SA Rocks

Tomorrow brings on the 2009 election day. It’s time to vote.

I want to try and post as many ink-stained thumbs as I can find on SA Rocks. So send them through to me at: editor@sarocks.co.za or post in a link to your thumb photo in the comment section below.

Let’s vote and make a difference.

The ink-stained thumb above is courtesy of Cooksister!

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Ed’s note: This post is a contribution from Adam Currie who currently lives in the UK and cast his vote yesterday in the 2009 SA Elections.

Well the time had come….

Sitting on mud island, an entire time zone and continent away does not set exactly set the tone for making oneself feel “Seffrican”. But none the less after months of facebook reminder bombardments, news website updates and at least 3 phone calls to a confused and clueless South Africa House, the election was upon us…well abroad anyways.

I must admit that after hearing of the random Afrikaner teacher preaching his democratic rights, and even more random Freedom Front filing court orders to the nation’s highest courts, I never quite did believe that there would be a positive result. But there we were… lined up outside South African House Trafalgar Square with 1 x green ID, 1 x passport and 7000 x other Saffa’s ready to, for lack of a better cliché, make our mark.

Calls from mates mid afternoon with tales of horror story delays of 2 hours plus, I trekked up the Northern Line expecting the worst and asking myself is it all worth it? I joined the queue and prepared for a scrum of sweaty bodies on London’s hottest day of the year (20 degrees baby!). But wait…what was this? People lined up patiently…an orderly line with the only shouting being that of the South Africa Times vendor yelling out for anyone wanting free copies.

I wish I could tell you that stories of nostalgia, visions of apartheid uprisings or even passing Madiba’s statue on the way to the embassy inspired me to place my vote…but I can’t. All through my life I have been bombarded with messages dictating that we are the “lucky” generation, and that this vote is a privilege. However I think not. I consider it not a privilege but a right and feel that the real stalwarts of the struggle would be proud of that mindset. If Sisulu and Tambo thought that a white boy standing next to his black brother in a vote for the nation’s leadership, and thinking nothing of it, I reckon they would turn to each other and give each other a good pat on the back…struggle won.

Of course we should remember and respect what was done leading up to a democracy, however at the same time we must put them where they belong…in thoughts, prayers and history books. In that queue we stood, black, white, coloured…and, occasionally, some lost Spanish tourist thinking it was the queue for the gallery. We stood alongside each other in jovial spirits chuffed at the fact we were allowed to make a difference- no matter how small- to the land that we love and for 90 percent of people there- the land that we WILL return. People often claim that expats should not be allowed to vote in that they have ‘turned their backs’ on the country. Well the procession outside SA House begged to differ as thousands lined the streets to cast their vote for a country they truly hold dear and I have no doubt will experience a brain flood (note the way I reversed brain drain there…sharp wasn’t it?) within the coming years.

The process was smooth as the line shifted inside with African flashbacks of Home Affairs beginning to make me tremble…but to no avail. The vibe was organised and efficient and within minutes I stood, purple marker scarred hand and ready to (insert cheesy political party signboard slogan here). I stepped up to the booth…had a giggle at some of the parties listed (come on….some are hilarious- I mean surely no one actually votes KISS) and marked my X. The entire build up was over…political debates from the finest minds in the land and months of campaigning for those brief few seconds had culminated in a sweet victory for me…the Seffrican abroad.

This is what election should be about. People lining up and savouring the spirit of the occasion, check political agendas at the door, walking in and placing their trust in a party that will cater for the masses. I often am amazed when Saffa’s bad mouth home. You get the occasional punter preaching how South Africa will descend into chaos and that classic “tsk tsk…we will go the way of Zim” remark…however these are clearly the okes that could not function a fax machine to apply for their vote, as everyone there CARED. Usually you only get that sort of vibe come Springbok games down the pub, however there it was…election queue and all.

When my British colleagues say that I should be grateful I got to cast my vote, my response is ‘why’? Why should I feel grateful that I am doing something that every South Africa should does have the right to do? The beauty of democracy and the one that I have grown up in makes me believe that this process is sacred yes, but also my right. So I say congrats to the freedom fighters of yesteryear, a massive thanks to the people at the voting station for a successful day…. and to note to all political leaders for next times overseas votes- boerie roll stand outside the embassy can guarantee you a majority!

