| Since its independence from the tyranny of Apartheid, South Africa has been hailed as a model for peaceful democratic transition. However the legitimacy of the South African state according to the perspectives of its citizens is questionable. In this study, I use Afrobarometer data from 2004 and 2008 to investigate these citizens' perspectives on trust, political approval and representative democratic values in an effort to shed light on the plausibility of future stability in the nation. The results are mixed; however, based on the data, it is clear that ethnic identity continues to account for both general and government trust, approval of political offices and policies, and representative democratic values as well as evaluation of the current democracy in South Africa. Additionally, as suggested by social capital theory, trust does have a significant influence on political approval. Finally, the citizens' support for representative democratic values and evaluation of the current democracy in South Africa are disconcertingly low. Taken together, the results of this study establish several concerns regarding the plausibility of continued stable democracy. Nevertheless, they also illuminate possible avenues for the improvement of trust and legitimacy in the nation which will reassure political stability in the future. |
