology will be discussed. The thesis argues that Non-Governmental Organisations are the holders of a real environmental ethic and thus their role in preventing environmental degradation is of critical importance. Furthermore, it is imperative that this ethic be disseminated across society if South Africa is to successfully pursue sound environmental policies. This argument is pursued by way of a case study, Thor Chemicals: a company responsible for the running of the largest mercury recovery facility in the world. This plant, which operated in Cato Ridge, KwaZulu-Natal, has been the source of much controversy since it was found that many of its employees and ex-employees were suffering from severe mercury poisoning resulting in two fatalities. The company was also involved in the importation of hazardous wastes as well as the pollution of the surrounding environment. Thor is currently the subject of inquiry by the government-appointed Davis Commission. It is pointed out that ill the past South Africa held no real environmental ethic and environmental degradation ensued as a result. The presented thesis argues that, despite assurances to the contrary, the present government is also without a true environmental ethic that will be effective in preventing future degradation.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Flint, Adrian
- Date: 1998
- Subjects: Environmental ethics , Environmental policy -- South Africa , Environmental policy -- South Africa -- Case studies , Environmental degradation -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2776 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002986 , Environmental ethics , Environmental policy -- South Africa , Environmental policy -- South Africa -- Case studies , Environmental degradation -- South Africa
- Description: This study focuses on South African Environmefltal policy; in particular its policies regarding hazardous waste. These policies are addressed within the framework of a case study which serves as basis to critically evaluate government environmental policies both past and present. The thesis examines South African environmental policy against the backdrop of competing schools of thought regarding the relationship between growth and development on the one hand and long term environmental security on the other. Development strategies such as Sustainable Development and the government's Growth, Employment and Redistribution as well as philosophies such as Deep Ecology will be discussed. The thesis argues that Non-Governmental Organisations are the holders of a real environmental ethic and thus their role in preventing environmental degradation is of critical importance. Furthermore, it is imperative that this ethic be disseminated across society if South Africa is to successfully pursue sound environmental policies. This argument is pursued by way of a case study, Thor Chemicals: a company responsible for the running of the largest mercury recovery facility in the world. This plant, which operated in Cato Ridge, KwaZulu-Natal, has been the source of much controversy since it was found that many of its employees and ex-employees were suffering from severe mercury poisoning resulting in two fatalities. The company was also involved in the importation of hazardous wastes as well as the pollution of the surrounding environment. Thor is currently the subject of inquiry by the government-appointed Davis Commission. It is pointed out that ill the past South Africa held no real environmental ethic and environmental degradation ensued as a result. The presented thesis argues that, despite assurances to the contrary, the present government is also without a true environmental ethic that will be effective in preventing future degradation.
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A critical investigation of the Primary Schools Nutrition Programme (PSNP) in the Eastern Cape
- Authors: Houston, Elizabeth Margaret
- Date: 1997
- Subjects: Operation Hunger (Organization) , Primary schools nutrition programme -- South Africa , Non-governmental organizations , School children -- Food -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2783 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002993 , Operation Hunger (Organization) , Primary schools nutrition programme -- South Africa , Non-governmental organizations , School children -- Food -- South Africa
- Description: The thesis focuses on the Primary School Nutrition Programme (PSNP), particularly in the Eastern Cape, as a government nutrition and education project, and its failure to achieve its stated goals. The programme experienced problems almost as soon as it was introduced. The press reported incidents of fraud and maladministration and the programme was halted and restarted numerous times. The thesis seeks to offer some insight as to why the government was unable to reach its stated objectives in the implementation phase of the programme. State theory informs the thesis in an attempt to further explain why governments often seem unable to attain their intended goals. The thesis provides an alternative to government development programmes, arguing that NGOs are better equipped to deal with the particular problems that people on the ground experience when dealing with issues like nutritional vulnerability. Operation Hunger provides an excellent case study for how development of this nature ought to occur. The essential argument of the thesis is that there is an inherent tension between what a government's stated intentions is and what, it, in reality, intends to gain from such programmes. It is the contention of this thesis that the Government of National Unity embarked on the PSNP, not to ensure nutritional development for its own sake, but rather to curry favour with its constituents. Operation Hunger, and other organisations like it, provide relief to vulnerable communities with no hidden agenda in mind. Their mandate is solely that they provide assistance. The thesis argues, then, that NGOs have a role in domestic and international politics, that they can make up for or do better, or at least well, things that governments struggle to do.
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- Authors: Houston, Elizabeth Margaret
- Date: 1997
- Subjects: Operation Hunger (Organization) , Primary schools nutrition programme -- South Africa , Non-governmental organizations , School children -- Food -- South Africa
- Language: English
- Type: Thesis , Masters , MA
- Identifier: vital:2783 , http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1002993 , Operation Hunger (Organization) , Primary schools nutrition programme -- South Africa , Non-governmental organizations , School children -- Food -- South Africa
- Description: The thesis focuses on the Primary School Nutrition Programme (PSNP), particularly in the Eastern Cape, as a government nutrition and education project, and its failure to achieve its stated goals. The programme experienced problems almost as soon as it was introduced. The press reported incidents of fraud and maladministration and the programme was halted and restarted numerous times. The thesis seeks to offer some insight as to why the government was unable to reach its stated objectives in the implementation phase of the programme. State theory informs the thesis in an attempt to further explain why governments often seem unable to attain their intended goals. The thesis provides an alternative to government development programmes, arguing that NGOs are better equipped to deal with the particular problems that people on the ground experience when dealing with issues like nutritional vulnerability. Operation Hunger provides an excellent case study for how development of this nature ought to occur. The essential argument of the thesis is that there is an inherent tension between what a government's stated intentions is and what, it, in reality, intends to gain from such programmes. It is the contention of this thesis that the Government of National Unity embarked on the PSNP, not to ensure nutritional development for its own sake, but rather to curry favour with its constituents. Operation Hunger, and other organisations like it, provide relief to vulnerable communities with no hidden agenda in mind. Their mandate is solely that they provide assistance. The thesis argues, then, that NGOs have a role in domestic and international politics, that they can make up for or do better, or at least well, things that governments struggle to do.
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