The notion that  representative democracy and free market capitalism are two sides of the same coin was a long time coming in the history of the so-called developed world – the result of a long courtship if you want, that came to a “perfect” fusion especially after World War II. But now there are increasing signs that a 30-year itch, which started in the 1970s, has developed into a crisis of confidence and that the globe is about to experience a  messy divorce of the erstwhile trusting partners.

As the year draws to a close we enter a period of celebration, peace and goodwill. Across Africa millions will be commemorating the birth of Christ this month. A short while later the New Year will be welcomed with much celebration. And across the Atlantic in faraway America, many of the children of the African Diaspora will also be celebrating Kwanzaa. But last week, on December 6, many Africans – and others around the world - were commemorating the life of one of Africa’s true heroes, Frantz Fanon.

If one should ask any South African news media consumer which individual featured the most prominently in the local news during 2011, the more than likely response would be “Julius Malema of the ANC Youth League (ANCYL).” That is also reflected in our coverage during the year. He did not however deliver the most read  article of the year to date.

With South Africa firmly ensconced within the international relations arena made up of BRICS, non-aligned countries and countries that assisted the ANC during the struggle to end apartheid, Pretoria has repeatedly found itself at odds with major Western powers with its foreign policy. But it is especially relations with France that are experiencing strain as SA makes its latest move in the world of African power diplomacy.  At stake is the job of Commissioner of the African Union.

The December holiday period gets under way in earnest this week as many sectors scale-down or close in the wake of school term ending last week. It is also the unofficial start of the cycling season in South Africa, with thousands of cyclists training for the world’s biggest timed race, the Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour. Unfortunately it is also the time when cycling accidents often dominate the news.

One must be careful when attempting to make predictions about Africa, especially on the political front. But we know that 2012 will be a year of elections in Africa with no less than 24 presidential and parliamentary elections, or both scheduled. But as has become customary it is uncertain if all will take place and at the allotted date. This therefore has to remain a subjective but honest attempt, to highlight some possible events that might dominate the political front in Africa during 2012.

At their Brussels summit last week, European leaders were able to agree on a fiscal union. But on the market front the jury is still out with indications that those who were hoping for eminent stability will be disappointed because a major crisis in the continent’s banking sector might be much closer than many realise. It probably has signaled the beginning a new European-, and wider, geopolitical reality.

A marathon United Nations climate conference in Durban on Sunday approved a road map toward an accord which, for the first time, will bring all major emitters of greenhouse gases under a single legal roof – signalling unexpected success for the South African-led summit. If approved as scheduled in 2015, the pact will be operational from 2020 and become the prime weapon in the fight against climate change.

Crisis? What crisis? There is nothing much wrong with South African football according to SAFA headquarters, anyway. However, Bafana Bafana did not qualify for the 2012 African Nations Cup and the national under-20s fell short of a World Cup spot after being knocked out in the group phase of the African Youth championship earlier in 2011. The national under 23-team were also knocked out of the African under-23 championship, failing to qualify for the 2012 Olympics.

“We cannot generalise, but can we seriously and honestly say that a loving, caring  sense of solidarity exist amongst all farming communities. With that I mean [between] farmers and workers. The irony is that innocent farmers sometimes pay the price for situations where colleagues persevere with racism and abuse,” Dr Braam Hanekom, moderator of the Dutch Reformed Synod in the Western Cape, said in an interview with Leadership Intelligence Bulletin.

While negotiations at the United Nations-sponsored COP17 conference in Durban focused on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the insurance sector, which facilitates the mechanism by which society pools its resources to cope with risk, hosted a side event to underpin the critical importance of adapting to climate change since certain impacts of climate change have become unavoidable, and there is an urgent need to adapt to them.

The South African selection committee reconvened last week to make their recommendations for the Sri Lankan tour and decided to add the names of Marchant de Lange, speed merchant of the Titans, and Alviro Petersen, to the mix. There were no wholesale changes, Ashwell Prince and Mark Boucher survived after very mediocre performances against Australia. One of the notable survivors is Graeme Smith. In fact, the captain of the test team has survived for almost eight years.

It is that time of the year again, where we can sit back and relax after a busy year, listen to or sing-along with a few well-known lullabies. If the year behind us was successful enough we could maybe afford to rest a bit on our laurels. But we should also be mindful of how we behave, or else a tradition close to the roots of lullabies might just come back to haunt us.

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