Regions / Africa / South Africa

Singer, songwriter and activist Thandiswa Mazwai discusses growing up in apartheid South Africa and her political awakening with Subi Shah.

Sculptor, textile and installation artist.

Fatima Hassan took on South Africa’s AIDS denialism – and won. Later, she turned her attention to ‘vaccine apartheid’ in the Covid-19 pandemic. Conrad Landin meets her in Cape Town.

This year’s election could mark a major shift in South Africa’s parliamentary politics. But re-building a Left capable of winning popular support presents a far bigger challenge, argue William Shoki and Niall Reddy.

The ‘state capture’ of South Africa’s public services has seen billions sequestered by a new boss class as public services collapse. Ra’eesa Pather reports.

When South Africa’s largest trade union broke with the ruling alliance, left-wingers saw cause for hope – but things soon turned sour. Niall Reddy and William Shoki explore the consequences of what happened next.

South Africa is experiencing a wave of vigilante violence against poor Black migrants, mostly from the African continent. Musawenkosi Cabe reports.

South Africa’s constitution has allowed social movements to clock up a number of legal victories. But, Claire-Anne Lester asks, can the law really deliver social and economic justice?

South Africa is losing its status as an upper-middle income developing country. Benjamin Fogel examines the challenges this poses for a young democracy.

Culture; inequality; corruption; health; migration.

Can South Africa ever fully shake off the shackles of apartheid? Conrad Landin asks whether the country’s historic genocide case against Israel could lead to a reckoning at home.

The 19-year-old climate activist is making her voice heard across South Africa and beyond. She speaks with Uyapo Majahana about climate anxiety, life lessons and getting beyond tokenism.

Report from South Africa by Frankie Leach.

In recent years, black wine growers, distillers’ and drinkers have been staking their claim on the industry.

Wealth inequality in South Africa.

Cape Town’s citizens’ groups are not taking housing injustice lying down, according to Ben Verghese and Ilham Rawoot.

Chris Brazier looks back over a career as a co-editor that stretches back to 1984, remembering highlights and dark moments from Nicaragua to Vietnam, South Africa to Western Sahara and Burkina Faso.

An iconic self-portrait by South African photographer Lebo Thoka.

Letter from Johannesburg. Yewande Omotoso ponders how belonging to a city goes beyond the bald fact of living in it.

Yewande Omotoso’s apartment is slowly being taken over by plants, much to her delight.