The decline of the Namibian opposition 1990-1994, and prospects for the future

Simple item page
dc.contributor.authorRand, Catherineen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2014-10-17T07:28:29Z
dc.date.available2014-10-17T07:28:29Z
dc.date.issued1995en_ZA
dc.descriptionIncludes bibliographical references.en_ZA
dc.description.abstractNamibia's founding election did not bring SWAPO a two-thirds majority. Opposition parties' combined votes totalled a third of the poll, giving a strong minority of National Assembly seats to a number of opposition parties. Namibia seemed a ready example of a successful negotiated transition to multi-party democracy. However, in the first five years since independence the opposition parties have fallen behind as SW APO has continued to consolidate its electoral and legislative power. In the first five years since independence the opposition parties have had little effect on government policy-making and have declined significantly in electoral strength - in the second National Assembly election in December 1994 the opposition parties combined decreased from 31 to 19 seats. SW APO, therefore, gained a resounding two-thirds majority, raising concern that Namibia is largely a de facto one-party state. This paper explores reasons for the lack of opposition party influence in the First Parliament and for the electoral decline experienced by the opposition. It is based on interviews with several opposition party leaders as well as other individuals with Namibian expertise. Conclusions are also drawn from primary research on the Hansard debates of the Namibian National Assembly, the Constitution and the Standing Rules and Orders of the National Assembly. Institutional structures within the existing Namibian political system are one reason for the decline of-opposition politics in the country: they limit opposition parties' ability to develop both a wider support base and, concurrently, to influence legislation. Equally important in stifling the growth of the opposition parties are organisation and other internal weaknesses on the part of the parties themselves. Socio-cultural realities in Namibia likewise affect the growth of opposition parties.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationRand, C. (1995). <i>The decline of the Namibian opposition 1990-1994, and prospects for the future</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Political Studies. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/8471en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationRand, Catherine. <i>"The decline of the Namibian opposition 1990-1994, and prospects for the future."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Political Studies, 1995. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/8471en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationRand, C. 1995. The decline of the Namibian opposition 1990-1994, and prospects for the future. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Rand, Catherine AB - Namibia's founding election did not bring SWAPO a two-thirds majority. Opposition parties' combined votes totalled a third of the poll, giving a strong minority of National Assembly seats to a number of opposition parties. Namibia seemed a ready example of a successful negotiated transition to multi-party democracy. However, in the first five years since independence the opposition parties have fallen behind as SW APO has continued to consolidate its electoral and legislative power. In the first five years since independence the opposition parties have had little effect on government policy-making and have declined significantly in electoral strength - in the second National Assembly election in December 1994 the opposition parties combined decreased from 31 to 19 seats. SW APO, therefore, gained a resounding two-thirds majority, raising concern that Namibia is largely a de facto one-party state. This paper explores reasons for the lack of opposition party influence in the First Parliament and for the electoral decline experienced by the opposition. It is based on interviews with several opposition party leaders as well as other individuals with Namibian expertise. Conclusions are also drawn from primary research on the Hansard debates of the Namibian National Assembly, the Constitution and the Standing Rules and Orders of the National Assembly. Institutional structures within the existing Namibian political system are one reason for the decline of-opposition politics in the country: they limit opposition parties' ability to develop both a wider support base and, concurrently, to influence legislation. Equally important in stifling the growth of the opposition parties are organisation and other internal weaknesses on the part of the parties themselves. Socio-cultural realities in Namibia likewise affect the growth of opposition parties. DA - 1995 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 1995 T1 - The decline of the Namibian opposition 1990-1994, and prospects for the future TI - The decline of the Namibian opposition 1990-1994, and prospects for the future UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/8471 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/8471
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationRand C. The decline of the Namibian opposition 1990-1994, and prospects for the future. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Humanities ,Department of Political Studies, 1995 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/8471en_ZA
dc.language.isoeng
dc.publisher.departmentDepartment of Political Studiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Humanitiesen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherPolitical Studiesen_ZA
dc.titleThe decline of the Namibian opposition 1990-1994, and prospects for the futureen_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMAen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
thesis_hum_1995_rand_c.pdf
Size:
1.31 MB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download
Collections
Masters