Ben Turok – författare

This title begins from the standpoint that new thinking is needed if South Africa is to generate sustainable economic growth, provide employment and decent work and promote rural development. As comparisons with other developing economies, particularly South Korea and Brazil, show, it is possible for the so-called developmental state to direct and plan economic activity and achieve developmental objectives. At the same time the title warns about the perverse impacts of black economic empowerment, particularly the growth of a rentier class of well-connected entrepreneurs.

Providing a selection of important documents and extracts that have influenced the political and policy thinking of the African National Congress (ANC) during the course of its history—from its founding in 1912 to the Polokwane national conference in 2007—this book fully covers the history and policies of one of the world's most historically important political parties. Fantastically detailed and comprehensive, these texts constitute the foundation of present thought and political culture in the ANC.

Ben Turok, a former anti apartheid activist and veteran ANC MP, played a key role in the writing of the Freedom Charter, in particular its chapter dealing with economic equality. In November 2011, he broke party ranks and did not vote for the controversial Protection of Information Bill, also known as the Secrecy Bill. As cochairman of Parliament's ethics committee, he enforced strict compliance among MPs with the asset disclosure policy and presided over two controversial cases—those of former communications minister Dina Pule and ANC MP Yolanda Botha, who faced charges of fraud and corruption. With My Head above the Parapet is a record of Ben Turok's experience as a participant in the political life of South Africa since 1994. It is also an insightful account of the ANC's decline and current malaise, told by an insider intent on holding his party to its historical mission of liberating South Africa from poverty, inequality, and discrimination.