Democracy Dialogue

Featuring Professor Patrick Bond, this webinar critically discusses how methane capitalism and the climate crisis have eroded democratic inroads globally. Moreover, the webinar looks at the role and interaction of imperial and subimperial forces within the ecological crisis and how they threaten democracy globally, and offers pathways towards a transformative social contract.

The fourth instalment of the democracy dialogue series entitled "The Polycrisis of Carbon Democracy: ideas for a new global transformative social contract", organized by the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation's Southern Africa Office, features a presentation from Dr. Dale McKinley. The webinar contextualises South Africa’s post-apartheid state capture and anti-constitutional ideologies by the ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC). Furthermore, the webinar links the post-1994 political environment that encourages looting of state and public resources by the political elite in South Africa to the historical context and formation of the ANC, whose leaders sought to access and deracialize the political system rather than overthrow it.

The fifth instalment of the Democracy Dialogue series hosted by the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation's Johannesburg Office, featuring Benjamin Rosman of the Wits University School of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, took up the question of how AI can affect democracies. Looking beyond the role of AI during elections, the discussion also considered the evolution, threats, and opportunities associated with its development.

The sixth instalment of the Democracy Dialogue hosted by the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation's Johannesburg Office discussed the rapid and dramatic shift in the political and government spectrums with Anika Taschke. She took a closer look at how left and progressive governments are being replaced by their far-right and conservative counterparts across Europe, and the challenges this phenomenon presents for global democracy. Specifically, the discussion looked at how the rapid expansion of far-right forces (who come to power precisely through electoral processes) threatens to erode essential democratic values such as inclusion and tolerance.

The second instalment of the Democracy Dialogue series, hosted by the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation's Johannesburg Office and featuring Dr. Ellison Tjirera, reflected on the current struggles for genocide reparation in Namibia and the struggle against inequality and for democracy in the country. The discussion also touched on the current political landscape (topics such as land and energy) in Namibia and how it was shaped by the struggle against inequality.

In the last event of the Democracy Dialogue series hosted by the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation's Johanesburg Office, Dr. Daniel Paget discussed how current struggles against authoritarian regimes in Africa reflect efforts to reimagine democracy, focusing on Zambia and Zimbabwe. The discussion sought to respond to questions such as “What are currently the main threats to democracy in Southern Africa and globally? Where are these threats coming from? How are they interconnected?” and “What strategies can progressive forces institute to promote the rise of a democratic polity that cements values linked to socioeconomic inclusion, social and ecological justice?”