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After all the bitching about the expat vote, the bitching about the process, and the conspiracy theories, I thought I’d tell you a little about my experience today here in London. As soon as the Constitutional Court decision came through, I sent off my & hubby’s application to vote abroad. I got an e-mail confirming receipt, and when I checked our status on the IEC website it was all in order – we were registered in Port Elizabeth and approved to vote in London. This afternoon I got to South Africa House on Trafalgar Square clutching my VEC 1 form, passport and ID book. Unlike this morning’s 2-hour queues, we only had a 30 minute wait but the 5-deep queue still snaked all the way along the front of the building. HIV Positive & the DA were walking around handing out literature and talking to people and there were loads of free SA newspapers being given out – it was a relaxed and happy atmosphere, rather like the 1994 election I thought – just with more red busses and pigeons!

Once inside, everything was very efficient and everyone was very friendly – plus we got a peek at the very lovely interior of the Sir Herbert Baker building and its Pierneef paintings. Bonus. We got an envelope on which we had to write our names & voting district, then we got the ballot paper and a second blank envelope (read about this system here). We were checked against the voters’ roll and had hour thumbs marked, and then we voted. I was tempted to seal my ballot paper with a kiss – it was that kind of shivers-down-the-spine moment.

This is one South African who is not about to give up lightly the right that so many of my countrymen fought and died for, no matter where I happen to be.

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I am very pleased to announce that SA Rocks has been nominated for Three SA Blog Awards this year. I’m not going to harp on about this but felt it deserved a blog post to mention and ask for readers to head over to the SA Blog Awards site and vote for SA Rocks.

If you click on the image below you will be taken to the voting page and SA Rocks will be highlighted already in the following categories:

South African Blog of the Year

Best Blog about Politics

Best Group Blog

Your support and votes would be very much appreciated!

There are some fantastic blogs nominated this year and a whole host of categories so be sure to look through and vote for your favourites.

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Straight from the horses mouth and compliments of the Cooksister‘s wily eyes:

Constitutional Court ruling on overseas voting
12&nbspMar&nbsp2009
The Constitutional Court this morning delivered judgements in various cases concerning voting by citizens finding themselves outside the country on Election Day.

As we understand, the outcome can be summarised as follows:

1. All South Africans, registered on the voters� roll, who will be outside the country on Election Day and therefore unable to vote at the voting stations where they are registered, will be able to vote by special vote. They will be able to vote by special vote on 15 April 2009 at any South African Embassy, High Commission or Consulate outside South Africa.

2. These voters must notify the Chief Electoral Officer on or before 27 March 2009 of their intention to do so and at the same time indicate at which Embassy, High Commission or Consulate they want to vote on 15 April 2009.

3. South Africans who will be outside the country on 22 April, but want to vote at their voting station on 20 or 21 April 2009 must notify the Chief Electoral Officer on or before 27 March 2009 of their intention to do so. They will vote at the office of the Presiding Officer which will be located at or near their voting station.

The Electoral Commission is satisfied that it will be able to manage the extended special voting process successfully. The fact that only registered voters will be able to utilise the 15-day period of application for special votes as decided by the Court is within the IEC�s operational ability. We appeal to all South Africans affected by this ruling to immediately utilise this opportunity to notify the Chief Electoral Officer of their intention to vote.

For more information including the downloading of the necessary forms (VEC10), please visit the IEC website on www.elections.org.za. The completed VEC10 forms should be emailed to vec10@elections.org.za by 27 March 2009 or faxed to 012-428 5566/012-428 5279 or mailed to Attention: Chief Electoral Officer, Electoral Commission, PO Box 7943, Pretoria 0001 or hand delivered to Attention: Chief Electoral Officer, Election House, 260 Walker Street, Sunnyside, Pretoria

ISSUED BY THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION

Pretoria
12 March 2009

For media enquiries please contact Kate Bapela on 082 600 6386

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The Concourt ruling came through today with a “go”. Voters can now submit their votes in the national election if they are living abroad.

