The Cosatu Participatory Democratic Tradition and South Africa's New Parliament

Are They Reconcilable

Bibliographic Data

ID6026243
AuthorsJ Maree, Jacobus G Maree (0000-0002-9492-8445, University of Cape Town, corresponding author)
Year1998
Volume97
Issue386
Pages29-51
Publication date1998-01-01
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueAfrican Affairs (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0001-9909 • E-ISSN: 1468-2621
PublisherOxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1093/oxfordjournals.afraf.a007919
OpenAlexW1984535852
LanguageEN
Citations received10

COSATU, The Congress of South African Trade Unions, has a participatory democratic tradition on the shopfloor that dates back to the emergence of some of its constituent unions in the 1970s. In fact, an ethic developed among members that the unions ought to be democratic. By 1994, when South Africa underwent a major political transformation and the African National Congress came to power with the support of COSATU, the question arose whether the new parliament would be reconcilable with COSATU's expectations of it. A random survey of 643 COSATU members shortly before the 1994 election established that COSATU had sustained its democratic shopfioor tradition and that its members expected the 20 union leaders it sent to parliament on an ANC ticket to be as accountable to them as their shop stewards are. Subsequent research found dissatisfaction with the ANC on account of unsatisfactory delivery and inadequate consultation, especially by the ministries. In response, COSATU has adopted a dual strategy of strengthening its representation in parliament by opening a Parliamentary Office and putting pressure on the government and organized business by engaging in mass action on selected issues. COSATU thus reconciled itself to parliament by combining new terrains of struggle

Citizen journalism · Democracy · Government (linguistics · Parliament · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Representation (politics · Sociology · Labor Movements and Unions · Law · Public Administration

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