Other items cited by members of the youth while being interviewed on the reasons
why they were not going to register and not going to vote is that, "the government
does not listen to our concerns," " they do not respond to our questions," "they do
not ask us for our ideas," and, "we are not being made part of the process." These
seem to be clear indications why the charge of, "the process is meaningless,"
have been made. Unless government is participatory it is not a true democracy, a
government that does not include the voices of all the member segments and
groups can not truly be said to govern by the will of the people, it governs in spite
of the people. The members of the present government about the last government
made these charges, it is then even more telling that these charges are being
made about the present government. When asked about these charges, the
government did not respond.

"and nothing will change" the third charge made by the youth segment, potentially
the most serious of all the charges. Fifty years of oppression did not stop the
struggle for change, yet four years have succeeded in blotting out the hope for
change. Is this an accurate picture of the situation? Interviews with members of
the farm/rural-voting block, the workers of the fields, again reflective of the ethnic
and cultural makeup of South Africa gave much the same answers. "It is too much
work to register, it will not change," "the government will do what it wants," "it
does not matter."