Learning to lose, learning to win: Government and opposition in South Africa’s transition to democracy

The chapters in this volume clearly demonstrate that “learning to lose”—peacefully accepting the transfer of power and agreeing to participate according to the new democratic rules of the game-is critical to the success of democratic transitions. It is equally critical for consolidating democracy that newly empowered forces “learn to win,” that they do not exclude the losers from the political process, and that they accept the legitimacy of democratic opposition. In our exploration of the South African case, we examine both sides of the coin. We argue that learning to lose and learning to win are complementary and reinforcing phenomena.