Gendering De-Democratization: Gender and Illiberalism in Post-Communist Europe

Many observers have written with concern about a growing "opposition to gender equality," "anti‐gender campaigns," and even a "war on gender." Often, these trends take place in countries that are witnessing a decline in democratic quality, a process captured by such labels as "democratic erosion," "democratic backsliding," or "autocratization." This thematic issue brings together literature on gender equality and de‐democratization with an emphasis on the role of illiberalism and a regional focus on post‐communist Europe

Power-Sharing in Südafrika: ist der ANC eine Konkordanzpartei?

'Trotz aller Zweifel am konkordanzdemokratischen Charakters Südafrikas nach der Apartheid stellen nur wenige Autoren in Frage, dass die Übergangsverfassung Elemente des power-sharing umfasste. Die permanente Verfassung und das Ausscheiden der National Party (NP) aus der Regierung der nationalen Einheit im Jahre 1996 haben die Aussichten eines politischen Ausgleichs in dieser pluralen Gesellschaft geschwächt. Nachdem der African National Congress (ANC) zur dominanten Partei wurde, setzten manche Beobachter ihre Hoffnungen darauf, dass der ANC zu einer inklusiveren und partizipatorischeren Partei werde. Diese Entwicklung lässt sich als Übergang von einer Standardform der Konkordanzdemokratie zwischen (segmentierten) Parteien zur Konkordanz innerhalb einer (Konkordanz) Partei beschreiben. Der Aufsatz untersucht die Chancen bzw. Aussichten bezüglich einer solchen Entwicklung für den ANC und richtet sein Augenmerk vor allem auf die Organisation der Partei, die innerparteiliche Repräsentation, und den internen Ausgleich sozialer Konflikte. Die Analyse bezieht vergleichende Erkenntnisse über andere Konkordanzparteien wie die Congress Party in Indien, Alliance Party/National Front in Malaysia und die Kenya African National Union (KANU) mit ein. Es wird gezeigt, dass der ANC eine noch negativere Auffassung partei-interner Konkordanz besitzt als von klassischer Konkordanzdemokratie. Diese Tatsache weist auf die Wahrscheinlichkeit einer dauerhaften politischen Marginalisierung der Minderheiteninteressen in Südafrika hin.' (Autorenreferat)'Although there is much debate about the extent to which South Africa after apartheid was a consociational democracy, there is little doubt that the Interim constitution contained power-sharing arrangements. However, the permanent constitution and the departure of the National Party from the Government of National Unity in 1996 have weakened political accommodation in this plural society. With the ANC emerging as the dominant party some observers now put their hope in the ANC becoming more inclusive and participatory. This development can be conceptualized as the transformation of a Standard form of consociationalism between (segmental) parties to consociationalism within a Single (consociational) party. This paper examines the prospects of the ANC becoming a consociational party. It focuses an party organization, internal representation, and internal accommodation of social cleavages within the context of the dominant Position of the ANC in the wider political System. The analysis draws an the comparative experience of such parties as the Congress Party in India, the Alliance and National Front in Malaysia, and KANU in Kenya. The conclusion is that the ANC appears even more negative towards internal consociationalism than it has been towards inter-party consociationalism, pointing to the possibility of a long-lasting political marginalization of cultural minority interests.' (author's abstract)

Parties in chains: do ethnic party bans in Africa promote peace?

Since the sweeping (re)introduction of multiparty systems in the early 1990s, almost all sub-Saharan countries have introduced legal provisions to ban ethnic or other identity-based particularistic parties. Altogether, 12 countries have actually banned political parties on these grounds. In theoretical terms, such bans can exclude particularism from politics but - contrary to public discourse - also run the risk of forcing groups to resort to violent means or of becoming an object of conflict themselves. Empirically speaking, hardly any general patterns in the effects of bans can be detected. A closer look at 12 politically relevant bans in six countries reveals an initially stabilizing impact in one case (Rwanda in 1994). A ban on a religious party in Kenya in 1993 triggered violent conflict. In cases such as Equatorial Guinea (1994) and Rwanda (2001, 2003), this regulatory measure, allegedly designed to promote peace, seems to be part of the 'menu of manipulation' and is abused to suppress the opposition

Senegal: Presidential elections 2019 - The shining example of democratic transition immersed in muddy power-politics

Whereas Senegal has long been sold as a showcase of democracy in Africa, including peaceful political alternance, things apparently changed fundamentally with the Senegalese presidentials of 2019 that brought new configurations. One of the major issues was political transhumance that has been elevated to the rank of religion in defiance of morality. It threatened political stability and peace. In response, social networks of predominantly young activists, created in 2011 in the aftermath of the Arab Spring focused on grass-roots advocacy with the electorate on good governance and democracy. They proposed a break with a political system that they consider as neo-colonialist. Moreover, Senegal’s justice is frequently accused to be biased, and the servility of the Constitutional Council which is in the first place an electoral court has often been denounced