I am honoured to be with you on this important occasion of The Olof Palme Day's 2009 Conference and to share with this historic gathering lessons of our transition “from liberation to freedom.”
Allow me, on behalf of my organisation, the African National Congress (ANC) and the people of South Africa, to thank the people of this wonderful country, Sweden, represented by the government, political parties, non-governmental organisations, trade unions, churches, women and the youth, for all the selfless contribution and sacrifices they have made towards our liberation and democracy in South Africa, Africa and countless other parts of the world.
Importantly, it is only proper to pay homage to the towering memory of the late Mr Olof Palme, who paid the ultimate price for his commitment to our cause, indeed the cause of freedom everywhere in the world, and under whose inspirational life we are gathered here today.
The historic ties between the people of Sweden and our liberation movement was epitomised by the inseparable comradeship between our own late President of the ANC, Mr Oliver Tambo, for a long time the leader of and inspiration behind our freedom struggle, and Mr Palme himself, of whom, Tambo wrote, “We had come to know him (Olof Palme) not only as a leader of the Swedish people and an international statesman, but also as one of us, a fellow combatant who has made an inestimable contribution to the struggle for the liberation of South Africa.
“From Vietnam to Nicaragua, from El Salvador to Palestine, from Sahara to South Africa, across the face of the globe, the flags hang limp and half mast in loving memory of this giant of justice who had become a citizen of the world, a brother and a comrade to all who are downtrodden.”
I would therefore like to thank the Olof Palme Centre for ensuring that the burning torch of enlightenment embodying the superior ideals that Mr Palme lived and died for continues to shine the path that must be travelled by all progressive forces in the world.
The ANC is the oldest liberation movement in Africa, 97 years old, this year. It was founded on the principle of the unity of the African people who had been excluded from the main body-politic of South Africa on the basis of the colour of their skins as though human beings can be fully defined by one such element.
The ANC waged relentless anti-colonial struggles through various protestations, petitions, delegations to Britain, the colonial country, but the problems and grievances affecting African people increased in volume and brutality. They were effectively excluded as citizens.
These struggles constituted the main form in which the oppressed claimed their right to self-determination. All those who were opposed to this system of racial discrimination (colour bar in the work milieu) rallied together and found ways of coordinating opposition to it.
The Union Act of 1910 establishing the union of South Africa finally disenfranchised our people from ever claiming a right to land or participation in the affairs of the government. Thus the birth of the ANC on 8 January 1912 was a direct reaction to these countless grievances and complaints. Prixley ka Isaka Seme summed it up this way, “We are one people. These divisions, these jealousies, are the cause of all our woes and of all our backwardness and ignorance today.”
He continued to state that, “The white people of this country have formed what is known as the Union of South Africa, a union in which we have no voice in the making of laws and no part in their administration.”
This was a call to unity of a new type on African soil. This was an anti-colonial unity. This was the birth not only of the ANC but of a new nation deep in the womb of a colonial setup. Right from the beginning the ANC was assigned to lead the creation of a new loyalty under changed conditions of struggle.
The introduction of the 1913 Land Act took over two thirds of arable land and gave it to the settlers who constituted less than six percent of the population. This sealed the exclusion of black people as they were, through a stroke of a pen, rendered completely property-less.
Repression took a different turn in 1948 when the national party came to power. They escalated racial discrimination by making it official policy based on the notion of white supremacy and condemning the majority into servitude. In response, the oppressed escalated their campaigns defying unjust laws, which brought about the participation of various groups to oppose at least six unjust laws that excluded citizens and entrenched racism.
The defiance campaign saw the participation of all racial groups including progressive whites. The multiracial nature of the campaign led to the question: what is the national content of this struggle we are fighting? That it was to be a struggle for non-racialism to create a society free of discrimination; where no single racial group will impose its will over others.
Volunteers were mobilised to go to factories, villages and settlements to collect views of the people which collectively formed the basis for the adoption of the 10 point plan or programme of action called the Freedom Charter, which remains the programme of action of the ANC to date as confirmed in successive conferences.
In the spirit of participatory democracy, the ANC has sustained the existence of structures that operate at various levels with branches serving as basic consultative units followed by regional, provincial and then national structures. Delegates to regional, provincial and national conferences are elected at branch level, a demonstration of fundamental democratic practices of the movement.
Leadership is elected at these conferences. Not even the three decades of banishment, exile and imprisonment undermined adherence to these democratic practices. The four pillars of our struggle: internal mass mobilisation, international mobilisation, underground work and the military struggle sustained our struggle against apartheid.