From the DA:

Today, the Constitutional Court ruled ruled in favour of the DA’s court application that South Africans who are living temporarily abroad and who are registered as voters must be allowed to cast their vote in the upcoming elections.

The Constitutional Court also granted a new 15 day period for South Africans abroad to apply for a special vote overseas.

This 15 day period has begun and all South Africans who are registered to vote and who want to apply for a special vote must get their applications submitted to the IEC before 27 March 2009.

The DA encourages every South African who is living abroad and who is registered to vote to apply for a special vote so that you can have your say in the upcoming elections.

And News24:

Johannesburg – The Constitutional Court ruled on Thursday that registered voters living overseas can vote for the National Assembly in the April 22 elections.

They must notify the chief electoral officer of their intention to vote by March 27, the court ordered.

Handing down the first of two separate judgments Justice Kate O’Regan said the right to vote had a symbolic and democratic value.

However, the court did not support the move to allow registration abroad. Only registered voters abroad will be eligible to vote.

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That’s right, it is that time of year again. time for the SA Blog Awards.

Nominations are open so all you need to do is head over to the SA Blog Awards website and submit some nominations. I say “some” because you can’t simply nominate SA Rocks for “Best blog of the year”. You’ll need to put at least three other nominations in three other categories. So click the below blogawards keychain and vote for SA Rocks and as many other blogs as you can think of.

I have some suggestions for you if you are a bit stuck:

Matthew Buckland – Best Business Blog
Blacknotes – Most Humorous South African Blog
Cooksister – Best Overeas Blog
ThoughtLeader – Best Group Blog
Mark Forrester – Best Design Blog

There are some tips. But do yourself a favour, head over to Afrigator and search through the South African blogs and see what’s out there.

Please send out your vote for SA Rocks and spread the word about the awards. There are many deserving blogs out there that need your nominations.

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Fantastic news just came through via sms on my cellphone.

The PTA high court has ruled in favour of South Africans living abroad. They are now eligible to vote from overseas.

This can only be good news for our democracy moving forward. I think this is a great victory for the people of South African and our constitution.

From a SAPA report:

Pretoria – South Africans abroad should be allowed to vote, the Pretoria High Court ruled on Monday.

Handing down judgment, Acting Judge Piet Ebersohn ruled that the current legislation infringed on the rights of South Africans living abroad.

The court ruled that the electoral act “limited” the casting of votes to people temporarily living abroad. It referred the judgment to the Constitutional Court for confirmation.

The Independent Electoral Commission was also ordered to change its voting procedures so as to allow South Africans living abroad to vote.

Judgment may be overruled

Speaking outside the court, Freedom Front Plus spokesperson Willie Spies said the Constitutional Court could overrule the judgment.

The FF Plus brought the application on behalf of a South African school teacher living in the United Kingdom.

Currently certain groups, including government employees and people on holiday and business trips, could have arrangements made for special votes.

The party would file an application in the Pretoria High Court asking that the proclamation of the voting day be postponed to allow the Constitutional Court ample time to consider the matter.

The application was expected to be heard shortly after midday.

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I am very impressed with the advert that has emerged for the Confederation Cup next year in June.

You can apply for tickets at your nearest FNB branch or visit fifa.com.

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If crime isn’t a problem in SA and everyone has a job, if poverty doesn’t exist and everyone has food to eat, if every child is educated, not starving and has a roof over their heads and if South Africa is perfect…

then why vote?

The above statement is outrageous. At SA Rocks I have always maintained that I am not blindly and ignorantly positive. I am well aware of the problems facing South Africa but believe that they are problems that we can overcome, as a nation.

This is why today I have launched WhyVOTE?

WhyVOTE is an attempt at rallying people around registration and voting in the 2009 elections.

If this country is perfect in your eyes then why vote? But if you feel that change needs to take place then maybe it’s time you step up to the plate and contribute to your nation.

All the details are available on the site. So head over to WhyVOTE? and spread the word, download the banners and add your voice to the cause.

It’s time that we take back our country and show the world and our government and people how much we believe that SA really does Rock.

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