Traditional leaders in a democracy : resources, respect and resistance / editors, Mbonegiseni Buthelezi, Dineo Skosana & Beth Vale.

Collisions, collusions and coalescences: new takes on traditional leadership in democratic South Africa -- an introduction / Mbongiseni Buthelezi & Beth Vale -- Mistaking form for substance: reflections on the key dynamics of pre-colonial polities and their implications for the role of chiefs in contemporary South Africa / Peter Delius -- Traditional leadership and the African National Congress in South Africa: reflections on a symbiotic relationship / Dineo Skosana -- Mining magnates and traditional leaders: the role of law in elevating elite interests and deepening exclusion, 2002-2018 / Aninka Claassens -- Chiefs, land and distributive struggles on the platinum belt, South Africa / Sonwabile Mnwana -- Traditional leadership, violation of land rights and resistance from below in Makhasaneni village, KwaZulu-Natal / Sithandiwe Yeni -- The violence of the harmony model: common narratives between women and lower-level traditional leaders / Sindiso Mnisi Weeks -- Chieftaincy succession disputes among the AmaNdebele-a-Moletlane in Hammanskraal, 1962 to 1994 / Tlhabane Mokhine Motaung -- Emerging rural struggles against unelected traditional authorities and the role of the courts: lessons from rural villages of the Eastern Cape / Fani Ncapayi -- Situational chiefs: notes on traditional leadership amidst calls for KhoiSan recognition after 1994 / William Ellis -- In defence of traditional leadership / Nkosi Phathekile Holomisa (Ah! Dilizintaba) -- A long walk for traditional leadership in South Africa / Nkosi Mwelo Nonkonyana (Zanemvula!) -- Traditional leadership: South Africa's paradox? / Dineo Skosana.

Post-1994, South Africa's traditional leaders have fought for recognition, and positioned themselves as major players in the South African political landscape. Yet their role in a democracy is contested, with leaders often accused of abusing power, disregarding human rights, expropriating resources and promoting tribalism. Some argue that democracy and traditional leadership are irredeemably opposed and cannot co-exist. Meanwhile, shifts in the political economy of the former bantustans -- the introduction of platinum mining in particular -- have attracted new interests and conflicts to these areas, with chiefs often designated as custodians of community interests. This edited volume explores how chieftancy is practised, experienced and contested in contemporary South Africa. It includes case studies of how those living under the authority of chiefs, in a modern democracy, negotiate or resist this authority in their respective areas. Chapters in this book are organised around three major sites of contest: leadership, land and law.

Online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on June 13, 2019).

Includes bibliographical references and index.

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