Economic deficiencies slowing reconciliation in South Africa

A research group is appealing for what it calls "radical reconciliation" in South Africa as the nation approaches the 20th anniversary of the end of apartheid. The report by the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation found stark inequalities that continue to fall along race lines.

The new study makes some heartening findings as South Africa approaches 20 years of democratic rule. Yet it also shows that the nation's old wounds go very deep. One of the survey's key findings is somewhat encouraging: just two decades after South Africa ended its race-based apartheid system, class is now more important to many South Africans than race.

However, researchers also found that South Africans at the very bottom of that scale are nearly all black, said Kim Wale, lead author of this week's report.

"One of our key findings is that South Africans report that class inequality has become the greatest impediment to national reconciliation," Wale said. "However, class inequality continues to reflect racial division."

The nation's last census backed that up, showing that on average, white South African households earn more than six times what black households do. Researchers interviewed more than 3,500 South Africans in all nine provinces for the institute's survey.

Original article: http://allafrica.com/stories/201312050084.html