The Black Sash : assessment of a South African political interest group

[摘要] This research report is an assessment of a South African political interest group. Theinterest group under investigation is the Black Sash (a non-governmental humanrightsorganization). The Black Sash is an organization with a rich heritage whichdates back to 1955. The year 2005 commemorated the organization's 50th jubilee.This event together, with the contemporary relevance of the Millennium DevelopmentGoals, contributes to the significance of the case study under investigation. Theresearch report explains how the organization forms part of the interest group societyas it started out as a pressure group and then altered itself into becoming a civilsociety organization during the 1990s.This research report is divided into three equally important parts which jointlycontribute to an opinion on whether interest groups of the 21st century are maintainingthe status quo or not. The first part is on theory, the second on description and thethird on analysis. The part on theory gives a substantial synopsis of the current stanceof literature on various facets of the operation of interest groups. The part ondescription gives a descriptive summary of the history and current characteristics ofthe Black Sash. The part on analysis investigates the development of the Black Sashuntil now with a focus on significant drivers of change.This research report found that the Black Sash – as representative of a 21st centuryinterest group – is not maintaining the status quo. The available theory on interestgroups is not sufficient to conduct impact assessments and might be presented as areason for the serious lack of impact assessments at present. This finding implicatesthat the current available theory is in need of modification. Areas which lacktheorizing in total, as well as areas which need further study are specifically revealed.A recommendation is put forward that new explanations and even a new vocabularyare required in these specified areas. A contribution such as the supplementation ofexisting theory on interest groups will enable impact assessments which will alter theway in which the relationship between these groups and public policy are understood.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University