Paper short abstract:

This paper will try to determine the roots of the current political crisis in South Africa by analysing the correlation of social forces, and of class composition of contesting political parties and actors of so-called “civil society”.

Paper long abstract:

Vladimir Shubin

Principal Research Fellow

Institute for African Studies

Russian Academy of Sciences

30/1, Spiridonovka street,

Moscow, 132001

vlgs@yandex.ru

+ 7 910 415 27 96

South Africa: the roots of the political crisis

This paper will try to determine the roots of the current political crisis in South Africa. Most of analysts be them journalists or academics explain it primarily by assessing a controversial role of President Jacob Zuma. However such approach eclipses a vital issue of correlation of social forces, and of class composition of contesting political parties and actors of so-called "civil society", including "Fees must fall" student movement.

Taking into account the main theme of the conference - "Urban Africa - Urban Africans: New encounters of the rural and the urban" a special attention will be paid to the urban - rural political divide that became clearly visible after the local election in August 2016.