Kumbaya won't cut it. Why South Africa needs better, not less conflict.
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Charmeela Bhagowat speaks with conflict resolution practitioner and author Andre Vlok about why South Africa keeps repeating cycles of anger, distrust, and violence. In this episode, Andre argues that violence and social breakdown are symptoms, not root causes. The conversation moves from gender-based violence and urban conflict to leadership, identity, liberalism, and how cities, institutions, and individuals can learn to handle conflict better.
Chapters
- 00:00 Justice, gender-based violence, and looking beyond symptoms
- 00:44 Introducing the series on fear, anger, distrust, and belonging
- 05:28 The July 2021 unrest and how conflict escalates
- 08:45 Violence, history, and learned behavior
- 13:18 Conflict resolution, management, and transformation
- 18:03 Why conflict resolution isn’t simply compromise
- 21:02 Truth, reconciliation, and the cost of avoiding difficult conversations
- 22:36 Public narratives, division, and leadership
- 34:51 How cities can shape stress and reactions to strangers
- 42:23 Building conflict skills into city administration
- 48:38 Why people support leaders who may not serve their interests
- 52:14 AI, deepfakes, and democracy
- 55:02 Andre on freedom, boundaries, and responsibility
- 01:01:14 Andre’s books and a call to model better conflict behavior