Mobilising for the realisation of the right to food in South Africa By Bright Nkrumah Submitted in

398 Pages·2017·2.81 MB·English

Mobilising for the realisation of the right to food in South Africa

By
Bright Nkrumah

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the award of the degree Doctor of
Philosophy (Dphil) in the Faculty of Law, University of Pretoria

July 2017

Supervisor: Prof. Magnus Killander

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University of Pretoria
Declaration of Originality

I, Bright Nkrumah (Student Number: 11326868), hereby declare that this dissertation is the
product of my own research activity. I further declare that this dissertation has not previously
been submitted for any degree or examination at the University of Pretoria or any other
institution.

1 November 2017
Signature Date

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Table of Contents

Declaration of Originality ............................................................................................... i
Dedication ................................................................................................................... vii
Acknowledgements .....................................................................................................viii
Abstract .................................................................................................................... ix
Abbreviations and acronyms.......................................................................................... x
CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................ 1
INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 1
1. Research problem....................................................................................................... 1
2. Background ................................................................................................................ 2
3. Research question ...................................................................................................... 8
4. Methodology .............................................................................................................. 8
4.1. Desktop research ..................................................................................................... 9
4.2. Case study ................................................................................................................. 10
5. Conceptual clarification ........................................................................................... 10
5.1. Definition of chronic hunger ................................................................................. 10
5.1.1. Trends in chronic hunger: 2010 to 2015 ........................................................................ 12
5.2. Social protest ......................................................................................................... 15
6. Literature review ...................................................................................................... 16
6.1. Philosophical underpinnings of the right to food .................................................. 16
6.2. Food (in)security in South Africa ......................................................................... 23
6.3. How to achieve policy change .............................................................................. 29
8. Outline of chapters ................................................................................................... 35
CHAPTER TWO ......................................................................................................... 34
THEORY AND PRACTICE OF SOCIAL PROTEST ............................................... 34
1. Introduction .............................................................................................................. 34
2. Conceptual underpinning of social protest .............................................................. 35
2.1. What is social protest ............................................................................................ 36
2.2. What can be considered as social protest? ............................................................ 39
2.3. Reaction of state to protest action ......................................................................... 41
2.4. Role of bystanders................................................................................................. 44
3. Why do people protest? ........................................................................................... 46
3.1. Means of improving (socioeconomic) conditions................................................. 46
3.2. Personal interests of protesters.............................................................................. 47
3.3. Poor socioeconomic condition .............................................................................. 49
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3.4. Lack of formal representation ............................................................................... 51
3.5. The presence of a charismatic leader .................................................................... 52
1.South Africa .............................................................................................................. 53
4.1. History of protest in South Africa ......................................................................... 53
4.2. Social protest in post-apartheid South Africa ....................................................... 55
4.2.1. New wave of protest ...................................................................................................... 57
4.2.2. Causes of protest ............................................................................................................ 61
4.2.3. Rise of social protest ...................................................................................................... 63
4.2.4. Justifications of protest .................................................................................................. 66
4.2.5. Strategies of social protest ............................................................................................. 69
4.2.6. The notion of numbers and profile of protesters ............................................................ 71
5.Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 73
CHAPTER THREE ..................................................................................................... 75
THE RIGHT TO HAVE ACCESS TO ADEQUATE FOOD ..................................... 75
1.Introduction ............................................................................................................... 75
2. A conceptual approach to the right to food .............................................................. 77
3. The right to food in international law ...................................................................... 81
3.1. The right to food in the UDHR and ICESCR ....................................................... 82
3.2. Other right to food related human rights instruments ........................................... 86
4. Obligations of states in relation to right to food ...................................................... 92
5. The right to food in South Africa ............................................................................. 96
5.1. Constitutional obligations ..................................................................................... 98
5.2. Defining the content of the right to food in South Africa ................................... 101
5.3. Obligations of the South African government .................................................... 102
5.3.1. The obligation to respect .............................................................................................. 103
5.3.2. The obligation to protect the right to food ................................................................... 108
5.3.3. The obligation to promote and fulfill ........................................................................... 113
7. Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 125
CHAPTER FOUR ...................................................................................................... 129
THE CHALLENGE OF REALISING THE RIGHT TO FOOD .............................. 129
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................ 129
2. Tracing the root causes of chronic hunger in South Africa ................................... 129
3. Existing grounds for food interventions ................................................................ 133
3.1. The principle of inclusivity and flexibility ......................................................... 136
3.2. The principle of coherence and coordination...................................................... 139
4. The right to food and the problem of implementation ........................................... 141
4.1. Nutrition programmes ......................................................................................... 143
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4.2. School feeding programmes ............................................................................... 148
4.3. Social assistance programmes............................................................................. 151
4.4. Unemployment insurance programmes .............................................................. 160
4.5. Poverty Eradication Programmes ....................................................................... 161
4.6. Income generating programmes .......................................................................... 170
4.7.2. The Household Food and Nutrition Security Strategy ..................................... 180
5. Framework law ...................................................................................................... 184
6.1. Key features of framework law ........................................................................... 184
6.2. Merits of framework law .................................................................................... 189
5. Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 194
CHAPTER FIVE ....................................................................................................... 197
POLICY ACTORS AND SOCIAL POLICY CHANGE .......................................... 197
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................ 197
2.Social policy actors ................................................................................................. 198
2.1. Legislative branch ............................................................................................... 201
2.2. Executive branch ................................................................................................. 206
2.3. Judicial branch .................................................................................................... 207
2.3.1. Arguments for right to food claim ............................................................................... 212
2.3.2. Arguments against direct court litigation ..................................................................... 220
2.4. Chapter 9 institutions .......................................................................................... 223
2.5. Social policy and non-state policy actors ............................................................ 226
2.5.1. Non-governmental organisations ................................................................................. 227
2.5.2. The public .................................................................................................................... 229
2.5.4. Media ........................................................................................................................... 233
3.Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 234
CHAPTER SIX .......................................................................................................... 237
‗A STARVING MOB HAS NO RESPECT‘: FOOD PROTEST IN SOUTH AFRICA237
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................ 237
2. Food protest: a nuanced understanding of collective action .................................. 238
3. Mapping key factors which influence food protests .............................................. 239
3.1. Material factors ................................................................................................... 239
3.1.1. Food shortages ............................................................................................................. 240
3.1.2. Social assistance........................................................................................................... 241
3.1.3. Food rations ................................................................................................................. 242
3.1.4. Poor socioeconomic condition ..................................................................................... 243
3.2. Procedural factors ............................................................................................... 244
3.2.1. Civil society advocacy and campaigns ........................................................................ 244
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3.2.2. The media..................................................................................................................... 249
3.2.3. The courts..................................................................................................................... 251
3.2.4. The presence of a charismatic leader ........................................................................... 252
3.2.5. Opposition political parties‘ participation ................................................................... 258
4. Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 259
CHAPTER SEVEN ................................................................................................... 261
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS .................................................... 261
1. Introduction ............................................................................................................ 261
2. Overview ................................................................................................................ 262
3. Conclusions ............................................................................................................ 267
4. Recommendations .................................................................................................. 269
6. Areas for further research ...................................................................................... 273
LIST OF CASES........................................................................................................ 274
South Africa ............................................................................................................... 274
Regional level ............................................................................................................ 276
LIST OF INSTRUMENTS ........................................................................................ 277
Legislation and Treaties ............................................................................................. 277
National instruments .................................................................................................. 277
Regional instruments ................................................................................................. 278
Global instruments ..................................................................................................... 279
DECISIONS, DECLARATIONS, GENERAL COMMENTS AND RESOLUTIONS280
Global level ................................................................................................................ 280
GUIDELINES, POLICIES AND REGULATIONS ................................................. 281
National level ............................................................................................................. 281
Regional level ............................................................................................................ 282
Global level ................................................................................................................ 282
BIBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................................... 283
Books ................................................................................................................. 283
Chapters in Books ...................................................................................................... 305
Journal articles ........................................................................................................... 313
Reports and Papers ..................................................................................................... 367
Newsletters/ Newspaper Article ................................................................................ 370
Online Resources ....................................................................................................... 373

