Government Confronts Culture - The Struggle for Local Democracy in Southern Africa

Transitional societies-struggling to build democratic institutions and new political traditions-are faced with a painful dilemma. How can Government become strong and effective, building a common good that unites disparate ethnic and class groups, while simultaneously nurturing democratic social rules at the grassroots? Professor Fuller brings this issue to light in the contentious, multicultural setting of Southern Africa. Post-apartheid states, like South Africa and Namibia, are pushing hard to raise school quality, reduce family poverty, and equalize gender relations inside villages and townships. But will democratic participation blossom at the grassroots as long as strong central states-so necessary for defining the common good-push universal policies onto diverse local communities? This book builds from a decade of family surveys and qualitative village studies led by Professor Fuller at Harvard University and African colleagues inside Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa.

Sommario

Part I: When Policy Hits Cultural Borders
1: Can the Modern State Work in Multicultural Societies?
2: Beyond Cultureless Conceptions of Policy Making
Part II: Namibia: the First Post-Apartheid Experiment
3: Post-Apartheid Nation Building
4: Ethnic Archipelagos
Part III: South Africa: a Fragile State Balanced on Conflicting Cultures
5: A Promising Mystery
6: Democracy Down Under?
Part IV: Botswana: a Stable State, but a Democratic Society?
7: Can the State Democratize Gender Roles?
8: After the Modern State

Info autore

Bruce Fuller

Dettagli sul prodotto

• Autori: Bruce Fuller, Fuller Bruce
• Editore: Taylor and Francis
• Lingue: Inglese
• Formato: Copertina rigida
• Pubblicazione: 01.09.1999
• EAN: 9780815330806
• ISBN: 978-0-8153-3080-6
• Pagine: 390
• Peso: 880 g
• Serie: States and Societies
• Categorie: Scienze sociali, diritto, economia > Scienze politiche > Scienze politiche e cittadinanza attiva; Cultural Studies, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Process / General, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Ideologies / Democracy, POLITICAL SCIENCE / History & Theory, POLITICAL SCIENCE / Public Affairs & Administration, POLITICAL SCIENCE / World / African, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Anthropology / Cultural & Social, Political science & theory, Southern Africa, Political structures: democracy, Political science and theory, Regional, state and other local government, Regional government, Political structures / systems: democracy