HEADER: The moral red light BLURB: Office theft, drunk driving, bribery - South Africans are committing

small acts of lawlessness every day, and we are fast developing a moral vacuum. But why do we do it? And if we are to morally regenerate, how can we all, leaders included, stop our downward slide? During a recent dinner party, I asked my guests for a quick tally of all the small acts of lawlessness they had committed or had heard that other people close to them had committed over the last year. After an uncomfortable silence and some hushed confessions, it turned out that we had amongst us or knew of numerous drunk drivers, several music and music pirates, one unlicensed driver, an office thief, a small-time suburban drug dealer, several people who lied on their tax returns and someone who had attempted to bribe a public official. We are a successful and clever bunch - or so we think we are. We are not criminals, we said, and nor are our family members or those we choose to befriend. And yet, under brutally honest examination, we realised that though we may not have the pathologies of violent criminals, we shared some of their attitudes and behaviours: a view that the criminal justice system does not represent us and therefore we are excused from some of its laws; a herd mentality that says everybody does it, so I can too ; and a willingness to collude in order to get one up on the system or have my share of the winnings . This translated into us committing lawless acts, or turning a blind eye to them, and yet we continually decried these attitudes in those that led us. It s very difficult to act morally all the time, said one guest. For some of us it s got to the point where if we don t act immorally, we won t survive or we won t be safe. [There is] an ambivalence towards the law on the part of many South Africans, says David Bruce, a senior researcher at the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation (CSVR). Known criminals are tolerated, even admired notably if they are perceived to [affect] people from other communities. This forms part of a culture which also condones other illegal practices, [from] the buying of stolen goods to corruption and white-collar crime. We all have a common knowledge of what is right and wrong. Absorbed through narratives or real experiences in our families, communities, teachers, religious leaders, the legal system and the media, these values have been identified by the organisation Heartlines, a value-based civil society initiative, as: accepting difference; responsibility; forgiveness; perseverance; self-control; honesty; compassion and second chances. But our crime statistics for 2009/2010 show that while murders, house break-ins and car hijackings are down, crimes such as drunk driving, office theft, commercial crimes, and drug crime have all increased crimes that are committed mostly by people who don t need to. A person s moral compass is not reliant on money, said Gareth Newham, head of the crime and justice programme at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS). The high number of commercial crimes can attest to this. Research published in a book entitled The Moral Ecology of South African Township Youth (2009) by Dr Sharlene Swartz, a sociologist and senior researcher the University of the Western Cape, echoes his view. By interviewing young South Africans from poor areas, Dr Schwartz concluded that what

drives most youths to break the law is not lack of money, but that they do not or have not had an enabling environment , a series of safe settings, in home, street and school that facilitate and encourage good moral choices. I realised that this home, street and school could be translated into home, street and work and that those of us who committed small acts of lawlessness may have been, or are, feeling that we are not safe enough in these environments to make the right choices. Subhead: Our environments Luleka*, 36, drives without a license; she says the waiting times for driver s licences are ridiculous . She has her learners, has taken numerous lessons and, she says, drives better than most people on the road . But when she was pulled over one day while she was on the way to a meeting, by a lone traffic cop in a quiet area, she panicked. I had read the stories about police assaults in Jo burg, she says. There was no way that I was going to be hauled out of my car, probably assaulted or put in prison and raped. So she offered the officer R200 to settle the matter immediately . I know I was acting in an immoral way, but I was protecting myself, she said. Luleka would not say whether or not the officer took the money; she is afraid for her safety if she does. Police corruption and corruption in our criminal justice system in general is often cited as an excuse by ordinary people to behave badly, says the CSVR s Bruce, either out of a concern for their own safety, or simply because they think that because those in power can get away with it, they can too. Mistrust in the criminal justice system has not only been fuelled by reports of police corruption, but also by the acquittals of several dubious leading figures closely linked to government, and by recent debates around the independence of our judiciary. As a result, we believe that our criminal justice system cannot be trusted. We feel betrayed and helpless. We do not report crimes to the police and so the police cannot get a firm grip on crime. It s an endless cycle. This is not a new situation. In order to understand our morality today, we need to understand our past. We come from a state that legalised an immoral system in itself, and whose leadership stunted the moral development of all South Africans, says Dr Dorrian Aiken, a transformational coach and chairperson of Procrop, a leadership development consultancy. If you liken a government to a parent, we had a parents that limited our personal autonomy and ethical independence, she says. Instead of raising citizens with an ethical capacity to participate in society, we operated in a fragmented society, the laws of which enabled and necessitated bad behaviour. This, says Dr Aiken, has led to an inability to develop a fully conscious adult morality. We are unable, in situations when we come up against difference or are at a moral crossroads, to rationalise our anger, resentment, anxiety, low self-esteem, and moderate our perception that those who are different from us and those who have power, are a threat. Scarred by our past, we are still operating at a primitive fight-or-flight level most of the time, a psychological space that does not facilitate adult moral reasoning.

