Time - USA (2021-07-19)

23

LEADERSHIP BRIEF

The American

timber surge

When the British navy was
the most powerful military
force in the world, towering
straight trees suitable for
the masts of warships
were a prized strategic
resource from its colonies,
the rare earth resources
of their day. Nearly 250
years later, the U.S. is still
home to some of the most
valuable timber stands
in the world, and lumber
has been one of the most
in-demand commodities
this summer, as the
strongest housing market
in more than a decade has
caused its value to soar,
peaking in May. Although
lumber prices have fallen
recently, experts expect
prices to remain high
relative to historical levels.
Housing “demand is just off
the charts now,” says Devin
Stockfish, CEO of timber
company Weyerhaeuser.
“We have massively
underbuilt housing in
the U.S. The whole
supply chain broke down
coming out of the Great
Recession.” Stockfish
expects housing demand to
stay strong for some time
as the U.S. struggles to
overcome years of failing
to build enough new homes
to keep up with population
growth. —Eben Shapiro

Devin Stockfish, CEO of

Weyerhaeuser

In any country,

the central political

question is, What is

the role of the law?

Does it exist to protect

every individual from

abuses of power? Or

does it exist mainly to protect the power­

ful? A landmark court decision gives

many South Africans reassurance that

their governing institutions work. But it’s

not the end of the story.

On June 29, South Africa’s

Constitutional Court ruled that former

President Jacob Zuma must

serve 15 months in prison

for failing this year to

appear before a commission

investigating corruption

during his presidency

(2009–2018). Zuma not only

rejected the commission’s

authority and refused to

answer charges or mount a defense, but

he also wrote a 21­page letter to the Chief

Justice of the Constitutional Court that

charged that the corruption commission

was “established to destroy the work

that I did when I served my country as

President.”

He then essentially dared the court to

jail him: “My imprisonment [by the Con­

stitutional Court] would become the soil

on which future struggles for a judiciary

that sees itself as a servant of the Constitu­

tion and the people rather than an instru­

ment for advancing dominant political

narratives.” That sounded like a threat that

any judgment against him would trigger

social unrest.

The court ordered Zuma to surrender

to authorities. The former President has

launched an appeal to the same court and

so far refused to obey. Supporters have

surrounded his home and vow to protect

him. Authorities are bracing for protests

in other parts of the country. The justices

accuse Zuma of trying to “destroy the

rule of law.”

Zuma was once a hero of the struggle

against apartheid, and like Nelson Man­

dela, he was imprisoned for years on

Robben Island. But controversy has fol­

lowed Zuma throughout his political ca­

reer. In 2005, he was charged with ac­

cepting bribes as part of a large arms deal

while serving as South Africa’s Deputy

President in 1999. In response, then Pres­

ident Thabo Mbeki fired him. In 2006, he

was acquitted of raping a woman in a case

that revealed he had no idea how AIDS

was transmitted in a country battling an

HIV epidemic.

But despite all of this, Zuma, an un­

deniably charismatic politician, wrested

control of the African National Congress

(ANC) from former boss

Mbeki in 2007 and was elected

President in 2009. As Presi­

dent, he faced more charges

of corruption and abuse of

power. In 2016, South Africa’s

Constitutional Court ruled

that Zuma had illegally used

more than $15 million in pub­

lic funds on his private home. He drew rid­

icule after insisting that the addition of a

swimming pool was needed to protect the

house in case of fire.

After the ANC suffered losses in 2016,

it became clear that Zuma was losing po­

litical strength, and in 2018 he resigned

the presidency. He was replaced by Cyril

Ramaphosa.

Official cOrruptiOn has cost a great

deal over the years. Public money di­

verted to private use deprived South

Africa of the funding for infrastructure

needed to create jobs and spark growth

and for social safety net protections. It

also undermined the country’s reputa­

tion for governance and financial man­

agement needed to secure foreign invest­

ment. South Africa has scored poorly

in global corruption rankings for many

years. When Zuma stepped down, he

left a nation with high wage inequal­

ity, high unemployment and low global

competitiveness.

But the country’s Constitutional

Court has now shown that it will hold

even the country’s most powerful men

accountable. •

THE RISK REPORT

A South African court offers

hope for the rule of law

By Ian Bremmer

The justices

accuse Zuma

of trying to

‘destroy the

rule of law’