
New Patterns of Mobilization for and against Democracy
Moses Tofa
Contact: m.tofa(at)uniandes.edu.co
Head of Research and Policy, The African Federation
Research project
Convoluted sources of pernicious polarization: A comparative study of Zimbabwe and South Africa
Political polarization has become a major threat to the future of democracy in Zimbabwe and South Africa. In both countries, polarization has diverse sources such as populism, ideological deficiencies or differences, and intolerant political discourses. It is interesting that South Africa is a celebrated democracy and Zimbabwe is an authoritarian state, but both of them are deeply polarized. This comparative study seeks to examine the causes and consequences of polarization in both countries and the measures that should be taken to mitigate it.