South African Communists Moving in for Kill
Joe Sims, editor of the Communist Party USA's theoretical journal, Political Affairs attended the South African communist Party's recent conference.
Here are excerpts from his report.
PORT ELIZABETH, South Africa — A sea of red surrounded the almost 2,000-strong opening session of the South African Communist Party’s 12th Congress held here July 12. The delegates received greetings from Kgalema Motlanthe, secretary-general of the governing African National Congress, and from the Communist Party of China. SACP General Secretary Blade Nzimande presented the main political report.
Motlanthe pointed to the SACP’s goal of seeking and struggling for a socialist path in South Africa. Motlanthe referred to President Thabo Mbeki’s speech at a recent ANC conference, in which Mbeki said the ANC, which he also heads, respected the SACP’s singular role in leading the fight for a socialist transformation of South Africa, adding that this was not the ANC’s purpose.
Nzimande also used Mbeki’s remarks as one of the points of departure for his remarks. Nzimande said that the press had distorted the president’s meaning when it claimed he was rebuking the SACP.
The SACP leader went on to point out a number of key struggles that the party had taken initiative on.
A most important political development, in Nzimande’s view, was that the ANC had in the recent period adjusted its policies and now favored the concept of a developmental state and a new industrial policy.
The goal of the party, he argued, is a working-class-led national democratic revolution. The SACP has recruited over 30,000 members since its last congress.
Nzimande’s address was followed by remarks from delegates, many of whom expressed frustration at the slow pace of change. The relationship between the party and the ruling ANC was a theme that ran through almost all the presentations.
The SACP congress takes place in a crucial pre-election year and is the second of three important policymaking forums of the “tripartite alliance,” which includes the ANC, the SACP, and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu). Cosatu’s congress took place last fall, and the ANC’s conference will take place in December. The ANC has an electoral mandate from 70 percent of South Africa’s population. The next national election takes place in 2009.
New Zeal note the presence of China. Also interesting is an apparent move from a fairly "free market" approach by the ANC to an "the concept of a developmental state and a new industrial policy." ie more state control of the economy.
Recruiting an extra 30,000 members in 5 years is also impressive. Clearly the SACP is intent on governing South Africa.
All signals point to major grief ahead for South Africa.
Here are excerpts from his report.
PORT ELIZABETH, South Africa — A sea of red surrounded the almost 2,000-strong opening session of the South African Communist Party’s 12th Congress held here July 12. The delegates received greetings from Kgalema Motlanthe, secretary-general of the governing African National Congress, and from the Communist Party of China. SACP General Secretary Blade Nzimande presented the main political report.
Motlanthe pointed to the SACP’s goal of seeking and struggling for a socialist path in South Africa. Motlanthe referred to President Thabo Mbeki’s speech at a recent ANC conference, in which Mbeki said the ANC, which he also heads, respected the SACP’s singular role in leading the fight for a socialist transformation of South Africa, adding that this was not the ANC’s purpose.
Nzimande also used Mbeki’s remarks as one of the points of departure for his remarks. Nzimande said that the press had distorted the president’s meaning when it claimed he was rebuking the SACP.
The SACP leader went on to point out a number of key struggles that the party had taken initiative on.
A most important political development, in Nzimande’s view, was that the ANC had in the recent period adjusted its policies and now favored the concept of a developmental state and a new industrial policy.
The goal of the party, he argued, is a working-class-led national democratic revolution. The SACP has recruited over 30,000 members since its last congress.
Nzimande’s address was followed by remarks from delegates, many of whom expressed frustration at the slow pace of change. The relationship between the party and the ruling ANC was a theme that ran through almost all the presentations.
The SACP congress takes place in a crucial pre-election year and is the second of three important policymaking forums of the “tripartite alliance,” which includes the ANC, the SACP, and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu). Cosatu’s congress took place last fall, and the ANC’s conference will take place in December. The ANC has an electoral mandate from 70 percent of South Africa’s population. The next national election takes place in 2009.
New Zeal note the presence of China. Also interesting is an apparent move from a fairly "free market" approach by the ANC to an "the concept of a developmental state and a new industrial policy." ie more state control of the economy.
Recruiting an extra 30,000 members in 5 years is also impressive. Clearly the SACP is intent on governing South Africa.
All signals point to major grief ahead for South Africa.
posted by Trevor Loudon at
7/20/2007 05:50:00 AM
2 Comments:
No major surprise of the CPUSA's close relations with the South African Communist Party. The very group that supported the African National Congress' rise to power.
All signals do indeed point to major grief ahead for Southern Africa,and by implication for much of the rest of the world,based on the "head in the sand" attitude of the ROW to the situation.
Mugabe has almost completed the transformation of a prosperous food exporting nation into an economic basket case,involving bloody deprivation for hundreds of thousands.
Meanwhile just to the South,Mbeki, who alone among political leaders had the opportunity to do something meaningful to stop the rot,has simply condoned the destruction,and done nothing.
Much of the rest of the world sits on the sidelines absorbing the "rainbow nation" nonsense happily disregarding the highest murder rate in the "western" world and parrots the Nelson Mandela myth.
In a continent where the bigger the rogue,the more likely the leader,South Africa once offered hope.That time is fast disappearing.
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