winds of change...

first, a very happy 4th birthday to Nthlembe, the daughter of my host sister Busi Ndlovu (from my study in Zimbabwe in 2000). Busi and her husband, Wiseman, and daughter live not too far from me in Durban, and i finally got a chance to spend an afternoon with them and catch up on 6 years of news. The most exciting being that her youngest sister, Sane, who is my age, had TWINS on December 17th. And, Rose, their cousin and my housemate when I was living with the Ndlovus (same age, as well), has a new baby boy, born earlier last year.

i feel so behind in the times. it was nice to hear about the family and see photos, even if some of the news included my slim-looking host father being relegated to walking or biking the 5 kms or so to work at the University since there is no petrol, and Sane having difficulty finding enough baby formula to keep her hungry babies satisfied.

the Ndlovus are lucky, their children are all doing well, but at the same time they are a good representation of what is happening to Zimbabwean families who can escape Mugabe's dictatorship: 4 daughters, living in 4 different countries. Samu, the eldest, has moved to London with her husband; Busi is in Durban; Phili is working on an engineering Ph.D in Germany; and Sane is at home in Harare. The number of Zimbabwean refugees living in other countries right now is estimated in the millions.

busi hopes for a family reunion this coming christmas, where she'll get to meet the new babies and see all of her sisters in the same place for the first time in years. i hope by the time december comes a reunion is still possible.

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A great article on the upcoming elections and the future of the ANC, posing some of the questions I hope to ask of people over the coming weeks:

Winds of change keep blowing
SUNDAY TRIBUNE January 29, 2006
By Alan Dunn

... This is a generation with changing values and fresh aspirations, an ambitious new crop driving to succeed in a competitive society, one which cares less about the sacrifices of the liberation struggle.

Much like young Britons today think Churchill is an insurance company, tomorrow's generation in South Africa thinks Jan Smuts is a highway, and know little about Albert Luthuli or other liberation hall-of-famers.

They've heard about the dark decades, from their parents and grandparents who endured them, but this unhappy past has little bearing today on acquiring skills, finding a job, and getting ahead in a highly competitive environment.

For them, joining the country's burgeoning middle class means eyes straight ahead, not casting them back to what was. Attending a self-improvement course would be more pressing to them than busing in for a Freedom Day celebration.

If they bother to vote, these people will measure a political party by its competence, by its immediate impact on their lives. Neither history nor allegiance will guide their pens as they step into the polling booths.

Another sign of ANC vulnerability is the anger at non-delivery in townships and villages throughout South Africa. It's an irritation now, a minor factor in the returns the ANC will enjoy on March 1, but it is the first time the dominant party has been openly, repeatedly and spontaneously challenged by disenchanted supporters who were once viewed as die-hards.

This is, perhaps, the beginning of greater disaffection and wider resistance to the ANC. It certainly is an early sign of an electorate which will in future be swayed by governmental performance.

It must be unsettling to ANC strategists, though bravado and the dictates of winning politics will never allow them to admit this.

They may take some heart, though, in seeing the slogans on T-shirts and scrawlings on cardboard: "No homes, no votes". They may find a sliver of solace in the negativity of a stayaway vote rather than the damage of a vote for a rival party. This, in turn, must be unnerving for the rival parties. None of the angry citizens has yet chanted "Broken promises, vote DA", or "No power, vote PAC".

Which raises tough questions about the impact and ultimate potential of the opposition parties. Hard as it is trying, the quick-eyed DA is unlikely to foment this discontent and convert it into a windfall of votes.

Opposition stagnance aside, the mess that is the lowest level of government in this country is exposing the weaknesses of the mighty party. And maybe it is also signalling the ANC's future, and the upgrades it will have to undergo to remain the force it is.

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i'm going to be writing some more articles about evictions and the housing allocation process, which is a mess, so stay tuned. please send positive thoughts my way to keep me focused and confident that i can be productive in my last month here. i'm hoping that research i do this month will make itself into presentation form by the time i have to leave. so much yet to do!

love to you all.