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Dedication
To Veronica, Bright Jnr and Mrs Itsaneng Nkrumah

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Acknowledgements

My special thanks to God for His everlasting grace. I would like to thank my supervisor,
Professor Magnus Killander, for his encouragement, guidance, time, and patience throughout
the programme. Let me also acknowledge my director, Professor Frans Viljoen for his
encouragement.

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Abstract
The realisation of the right to food in South Africa is characterised by some stark realities.
While there is social security structure and large productive agriculture sector ensuring
national food security, more than 14 million South Africans are chronically hungry. Given
that access to food is an important legal and political issue in South Africa, it is important to
understand the various factors, which enable or hinder the state‘s effort to eradicate chronic
hunger.
A major problem identified is the incoherence in government‘s policies, which on the one
hand, supports the promotion of the right to food, yet, act to undermine it at the same time.
This problem can be grouped under two headings. First, inadequate and fragmented food
security polices, and poor implementation of these policies. Second, the exclusion of large
sections of low-income groups from government‘s social protection programmes, which has
negative implications for many women, men, and children who have an insufficient supply of
calories. The impact of chronic hunger and malnutrition on these individuals include
heightened vulnerability to illness, stunted growth among children, serious mental and
physical effects among children, and in some cases death.
This thesis explores the factors that explain the limited mobilisation around the realisation of
the right to food in South Africa despite widespread chronic hunger. It considered various
strategies to achieve a change in policy and legislation including lobbying and litigation. The
thesis further explored why South Africa, which is riddled with numerous social protests
rarely experiences food protests. Social protest, as used here, consists of struggles or
resistance against government actions or inactions. The thesis identified various factors that
have contributed to and acted as a hindrance against food protest in various jurisdictions and
examined how these factors have prevented widespread food protest in South Africa.

Keywords: chronic hunger, food poor, human rights, malnutrition, poverty, food protest,
right to food

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