TRANSITION IN SOUTH AFRICA:
DEMOCRACY THROUGH COMPROMISE
AND INSTITUTIONAL CHOICE by SANG-HYUN, SEO
Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Literature and Philosophy
in the subject
International Politics at the
University of South Africa
Promoter: Dr S Botha
Joint promoter: Prof PAH Labuschagne
November 2008
Student number: 3154-993-4
I declare that, A Study on Democratic Transition in South Africa: A Democracy through
Compromise and Institutional Choice, is my own work and that all the sources I have used or quoted have been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete references.
SUMMARY
The focus of this study is on South Africa 's transition to democracy. It is argued in this thesis, that an analysis of the transition to democracy in South Africa and the transformation of the con ict that prevailed in this divided society could generate new avenues for theorising about transitions to democracy in divided societies amidst con ict. The aim with this thesis is to contribute towards a more comprehensive understanding of the complex nature of the process of transition to democracy, and the relevant theory involved, particularly with regard to transitions in divided societies. One consequence of the deep divisions within
South African society has been the increase in violence, which followed liberalisation. The transition to democracy in South Africa, as a result, was characterised by continuing and escalating violence. In South Africa, the authoritarian regime deteriorated mainly because of internal factors, but external factors also played an important role.
The analysis of the transition has been guided by the hypothesis that the democratisation of South Africa was accomplished through a compromise that was negotiated between the major political actors and which re ected the intra-, as well as the inter-dynamics in the domains of, state - political
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