SOUTH AFRICA'S FOREIGN POLICY DILEMMA IN SOUTHERN AFRICA By Varusha NAIDOO ...

322 Pages·2011·0.96 MB·English

BETWEEN SCYLLA AND CHARYBDIS:
SOUTH AFRICA’S FOREIGN POLICY DILEMMA IN SOUTHERN
AFRICA

By
Varusha NAIDOO

Submitted in fulfilment of the academic requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy (Political Science) in the Faculty of Humanities,
Development and Social Sciences of the University of KwaZulu-Natal,
Pietermaritzburg, South Africa

2010

Supervisor
Prof NI Okeke-Uzodike

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Declaration

I, Varusha Naidoo (Student Number 962081338), declare that

(i) The research reported in this thesis, except where otherwise indicated, is
my original research.

(ii) This thesis has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any
other university.

(iii) This thesis does not contain other persons’ data, pictures, graphs or other
information, unless specifically acknowledged as being sourced from
other persons.

(iv) This thesis does not contain other persons’ writing, unless specifically
acknowledged as being sourced from other researchers. Where other
written sources have been quoted, then:
a) their words have been re-written but the general information attributed
to them has been referenced;
b) where their exact words have been used, their writing has been placed
inside quotation marks, and referenced.

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Dedication

For my daughter, Danisha.

Because I know that the foreign policy choices that we make will determine the
trajectory of our country in the international arena; ultimately impacting on the world
that you grow up in…

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Acknowledgements

My first words of appreciation go to my supervisor, Professor N. I. Okeke-Uzodike: it
was his mentoring and guidance which led me down the path to higher studies and it
was, indeed, his nagging which motivated me to complete the journey I had begun.
His understanding of my need to take a longer than usual route and his support until
the very end has earned him both my deep respect and sincere gratitude.

I would also like to thank my parents whose unwavering belief in my abilities inspired
me not only to aim high but also to bring those ambitions to fruition. I have been
fortunate in terms of the support received from my family in general and from certain
aunts in particular – for this I am thankful.

It would be remiss of me not to mention the numerous colleagues from whose insight
I benefitted or whose reverse psychology spurred me to finish this degree. In
addition, I want to acknowledge the participants in my study who shared their time
and thoughts. It is their contribution which underpins the distinctiveness of my
research.

I save my final words of appreciation for my husband and daughter who were
hijacked into accompanying me on this journey. Thank you for being such willing
victims.

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Acronyms/Abbreviations

AIDS Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome
ANC African National Congress
ARF African Renaissance and International Cooperation Fund
ASGISA Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa
AU African Union
BLS Botswana, Lesotho, and Swaziland
BLNS Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland
BOSS Bureau of State Security
BRIC Brazil, Russia, India, China coalition
CFSP Common Foreign and Security Policy
COMESA Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa
CES COMESA-EAC-SADC
COSATU Congress of South African Trade Unions
CTBT Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty
DBSA Development Bank of Southern Africa
DIRCO Department of International Relations and Cooperation
DG Director-General
DFA Department of Foreign Affairs
DFID Department for International Development
DRC Democratic Republic of Congo
DTI Department of Trade and Industry
EAC East African Community
EU European Union
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EPAs Economic Partnership Agreements
FDI Foreign Direct Investment
FTA Free Trade Agreement
FOCEM Fund for Mercosur Structural Convergence
G4 Brazil, Germany, India and Japan
G7 Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom and the
United States of America
G8 Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom, United
States of America and Russia (EU also represented)
G20 Group of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors of 20
major economies: South Africa, Canada, Mexico, United States
of America, Argentina, Brazil, China, Japan, South Korea, India,
Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Turkey, France, Germany,
Italy, United Kingdom, Australia and European Union
G77 Largest intergovernmental organization of developing states in
the United Nations
GDP Gross Domestic Product
GEAR Growth, Employment and Redistribution
HCTs (British) High Commission Territories
HIV Human immunodeficiency virus
IBSA India, Brazil, South Africa
ICC International Criminal Court
ICTS Cluster International Cooperation, Trade and Security Cluster
IRPS Cluster International Relations, Peace and Security Cluster
IFIs International Financial Institutions
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IMF International Monetary Fund
IIRSA Initiative for the Integration of South American Regional
Infrastructure
IRIN Integrated Regional Information Networks which focus on
humanitarian stories in regions that are often under-reported,
misunderstood or ignored.
ISI Import Substitution Industrialization
FIFA Fédération Internationale de Football Association (The
International Federation of Association Football)
MDC Movement for Democratic Change
MDGs Millennium Development Goals
MERCOSUR Mercado Común del Sur (Southern Common Market)
NAM Non-aligned Movement
NEPAD New Partnership for Africa’s Development
NICs Newly industrialized countries
NPT Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
OAU Organisation of African Unity
PCRD Post Conflict Reconstruction and Development
PUDEMO People's United Democratic Movement
PWV region Pretoria-Witwatersrand-Vereeniging
RISDP Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan
RDP Reconstruction and Development Programme
RECs Regional Economic Communities
RSA Republic of South Africa
SAC South American Community
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SACP South African Communist Party
SACU Southern Africa Customs Union
SADC Southern African Development Community
SADCC Southern African Development Co-ordination Conference
SADPA South African Development Partnership Agency
SANDF South African National Defence Force
SASS South African Secret Service
SWAPO South West African People’s Organisation
TRC Truth and Reconciliation Commission
UK United Kingdom
UN United Nations
UNASUR Union of South American Nations
UNSC United Nations Security Council
UNCTAD United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
UNCED UN Conference on Environment and Development
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization
UNFPA United Nations Population Fund
UNHCR UN High Commissioner for Refugees
UNICEF United Nations Children's Fund
UNOMSA United Nations Observer Mission in South Africa (1994)
USA United States of America
USAID United States Agency for International Development
WEF World Economic Forum
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WTO World Trade Organisation
ZANU-PF Zimbabwe African National Union – Patriotic Front

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Abstract

Africa is at the cross roads as it redefines itself within a new framework of political
and economic linkages. The terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 in the United
States illustrate both the dangers of reckless foreign policy choices as well as the need
for cooperation with regard to transnational threats. From the exclusive policies of
‘total onslaught’ to the inclusive policies of the African Renaissance, South Africa has
tried almost everything but remains unable to find an acceptable niche for herself in
Southern Africa. Deep suspicions about South African intentions and commitment
persist despite the reality of shared fears of further marginalisation, and aspirations of
more propitious integration, within a rapidly globalising international environment.

In understanding these dynamics, this study traces the evolution of South Africa’s
contemporary relationship with the Southern African region and rationalizes this
relationship within a broader theoretical framework based on development, discourse
and hegemonic stability theories as well as the middle-power and pivot-state
paradigms. In addition, the study assesses South Africa’s foreign policy options in
light of both domestic constraints and the perceptions of other countries within the
region.

In essence, South Africa’s regional foreign policy dilemma is a product of the
country’s inability to adjust timeously its strategic compass in the mercurial world of
foreign policy where a country seeking to advance an ambitious foreign policy agenda
will always be confronted with powers arrayed against it, forces that it cannot manage
and battles that it cannot win. As this thesis argues, South Africa’s inability to
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