society is the history of all class struggles GS address to - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

History of all hitherto existing society is the history of all class struggles GS address to Political School 26 January 2014

Structure of the Presentation • Why the working class needs to organise itself as a class for itself • Why existing forms of organisation of the working class are not adequate • Summary of what we understand the NDR to be about • How the Freedom Charter has been abandoned • Critique of ANC Vision 2014 and 2014 Manifesto • Why Numsa’s resolutions are correct

The working class must consciously organise itself as a class if it is to lead the democratic revolution • Marxism-Leninism teaches us that, at all material times, we must fiercely defend the political independence of the proletariat from petit-bourgois and bourgeois influences, if the proletariat is to lead the democratic revolution. • Hence, as Lenin said, “ the proletariat can play the leading part in this (democratic) revolution only if it is welded into a united and independent political force under the banner of the Social-Democratic Labour Party, which is to guide its struggle not only ideologically but practically as well”. • The Communist Manifesto states: “All previous historical movements were movements of minorities, or in the interest of minorities. The proletarian movement is the self-conscious, independent movement of the immense majority, in the interest of the immense majority”. • Lenin says: “In a word, in order to avoid finding itself with its hands tied in the struggle against the inconsistent bourgeois democrats, the proletariat must be sufficiently class conscious and strong to rouse the peasantry to revolutionary consciousness, to direct its attack, and thereby to pursue the line of consistent proletarian democratism independently ”.

By calling for the political independence of the working class we do not reject class alliances • However the most important precondition for any class alliance is the complete, separate, party political independence of the working class from bourgeois and petit-bourgeois political influences. • Our tactic should be that we “strike jointly” with our class allies, but we march completely separately! The independence of the working class must be guarded jealously even against the most friendly among the petit-bourgeoisie and bourgeoisie. • Lenin makes this absolutely clear in his Two Tactics, when he says: “A Social - Democrat must never for a moment forget that the proletariat will inevitably have to wage the class struggle for Socialism even against the most democratic and republican bourgeoisie and petty bourgeoisie. This is beyond doubt. Hence the absolute necessity of a separate, independent, strictly class party of Social-Democracy . Hence the temporary nature of our tactics of "striking jointly" with the bourgeoisie and the duty of keeping a strict watch "over our ally, as over an enemy," etc.

The Numsa Special National Congress said the current Alliance with the ANC and the SACP is not taking us forward towards Socialism • In the struggle against apartheid, the working class was striking jointly with the democratic black petit-bourgeoisie and sections of the democratic bourgeoisie, but the political independence of the working class is now being dissolved into bourgeois democracy. • This is the kernel of the perspective that was articulated by the Numsa Special National Congress when it said: “ The Alliance has been captured and taken over by right-wing forces. Those who are perceived to be against neo-liberalism or to be advocates of policies in favour of the working class and the poor are seen as problematic, isolated or purged”. • We saw the Alliance, particularly the ANC, refusing to nationalise the mines, monopoly industries and the banks and the SACP, after some flip-flops, finally endorsed the SIMS report, which was commissioned by the ANC and paid for by the Chamber of Mines. The SACP endorsed this report which says nationalisation will lead to unmitigated economic disaster. • For more than 20 years, the apartheid labour market has not been transformed. Year in year out a series of Employment Equity Reports show that the white population continues to control the economy and the wage structure remains racist and colonial. There is no equal pay for work of equal value. • The little progress we achieved in the Labour Relations Act is now seen as a threat to jobs and labour brokers have not been banned.

Without a political party committed to Socialism in theory and practice, the working class will not be independent • There are those who say Numsa is wrong to have taken a resolution that the working class must abandon the ANC-led Alliance. They say that we risk splitting the democratic movement and entrenching the right wing. They say the Numsa resolution will secure victories to our class enemies and imperialist forces will win the day. • The Numsa leadership in particular, was accused of working with imperialist forces to weaken and ultimately overthrow the national liberation movement. This is what is being pontificated by some “advanced quarters”. • Here is a fact: Already the enemy class, white monopoly capital, has been celebrating for the victories it has scored under the ANC-led Alliance. They managed to send money abroad through capital flight because of dismantling of exchange controls, financial speculation has rapidly increased, and South Africa is used as an imperialist base to re-colonise the continent. • The major banks are foreign-owned, all mines are foreign-owned, big monopolies such as Iscor (Arcelor-Mittal and Kumba Iron Ore Mines), SASOL, pharmaceuticals and forestry companies are foreign-owned, etc. The economy is more foreign-owned now than under apartheid.

Imperialist domination has accelerated its grip on the South African economy. The financial sector: Dominated by 4 large privately owned banks (ABSA, • Nedbank, FNB and Standard Bank). ABSA is 56% foreign-owned, Standard Bank is at least 40% foreign owned. The Reserve Bank privately owned. • SASOL is about 30% foreign-owned and Arcelor-Mittal is 65% foreign owned. • The pharmaceuticals sector:is Dominated by foreign-owned Aspen, Adcock-Ingram, Sanofi, Pfizer, Norvatis, etc. have all significant foreign-ownership. Today these companies are blackmailing the country and the minister is accusing them of genocide and chemical warfare. As the working class we should ask: what happened to the 100% state-owned pharmaceutical company that we called for? Telecommunications: The Thintana Telkom Deal in 1997 (Malaysians and • Americans), which led to massive job losses in Telkom from 67 000 to 25 000, has left the country poorer and in a worse socio-economic position. The construction sector is also monopolised, dominated by four players: Murray & • Roberts, WBHO, Aveng and Group 5, with foreign ownership. These facts, which are just the tip of an iceberg, show that our enemy class is • already much more jubilant about what has transpired since 1994. Is the ANC manifesto in any way changing these power relations in the economy?

Even the Vision 2014 announced in 2004 that was promised to the working class has not been fulfilled, and the current ANC Manifesto adds promises on top of broken ones • Reduce unemployment by half: In 2004 the unemployment rate was 23%, but in 2013 it had risen to 24.7%. In 2004 the number of unemployed was 3.7 million, but in 2013 it had risen to 4.1 million. • Reduce poverty by half: In 2004 the number of social grant recipients was 7.8 million, but in 2011 the number of social grant recipients had risen to 15.5 million. In 2004 the percentage of people living below R524 a month was 48%, but in 2011 this had increased to 52.3%. This means that in 2004 people who were living below R524 were 22 million, by 2011 this number had increased to 26.5 million. • Provide the skills required by the economy: According to the Department of Labour’s National Scarce Skills List in 2008 the total skills shortage in the economy was 512 357 people, the Department of Higher Education and Training’s Skills Demand List reports that in 2012 the total skills shortage had increased to 1.7 million people. • Someone even promised to eliminate informal settlements by 2014! • Now we have a 2014 Manifesto that has yet another Vision 2030 of the NDP. • As Numsa we are doing a thorough analysis of all the Manifestos since 1994.