In seeking to reignite the fervour of its revolutionary past, the ANC and the government it leads is playing a high-stakes game.
South Africa consistently affirms its non-aligned stance in international affairs, most recently at the 19th summit of the non-aligned movement on 19 January 2024 (1). Yet, the government’s decision to pursue a case of genocide against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) casts a long, dark shadow over its stated foreign policy position. This move embodies hidden motivations and contradictions that risk producing profound complications for the country’s economic situation.
While ostensibly a bold stride in promoting international justice, South Africa’s action aligned it with countries like Iran, Russia, Turkey, and Venezuela, whose own records on human rights and democracy are highly questionable. This, in turn, exposes South Africa to the risk of increasing isolation from economic behemoths like the United States (US) and European Union (EU).
The US and United Kingdom (UK), for instance, are tied at 17th out of 165 countries on the Human Freedom Index (HFI) published by the Fraser Institute. Israel enjoys a rank of 59th. The strong rule of law, extensive economic freedoms, and protective measures for individual liberties that characterise these countries are the fundamentals of an environment conducive to human flourishing. These attributes contribute substantially to their high per capita incomes, with jurisdictions in the top quartile of freedom enjoying an average per capita income of $47 421, and overall higher quality of life with an average life expectancy of 80 years at birth. This is substantiated by the 0.919, 0.921, and 0.929 Human Development Index (HDI) scores that Israel, the UK and the US respectively earned.
On the flip side, countries like Iran, Russia, Turkey, and Venezuela rank significantly lower on the HFI – 161st, 121st, 128th and 160th, respectively. And the restricted freedoms in these countries are reflected in their low human development scores of 0.774 (Iran), 0.882 (Russia), 0.838 (Turkey), and 0.691 (Venezuela). Life in these countries is tough because of authoritarian governance structures, limited economic freedoms, and constraints on personal liberty, all of which present a challenging environment for human rights and business operations.
The stark contrast in per capita income, with the least-free quartile averaging $14 157 (against $47 421 in the most-free quartile), underscores the economic implications of retricting freedom.