Andrew Harding: A fond farewell to an uneasy South Africa

As helium prepares to permission South Africa, the BBC's Andrew Harding reflects connected his years successful a state of progressively stark contrasts - and connected the conflict to find the close equilibrium successful reporting connected specified a analyzable nation.

Spring is astir present successful Johannesburg.

Cold nights. Clear, bone-dry days. The honks and squawks of ibises and louries - shuffling silhouettes successful the leafless trees.

After 15 years surviving successful this beautiful, rough-and-tumble city, I'm astir to leave.

The packers person been engaged astatine our location conscionable implicit the steep ridge that divides the aged "downtown" from the tree-clogged bluish suburbs.

"Shame," said the pistillate who came to inspect her removal team's speedy work. She shook her head. "So galore families are leaving present these days."

She's not wholly wrong.

Concern astir South Africa's struggling infrastructure, its weakening currency, and wide economical malaise has prompted galore wealthier families to see emigrating oregon - arsenic it's known present - "semi-grating" to the much prosperous metropolis of Cape Town.

Last week, I was lasting with my adorable, ever-so-slightly thuggish labrador astatine the vet's erstwhile an older woman came in, clutching thing tiny and yappy.

Overhearing my speech astir kennels and crates and extravagant shipping costs, she announced to the country that she'd permission "this wretched country" excessively - successful a heartbeat.

"But who tin spend to these days?" she remarked.

It's present astir 30 years since the extremity of radical apartheid and the chaotic but near-miraculous commencement of South Africa's young democracy. It's a daze to realise that I've been present for fractional of that journey.

I've ever shied distant from drafting expansive oregon apocalyptic conclusions astir wherever this - oregon immoderate state connected this continent - is heading.

South Africa, successful particular, is simply a spot of specified extremes. There's specified vigor here, and resilience, and an enduring generosity of spirit.

At the aforesaid time, this is inactive a frighteningly convulsive nation, present besides warped by corruption, and plagued by hunger.

How bash you statesman to boil each that down into a neat prediction?

Still, it is becoming much challenging to prolong the content that South Africa - this charming, troubled, rainbow federation - volition simply proceed to muddle, endlessly, through.

The unemployment complaint present is comfortably the highest successful the world. At 42%. Let that descend in.

Key infrastructure systems - water, obstruction transport, energy - are successful dire straits. Schools too. And this is - officially, and notoriously - the astir unequal state successful the world.

Just up the roadworthy from our house, adjacent the suburb of Rosebank, there's a large roadworthy junction. The postulation lights - they telephone them "robots" present - don't enactment overmuch these days, due to the fact that of the endless powerfulness cuts.

Instead, young men successful ragged apparel effort to nonstop the lines of costly cars successful instrumentality for the occasional coin.

It benignant of works, similar truthful overmuch here. But this benignant of patchwork resilience is hardly thing to boast about.

Last week a pistillate and her 3 children were reportedly recovered dormant successful their tiny shack adjacent to the Indian Ocean successful the Eastern Cape. The constabulary fishy that poorness and indebtedness drove the parent to poison her kids earlier taking her ain life.

The incidental hardly made the news.

Earlier this year, betwixt trips to study connected the warfare successful Ukraine, I went for a portion with a mates of contacts. Older, affluent businessmen who person adjacent ties to the governing African National Congress.

We met connected the terrace of their immaculate play club, with a presumption northbound - towards the lumpy hills that fell astir of the world's platinum deposits.

We argued astir Ukraine, Putin, and Nato enlargement - astir the men's enduring nostalgia for the Soviet Union and its enactment for the anti-apartheid struggle.

Then 1 of the men looked out, beyond his brew and the putting connected the 18th green, towards the glinting tin roofs of an impoverished and fast-growing shanty municipality - "informal settlement" is the word utilized here.

"Someday soon those radical are going to travel for us," helium said, predicting an uprising acold greater than the protests that engulfed respective large cities successful South Africa successful 2021. "Things can't spell connected similar this," helium warned.

I sensed guilt successful his voice. And definite enough, helium admitted that his erstwhile beloved ANC - a enactment that helped liberate South Africa - had failed the challenges of democracy.

"The crooks person taken over," helium said. "It should beryllium enactment retired of its misery - different leaders, different parties, should person travel to powerfulness years ago."

There are elections present adjacent year. And close now, absorption parties are trying to flooded their differences and enactment up a agreed front. There's a bully accidental they'll bash well. But past again, South Africa has heard that before. Many young, disillusioned radical are simply choosing not to vote.

This tin inactive beryllium a profoundly inspiring country. But increasingly, it feels similar the inspiration is mostly seen successful the rear-view reflector - successful looking backmost to past glories and past heroes. Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Oliver Tambo. This is simply a federation lulled by a consciousness of its ain exceptionalism. Its past of overcoming intolerable odds.

It's portion of South Africa's enduring charm. But charm tin beryllium unhelpful. Nostalgia isn't creating immoderate jobs.

After the packers had loaded the past container into the shipping instrumentality extracurricular my home, we stood unneurotic successful the sunshine. "You indispensable travel back!" said 1 of the men. "We'll hole our problems here. We'll adjacent hole the load-shedding." That's different South African euphemism - for powerfulness cuts.

We laughed - half-hopefully - and shook hands, and I said: "Yes. I'll beryllium backmost soon."

You tin find Andrew's From Our Own Correspondent study connected BBC Sounds and arsenic a podcast - oregon you tin perceive to it connected BBC World Service vigor oregon connected Radio 4 successful the UK