But if we have come from a fanatical authoritarian and unfair parent, we now have a parent who behaves in an immature reactionary way or in a corrupt way. Many of us feel that though we voted for this parent , it does not represent us because it has not addressed our most pressing needs: to be safe and acknowledged in our humanity. We still do not have a top-down enabling environment in which to make sound moral choices. There is also another force in our environments that is twisting our morality. Rampant consumerism that encourages the idea of status as a product of the self has given rise to what the CSVR s David Bruce has identified as status anxiety : a kind of embedded materialism that programs us to discriminate and evaluate each other based on what we own. Conspicuous consumption, he says, quoting a 2006 government Nation in the Making Report: has become a determinant of worth and status and this compels people to operate on and sometimes beyond, the margins of legality . This is echoed by the moral reasoning of Mark, 37, a father, husband, IT technician and small-time cocaine dealer: I got to feed my kid, I got bills to pay and if I wasn t doing this, somebody else would. To him, drugs are a business, and they give him the life he wants. But this sort of self-interest divides us. The constant parading of wealth and the liberal coverage in the media given to over-the-top partying antics of local celebrities and politicians has done little to redress our inequalities and invite moral cohesion. Chronic status insecurity, says Bruce, not only feeds into acquisitive behaviours, legal or illegal, but also into a situation where people are inflamed by the most trivial insults to their dignity, whether real or imagined. Those who are insecure about their status may be the most volatile. Subhead: How this feeds lawlessness Poor leadership that promotes fear of others, concern for status and disrespect for our fellow people and authority causes us to withdraw from each other and react emotionally in challenging moral situations, says psychologist Bhamini Rugnathji. A person may feel anxious, helpless and hopeless, she says. This could result in depression, or, depending on the person s nature and community, they can be motivated to take action. Either we withdraw into gated communities, or we act against the system itself. In short, we behave a bit like adolescents and we justify our antisocial rebellious behaviour with all sorts of rationalisations. We create a relative morality, says the ISS s Newham. But lying to ourselves when we violate what we know as the common good, says Dr Aiken, can create feelings of self-disgust, denial, and passive aggression and may lead to further moral degeneration. Our acts also create victims, she says, whether immediate or further removed. Subhead: Creating an enabling environment Building an environment where people can develop good morals must start with leadership, says Newham, otherwise people will continue to act in their own self interest. Whether it is in a family environment, in a government or corporate space, the leaders must define [and personify] clear moral boundaries, says Dr Aiken. Boundary setting is tough on everybody. But boundaries help us define who we are, and constructive, empathetic discussions and co-created

agreements within these boundaries are very important because they encourage and stimulate moral development and autonomy. Balancing creativity and debate with clear boundaries is what psychologists call positive discipline (see sidebar). Research shows that employing these simple tactics help to create an environment where not only young people, but all of us, can function in an ethical way. We can also, through robust and empathetic debate and engagement within these boundaries, find common moral ground, open new opportunities for relationships and explore new paradigms, says Dr Aiken. In other words, we grow together. We morally regenerate together. Subhead: Self-knowledge and discipline So we have been subjected to a double bout of bad parenting. But surely at the individual level, when we are alone and faced with a moral choice, there is a negotiation with the self for which we alone are responsible? Cherise*, 46, is a senior manager at a private educational institution. She has recently had to apprehend a long-standing staff member for a theft that cost her company over R1 million. When we discovered the culprit there were all kinds of justifications, she says. He claimed to be taking the equipment and giving it to people who had no money and needed it. There was some feeling of resentment, I think, along racial lines, that those in authority did not represent him and he was getting one back on them. You can justify your acts by saying you were acting in the best interests of the people you are stealing for, but stealing is stealing. We have a diverse body of students and staff, and the effect in terms of performance was immense, as was the sense of betrayal in all of us. The ability to empathise with other people, to identify, when there is the choice to commit an immoral act, who the victims of that act might be, and how they could be affected, requires some ethical discipline, mental maturity and psychological control, says Dr Aiken. It requires that we be conscious of our inbuilt prejudices, resentments and our own emotions and their effects on us, on others and on the common good, as they happen. It involves developing a kind of objective view of our subjectivity, she says, an ability to view ourselves and our impulses and emotions from the outside, and use our creative brain to mediate them. It is about being immensely conscious in that moment. Subhead: Towards a moral future If we are to stop a moral vacuum we can start in our own lives, says Dr Aiken, especially if we are leaders. We need to commit on a deep level to transforming our society, by first transforming ourselves. We can start by being more conscious of our impulses when we are faced with a moral choice, she says. Some self-talk tactics to do develop this sort of consciousness include observing what you are feeling about your choice, saying it aloud, and asking yourself: I wonder why I am feeling this way? ; followed by the creative, problem-solving questions like: Who are the other victims here besides

