As this issue of Amandla! goes to press, we read disturbing accounts of South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) shop stewards being prevented by private security personnel from entering the union's Johannesburg headquarters, and being physically attacked with...
cases
Why Did The Heaven’s Not Darken? Fear and Loathing in Girl Killer SA
The life and death of Rene by Andre Marias This newspaper headline refers to the rape and murder of my niece Rene, 28 years ago. She was four years old at the time of her death on Xmas Eve, 1986. As is so often the case, she knew her killer and he was known to the...
End rural slavery in South Africa!
During the month of November last year, the world watched farm workers strikes, particularly those working in vineyards in the Western Cape Province, in South Africa. They were protesting against exploitation and poor working and living conditions on farms, demanding...
AMCU at the Commission: “It was one big crime’ | by Jeanne Hefez
In its first months of hearings, the Farlam Commission has shown us clear evidence of a bungled police cover up of a massacre, the National Union of Mineworkers' (NUM) own attempt to hide its role, and an alarming level of complicity between state and capital. The...
Classrooms in crisis
Questions to Salim Vally on June 16th and the Educational System Amandla! (A!): At the heart of the June 16 uprising that changed the political situation in SA was the crisis of education. What has changed in 18 years? Salim Vally (SV): What has changed is that we now...
Too big to be honest | by Amandla Staff
One of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world, GlaxoSmithKline, the British drugmaker, has agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges, and pay $3bn to settle one of the largest cases of healthcare fraud in US history. The drug giant is to plead guilty to...
Who’s going to be the lesser evil in 2012? | by Phil Gasper
The similarities between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are far more striking than their differences Now we know that the presidential election will be a contest between Barack Obama and his GOP rival Mitt Romney. Already liberal pundits, activists in the Democratic...
Marxism, the 21st century and social transformation | by Bill Fletcher, Jr.
A discussion of the future of socialism and social transformation must be grounded in two realities. The first reality is the broader economic, environmental and state-legitimacy crises in which humanity finds itself. In other words, the convergence of these three...
The Spear that divided the nation | by Professor Robins
BRETT Murray’s The Spear has generated an extraordinary amount of media and political commentary, social media twittering, marches and protests, including the defacing of the painting itself. The rage expressed by many in response to the depiction of the private parts...






