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Roger Southall

Professor of Sociology, University of the Witwatersrand

Roger Southall is an Emeritus Professor in Sociology at the University of the Witwatersrand. He was previously Distinguished Research Fellow at the Human Sciences Research Council (2001-2007) and Professor of Political Studies at Rhodes University (1989-2001). Prior to that he worked in universities in Uganda, Lesotho, Canada and the UK. He is author of South Africa's Transkei: The Political Economy of an 'Independent' Bantustan (1983), Imperialism or Solidarity? International Labour and South African Trade Unions (1995), Liberation Movements in Power: Party and State in Southern Affrica (2013) and The New Black Middle Class in South Africa (2016). He has also published extensively on African politics, political economy and labour in leading academic journals, as well as contributing chapters to numerous books. He receives research funding from the National Research Foundation.

What is RET and what does it want? The Radical Economic Transformation faction in South Africa explained

Dec 08, 2022 10:50 am UTC| Insights & Views Economy

It has been standard for some years, in any analysis of South Africas governing party, the African National Congress (ANC), to refer to the radical economic transformation (RET) faction. Yet, there has been little serious...

South Africa is in a state of drift: the danger is that the ANC turns the way of Zimbabwe's ZANU-PF

Feb 02, 2022 08:48 am UTC| Politics

The dismal fate of Zimbabwe under the stewardship of the Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front (Zanu-PF) government has long stood out as a warning to South Africas governing party, the African National Congress...

Why South Africa's white leaders shouldn't get into comparative politics of sin

Feb 22, 2020 00:25 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

FW De Klerk, South Africas last apartheid-era president, and his foundation, have learnt the hard way the dangers of the comparative politics of sin. He recently gave an interview to mark his historic speech to parliament...

Events in Lesotho point to poor prospects for political stability

Jan 28, 2020 08:32 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

In 2017 the estranged wife of Lesothos prime minister Tom Thabane was shot dead in suspicious circumstances two days ahead of his inauguration. Now theres a new twist in the saga: on 11 January authorities issued an arrest...

A centrist political alliance in South Africa? Yes, but hard to get

Oct 20, 2019 10:21 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

Is there the possibility that political centrists in South Africas governing party, the African National Congress (ANC), and its main opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), could merge? The question arises...

South Africa's 2019 poll showed dangerous signs of 'insiders' and 'outsiders'

Aug 15, 2019 17:38 pm UTC| Insights & Views Politics

The general election in South Africa in May conveyed mixed messages: one was that democracy is maturing, the other that it is failing. The good news was that this was very clearly an outcome of a discerning electorate...

A democracy or a kleptocracy? How South Africa stacks up

Feb 10, 2019 10:53 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

South Africans have been held spellbound by the torrent of evidence of corruption emerging from two parallel commissions of inquiry into state capture, and the fitness to hold office of two senior officials of the...

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Economy

South Korea’s KOSPI Plunges as Apple Price Hikes and OpenAI IPO Delay Shake AI Chip Stocks

South Koreas benchmark KOSPI index suffered a steep selloff on Friday as investors dumped technology and semiconductor stocks following Apples latest price increases and reports that OpenAI may delay its highly anticipated...

Asian Stocks Sink as Apple Price Hikes Spark AI Valuation Fears, South Korea and Japan Lead Selloff

Asian stock markets closed sharply lower on Friday as investors took profits from this weeks technology-driven rally after Apple Inc.s decision to raise prices on several products reignited concerns about the...

Gold Prices Fall Below $4,000 as Strong Dollar, Fed Rate Hike Bets Weigh on Bullion

Gold prices extended their decline on Friday, falling below the key $4,000-per-ounce level as a stronger U.S. dollar and growing expectations of additional Federal Reserve interest rate hikes continued to pressure the...

SpaceX Eyes Starlink Mobile Phone Service to Challenge Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile

SpaceX is reportedly exploring a major expansion of its Starlink business by launching a Starlink-branded mobile phone service in the United States, a move that could position Elon Musks company as a direct competitor to...

Asian Currencies Trade Mixed as Yen Hovers Near 40-Year Low, Dollar Holds Firm on Fed Outlook

Asian currencies traded within narrow ranges on Friday as the U.S. dollar paused after a strong weekly rally, while the Japanese yen remained close to a four-decade low amid lingering concerns over potential government...

Politics

Trump Administration Rejects Claims of Rift Between JD Vance and Marco Rubio on Iran Policy

President Donald Trumps administration is pushing back against claims of internal divisions over its Iran strategy after comments from Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio appeared to reflect...

US Approves $250 Million Fighter Jet Training Sale to Australia

The United States has approved a potential $250 million military sale to Australia, reinforcing the long-standing defense partnership between the two allies. The U.S. State Department announced on Thursday that it had...

Johns Hopkins University Lays Off 110 Employees as Federal Research Funding Declines

Johns Hopkins University has announced the layoff of 110 employees following significant reductions in federal research funding, highlighting the growing financial challenges facing one of the United States leading...

Iran Attack in Strait of Hormuz Pushes Oil Prices Higher

Global oil prices climbed on Thursday after Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) reportedly attacked a Singapore-flagged cargo vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, reigniting concerns over Middle East tensions and...

Republican Lawmaker Introduces AI Incident Reporting Bill to Strengthen U.S. AI Safety

The United States could soon see new artificial intelligence regulations after Republican Representative Nathaniel Moran of Texas introduced the proposed AI Incident Reporting Act, a bill designed to improve transparency...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

OpenAI IPO Delay Weighs on SoftBank Shares as AI Valuation Concerns Grow

SoftBank Group (TYO:9984) shares tumbled sharply on Friday after a report suggested that OpenAI is considering postponing its highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO), delaying what many investors had expected to...

Apple Supplier Stocks Slide as Samsung, SK Hynix Lead Selloff After Apple Price Hikes

Apples major Asian suppliers came under heavy selling pressure on Friday after the iPhone maker announced significant price increases for its MacBook and iPad lineup, fueling concerns that rising semiconductor costs are...

Samsung, SK Hynix to Unveil Record AI and Semiconductor Investment Plans Worth Over $646 Billion

South Korean technology giants Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are preparing to unveil sweeping long-term investment strategies centered on semiconductors, artificial intelligence (AI), and next-generation technologies,...

OpenAI May Delay IPO to 2027 Amid $1 Trillion Valuation Goal

OpenAI is reportedly considering postponing its highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO) until 2027 as it pursues an ambitious $1 trillion valuation. According to a report by The New York Times, company executives...

Kioxia Targets U.S. Listing as AI Chip Boom Accelerates

Japan-based Kioxia Holdings Corp. (TYO:285A) is preparing to launch U.S. depositary shares in the spring of 2027, a strategic move aimed at expanding its global investor base and taking advantage of growing enthusiasm for...