I have just recently returned from a week-long visit to Sweden, which gave me the opportunity to reflect on the many contrasts with life in South Africa.
The trip originated in my having participated in the Democratic Alliance Young Leaders Programme last year, prior to joining the Institute of Race Relations.
I was one of the two participants selected to travel to the Swedish capital for a week to meet with various leaders of the Centre Party (or Centerpartiet), a centre-right political party founded in 1910, and Sweden’s fourth largest.
My selection was based on my having successfully run an initiative called Lulisandla Projects, that operated in Umzinyathi and Ngonweni, two rural communities some 30 kilometres north-west of Durban. The initiative raised funds to supply full school uniforms and food parcels to 30 learners (15 boys and 15 girls) in Umzinyathi Primary School and Silwane Primary School. My initiative also included various minor renovations at the schools.
Travelling abroad
Our trip to Sweden was postponed several times due to Covid-19 travel restrictions, but we were finally able to set off two weeks ago. It was my first experience of travelling abroad, so I was looking forward to it. Not only was the trip an opportunity to learn more about Swedish politics as well as the European Union, but it gave me an opportunity to talk about South Africa’s political climate, and of course to reflect on life and politics back home.
We were accompanied by a Swedish friend from the Centre Party who, from the beginning of the year, had spent six months as an intern at the DA International Office. So, happily we had someone who was familiar with Stockholm to show us around the beautiful city.
Upon our arrival, I was immediately struck by the cleanliness of the city as well as the efficiency of public services. Riding the train into Stockholm from Arlanda International Airport, I could not help but think about where it all went wrong in South Africa. When my friend told me that the trains in the city are run by the municipality this further reinforced my view that some services in South Africa should be devolved (specifically the country’s railway).
The national government in South Africa has done a pathetic job in managing the country’s rail networks and should be blamed for their destruction. In the state capture commission of inquiry’s fifth report released last week Wednesday, Chief Justice Raymond Zondo observed that despite the extensive evidence he had heard about the rot at the state rail service during the public hearings he still felt that there was more to be uncovered. He called for a special commission of inquiry to probe the Passenger Railway Agency of South Africa (Prasa), and in particular, how it was allowed to slide into ‘almost total ruin’.
In all honesty, South Africans are tired of commissions of inquiries. We want to see the arrest of corrupt government officials.
Masks
One of the other things that caught my attention was that Covid-19 was considered as a thing of the past in Sweden. No one wore masks, there was no requirement to produce proof of vaccination, and there was no limit on public gatherings. At that time, the South African government had yet to drop the remaining Covid-19 restrictions. My colleagues at the Institute of Race Relations were still fighting tirelessly to have them scrapped, which finally happened last week. At least in this sense South Africa has become a bit more Swedish – better late than never.
The Swedish Social Democratic Party is the governing party in Sweden. To my surprise, after engaging with a few political figures on my first day in the country, I discovered that Sweden is a well-functioning social welfare state. However, I must highlight that high economic growth and minimal state intervention helped Sweden to become a wealthy nation. This, in turn, has enabled the country to successfully fund its welfare state.
Sweden played an important role in fighting apartheid. During the 1960s a nationwide anti-apartheid movement was established in Sweden, leading to the country becoming the only European country to give official support to the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa at the time. One of the prominent figures in Swedish politics that I had the pleasure to meet in person is the Secretary General of the Centre Party, Michael Arthursson. He recalled how the Centre Party Youth played a role in raising apartheid awareness in Sweden, and more broadly in Europe, when he was its Federal Secretary in the eighties.
Many political figures that I had the pleasure to meet were interested to know more about ‘State Capture’, the effects of wide-scale corruption on the country and its economy, and how the national government intends to deal with the high-level corruption it still faces.
2024 election
Another topic that they were interested in discussing was the 2024 general election. It was clear that even though many of them supported the ANC when it fought the racist apartheid regime, they believe that it is currently failing South Africans and it is time for a change in leadership. I highlighted that the 2021 local government election results provided a clear indication that the ANC was losing support, and further emphasised that there was a chance that it could possibly be removed from power in 2024 through a coalition of opposition parties.
Additionally, many expressed much concern about the desire of the ANC and EFF to implement expropriation without compensation (EWC). I assured them that this was receiving a lot of push-back from the Democratic Alliance as well as other opposition parties and think tanks, but that the battle was far from being over, with the Expropriation Bill as well as the Land Court Bill yet to be voted on in parliament (where the ANC enjoys a majority).
Apart from meeting politicians, I also had the opportunity to do some sightseeing. This included visiting various museums, suburbs, malls, and even a theme park. I travelled mostly by bus and train. It struck me how safe it was to walk around Stockholm at night. There were days when my friends and I would walk home to our apartment after midnight, but I never felt unsafe. Over the past few years, I have travelled to many cities across South Africa. I constantly feel the need to walk fast because of the risk of getting mugged, and also reach for my pocket every few seconds to check that I still have my phone.
A few minutes after landing at Cape Town International Airport, I got a notification that load-shedding was being reintroduced. What a way for my country to say: ‘Welcome back!’
This made me only more eager to see change in South Africa. The first step to seeing real change is by voting the corrupt ANC out of power in the 2024 general elections.
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