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04 August 2020 | Story Dr Nitha Ramnath

Apart from its devastating impact on people’s lives and livelihoods, the COVID-19 pandemic has also affected the nature and quality of our democracies – democracy read in its widest sense here as collective and individual self-determination. Formal, institutional democracy has beencurtailed through the imposition of states of emergency or disaster and the logistical difficulties associated with social distancing. Extra-institutional democratic work, such as protest and social-movement activity, has suffered from prohibitions imposed by law and through state suppression related to ‘lockdown’. The nature (and perhaps democratic quality) of public conversation has changed – for better or worse – from increasing reliance on ‘science’ and ‘scientists’ to justify public choices. The crisis has brought to the fore already existing characteristics of our democracies, such as the prevalence and power of special-interest bargaining, the extreme inequality of our societies, and chauvinist nationalisms that force us to ask whether we have ever had democracy at all. What will be the long-term effects of these impacts of the crisis on our democracies? What will democracy look like post-COVID? What does the crisis teach us about what our democracies have always been?

Join us for a discussion of these and other democracy-related issues in these troubled times by a panel of four hailing from Colombia, India, South Africa, and the USA.

Date: Thursday, 13 August
Time: 14:00-16:00 (South African Standard Time – GMT +2)

 

Please RSVP to Mamello Serasengwe at serasengwemsm@ufs.ac.za no later than 12 August 2020 upon which you will receive a Skype for Business meeting invite and link to access the webinar

Panel

Prof Natalia Angel Cabo (University of Los Andes, Bogota, Colombia)

Dr Quaraysha Ismail-Sooliman (University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa)

Dr Usha Ramanathan  Independent Law Researcher  (Delhi, India)

Prof Katie Young (Boston College, Boston, USA) 

Moderator

Prof Danie Brand (Free State Centre for Human Rights, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa)   




News Archive

Shimlas have reason to celebrate
2010-03-04

Joubert Horn, the Shimlas’ lock, was one of the try scorers against the FNB TUT Vikings.
Photo: Gerhard Louw

Wayne Stevens, captain of the Shimlas at the University of the Free State (UFS), has reason to smile after his team won another match in the FNB Varsity Cup on Monday.

Both teams played well, but in the end it was the FNB TUT Vikings who had to accept defeat. The Shimlas sent the Vikings home with a score of 37-31.

The Shimlas got a bonus point for scoring four tries. This places them in the fourth position on the league log.

This week the team is preparing for their match against the FNB Tuks. The Shimlas feel confident about their next match and are now working on their strategy.

The Shimlas will play against the FNB Tuks at the Tuks Rugby Stadium in Pretoria on Monday, 8 March 2010 at 18:30.
– Lize du Plessis

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