184 Final Project Draft/Outline
- Something that is even catching the attention of those in America today is the possibility of Donald Trump being sent to prison. An event of this nature occurred in South Africa when former President Jacob Zuma was sent to prison in 2021 for 15 months. Subsequently, he was sent back to prison after it was deemed that his parole sentenced was unlawful. Through completion of my investigation on the issue, I will provide a background into corruption in South Africa, as well as what the country is doing to fight it.
2. The issue of corruption in South Africa is one that is not very deep-rooted. But more recently, one of the notable events causing this issue in the country was the Apartheid regime in the from the mid to late 1900s. This is where the regime was receiving funds internally, as well as from abroad, to facilitate the country’s discrimination efforts. These issues/scandals had not particularly come to light, though, until the presidency of Jacob Zuma, which began in 2009. This is perhaps what defined his reign the most, and it is something that lingers to this day. There are various scandals in which Zuma was involved, but one in particular ended up with him being imprisoned. Zuma’s home was in Nkandla, and was being publicly funded. The home was marvelous and had a plethora of top-tier amenities, but it was found as a violation of the constitution in court. The Zuma administration’s closest relationship was with the Gupta family. The Guptas are an Indian family in South Africa that is very prominent in the technology scene. There were multiple unlawful exchanges that happened in this relationship, such as Zuma’s relatives obtaining jobs, the Guptas choosing government officials, a very large cashflow, etc. In 2014, Zuma struck a nuclear deal with Russia, which had actually evaded the South African laws of procurement. The South African state-owned electricity public utility company, Eskom, was involved with at least four known organized crime groups, all of which Zuma was aware. These scandals all together cost the country hundreds of billions of American dollars and has been the ultimate legacy of President Zuma.
3. But perhaps the most well-known is his arms deal from the late 1990s. This would acquire arms from European countries when much of Africa was impoverished due to the heightening of AIDS. As a result of the deal, there were 16 different charges facing Jacob Zuma. Of these charges, there was money laundering, racketeering, fraud, etc. In March of 2016, it was revealed that there were 783 illegal payments made/accepted by Zuma. It was then announced that he would be sentenced to fifteen years in federal prison.
4. Corruption in South Africa only came to light in depth recently. In a 2013 study done by Afrobarometer, 66% of the country’s population believes that corruption in South Africa is not handled well. In Africa as a whole, the average is only around 55%. The legal framework in South Africa regarding these issues is very similar to what we have in the United States. But, I think it points to, not only a problem in South Africa, but also something that defines many of the countries around the world. Obviously, South Africa is a very interesting case. Because as a country that remained neutral with the Ukraine invasion, it brokers deals with many countries that those would consider to be communist or oppressive.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/11/21/south-african-court-orders-zuma-back-to-jail-after-ruling-medical-parole-was-unlawful
https://www.iol.co.za/news/politics/former-president-jacob-zumas-many-scandals-686a5e43-a729-5831-a646-f8edaf45de15
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/south-africas-divisive-ex-president-zumas-many-scandals-2021-06-29/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corruption_in_South_Africa