OR Tambo always emphasised that as soon as conditions allowed, our people would gather freely in the land of their birth to formulate policy and elect leadership.
Until this happened, the ANC knew that international solidarity remained an important pillar in waging our struggle against apartheid. Thanks to the efforts of our international friends, the camel’s back was finally broken and our people are able to gather freely to renew the mandate and elect leadership. To further strengthen our democracy, we have established institutions that can independently support it (e.g. the Independent Electoral Commission, Human Rights Commission and others). This is to ensure that democracy is not dependent on the goodwill of individual leaders but is institutionalised.
As we assumed power in 1994, we realised we had inherited a state machinery that was geared against the vast majority but which now had to be transformed to serve all the people of South Africa. The economy was bankrupt and worse, had excluded the majority. Our challenge was to resuscitate, modernise and expand this economy so that it could be competitive and inclusive. Coming into power also saw the dispersal of the ANC’s brains into the state machinery. In one way this was positive but on the other hand it depleted the organisation’s intellectual capital.
This ascent to power also meant the ANC as a liberation movement in government could attract people with narrow selfish interests. Whereas before associating with the ANC could result in death, arrest, detention or being maimed; all of a sudden associating with the ANC opened doors to state resources. Necessarily, this was bound to impact on the quality of cadres and cohesion within the movement. It challenged our culture and values.
Friends
History has taught us that even the most glorious liberation forces are no exception to what in most former liberation movements across the world has come to be known as “the sins of incumbency”. These manifest themselves through:
* Careerism
* Abuse of power
* Bureaucratic elitism
* Venality and corruption
* Moral and ideological degeneration among rank and file
* Use of state institutions to fight inner-party battles
* Internal organisational undemocratic practices
* Cult of personality
* Social distance between the governors and the governed.
Chairperson, as the ANC I believe we are trying to deal with these dialectics of being a liberation movement and a governing party. In my humble opinion, we don’t have absolute answers but this is how we have characterised our strategic posture:
* We remain committed to the programme of action adopted by the Congress of the People in Kliptown, the Freedom Charter. This commitment is a lighthouse that reminds us of what the struggle was about: fairness, social and economic justice; not just a free and fair vote
* We continue to protect civil liberties even when such result in criticism against ourselves as a governing party. That is why media freedom and free speech thrive in South Africa today
* We continue to work with civil society, at home and abroad. This is premised on our belief that social partnerships and international solidarity is central to our social transformation efforts. Our motto in this term of government is: “working together we can do more” precisely because we believe we do not hold monopoly over ideas to build a prosperous South Africa and a better world
* We remain committed to the rule of law. Crime levels are indeed high and corruption is rearing its ugly head. But, these are not state sponsored and decisive measures are in place to deal with crime and corruption
* Winning successive elections has not changed our attitude towards democracy. That is why multi-party democracy and opposition parties thrive in South Africa. Even when we lose local constituencies, we view that as fulfilment of our pledge to promote democracy, not a threat to our hegemony. Opposition parties in South Africa are in Parliament, not in jail!
* We sustain closer working relations with the labour movement and other social partners who help keep us in check! Such relationships bring dynamism to the ANC
* Our record as internationalists is well known. Building a safer Africa and an equitable global political and economic system remains our strategic goal
* Building institutions that support transparency and accountability remains a priority.
In conclusion chairperson, the transition from liberation to freedom was and is indeed an ongoing and complicated process. It is underpinned by principles that are not just decorative but constitute a living reality that defines the nature of the struggle.
Critically, we dare not lose sight of our international solidarity as expressed in our enduring relationships with international civil society movements as we did with the organisation of Olof Palme and the whole people of Sweden today.
In the final analysis national struggles are but micro reflections of global polarities embodying class interests of those who would like to see genuine changes in the lives of humanity and forces whose interests are rooted in maintaining the current asymmetric global relations of production.
We are confident that gatherings such as the ‘Olof Palme Days’ conference will motivate the next generation of leaders to propound the vision of a world that is free, just, safe, environmentally friendly and more humane.
We are convinced that in doing the above with a sense of destiny, they will remember Franz Fanon’s clarion call, “Each generation must, out of relative obscurity, discover its mission, fulfil it or betray it.” Regardless of the outcome of the Swedish-Denmark game tonight, we still hope that you will join us in 2010 to witness the biggest FIFA World Cup ever!
I thank you.
Issued by: The Presidency
10 October 2009
Source: The Presidency (http://www.thepresidency.gov.za/)
