Democracy & its Discontents

Vigilantism, Sovereignty & Human Rights in South Africa

Dados Bibliográficos

ID8046263
AutoresL Buur (0000-0001-8069-7140, Danish Institute for International Studies, autor correspondente)
Ano2008
Volume35
Fascículo118
Data de publicação2008-01-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoReview of African Political Economy (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0305-6244 • E-ISSN: 1740-1720
EditoraTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/03056240802569250
OpenAlexW2059665247
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas21
Referências citadas9

This article argues that due to the particular position of crime in South Africa, the resurgence of vigilantism needs to be re-evaluated in light of the country's attempt at institutionalising human rights as the new society's founding values. Because many township dwellers see vigilantes as their protection against crime, vigilantism should be seen as a criticism of and a comment on human rights as the new expression of the country's most intimate values. The article begins by introducing an ethnographic case study of a vigilante group from Port Elizabeth's townships, which has become incorporated as an official ‘Safety and Security’ structure under the Community Policing Forum. The article suggests that fighting crime relates to wider questions of the perceived need for discipline and corporal punishment in response to the erosion of social authority

Corporal punishment · Position (finance · Punishment (psychology · Legal Issues in South Africa · Policing Practices and Perceptions · Sex work and related issues