On th eother hand, next week is the 10th anniversary of the Rwandan genocides
Examining a Decade of Democracy
Moyiga Nduru
PRETORIA, Mar 25 (IPS) - Academics and political analysts from around the world have gathered in South Africa's capital, Pretoria, for a conference on the achievements of the first decade of democracy in the country.
The three-day event, which began Wednesday (Mar. 24), is entitled ”South Africa: Ten Years After Apartheid”. It has been organised by the Africa Institute of South Africa (AISA), a non-governmental organisation (NGO) based in Pretoria, and has attracted about 200 delegates.
”Post-apartheid South Africa has taught all of us that even those who are made into the worst enemies, creating a relationship in which some are brutalised and dehumanised, can overcome the trauma of such a tragedy and the compulsion towards vengeance through a genuine process of reconciliation,” said Salim Ahmed Salim, formerly the prime minister of Tanzania and secretary-general of the Organisation of African Unity (now the African Union).
”The mere fact that this nation could sustain and consolidate its democratic dispensation for 10 years...has not only reaffirmed the negation of the apartheid system, but it has also empowered and inspired the African people,” he added.
