Whither South Africa?

Southern Africa has today arrived at the crossroads, and whatever might have been the issues that united or divided its peoples in the past, the choice which confronts them today is clear; it is -between the institution of a free enterprise economy, an open society and a democratic polity, on the one hand and a centrally administered economy, a monolithic society and a totalitarian polity on the other hand.It is the theme of this paper that in a highly diversified and segmented society such as ours, a democratic polity can be developed and maintained only on a decentralised, federal and consociational basis. Decentralisation and federalism tend in practice to go together as do unitary and centralised states.