me? How would they feel if I did this? What would the effect of this behaviour be on the common good? What other options do I have? We need to train our brains so this happens very fast - so the emotional triggers become consciousness triggers. Of course, as far as setting an atmosphere of positive discipline goes, we must expect the state to rise up to the plate, says Newham, and it is crucial that ordinary citizens experience of the state in policing, schools, hospitals and public offices is one that enforces our sense of security and so builds respect for authority and for the law and its systems. But there s a lot we can do as individuals to help this process along. We may participate in local governance, hold creative and empathetic discussions around our laws, rather than isolate ourselves from our country. This will give us insight into how the laws are made, allow us to engage and interact with others that are different from us, and we can build a respect for the legislature which we can take back to our families and communities for the benefit of all. A society where there is a high respect for the law is more likely to be a cohesive one, says Bruce. According to the Institute for Democracy in South Africa (IDASA) there are numerous ways in which you can participate in the law-making process, from a local to a national level, and you can find them on their website at www.idasa.org.za. We need to spread good stories about people who act with integrity. Acknowledge reality, but avoid the negative spiralling conversations that don t go anywhere except down. That s what Heartlines does through their award-winning films. The stories we tell, and the stories we are exposed to, construct the social norm, says Heartlines CEO Garth Japhet. If all the stories are all about crime and corruption, we believe that this is the norm and we can behave in this way. But we can spread narratives that reflect key values and show people how to behave in a moral way. And if we get out in our community, we can find stories of people who, despite living past lives of injustice and abuse or enduring immense hardship, still act with integrity, and for the common good, and who inspire others. We must find these people. Invite them to speak at our book clubs, or at our schools. We can use these small heroes to show others that our struggle, as South Africans, continues but that we need each other. It s true that we are up against a popular culture that is advocating materialism and a lack of engagement with intellectual issues, but this same pop culture is also creating vast social networks where a single individual who lives a good example can start a moral revolution, says Japhet. Most of all we need to know, and our children need to know, that in our moral decisions, we are safe to take a stand and act for the common good, that there are consistent boundaries there to guide us and protect us when we do. And that making the right moral choice is not a lonely place. <subs: 2684 words> (*only first names used to protect individuals) SIDEBAR: Positive discipline Here are some ways to create an enabling environment for healthy morality in your home, workplace, street or school:

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Be a positive moral example Encourage and reward good moral behaviour Do not overemphasize bad behaviour. Admit a wrong doing and open discussion as to the reasons behind it, and how it can be avoided in the future. Do not hit or humiliate people who do wrong. This sets a bad example because people learn violence and shame, and not negotiation, as mechanisms for behaviour. Criticize the deed, not the person who did it. Have realistic expectations: understand that people and children are motivated to act badly because of past experiences or inaccurate/emotional perceptions of their current reality. Address these and if you can t do it alone, get a counsellor or coach to mediate. Discuss boundaries with an open mind, but a clear reasoning. Be consistent about the limits on important things, but be prepared to negotiate the more trivial ones. Build alliances with everybody and have a diverse support network. Engage regularly and positively with those who have views that challenge your own. Have courage when faced with difference. Always keep a broad view. Ask yourself and others around you: how do we align ourselves with the common good? Listen with empathy and be conscious of yourself in your relations with others.

Reference: Combined from Procorp Leadership Consultancy, Save the Children Sweden and RAPCAN (Resources Aimed at the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect) South Africa. Further reading: There are numerous books, texts for short plays and DVDs that evaluate, discuss and promote good values that you can use in your home, school, workplace and community at www.heartlines.org.za. A General Theory of Love, by Thomas Lewis, Fari Amini and Richard Lannon (Random House; 2007). A psychiatric exploration of how we positively connect psychologically and socially with others.