Regular readers of Socialist Outlook will remember that in issue 56 we carried an analysis of the current situation in South Africa from NEVILLE ALEXANDER, the National Chairperson of the Workers Organisation for Socialist Action (WOSA). Here, prominent WOSA activist SALIM VALLY. further outlines WOSA's strategy in the forthcoming elections and beyond. AS COMRADE Neville outlined in his article for Socialist Outlook last month, the idea of a mass workers party in this country is not simply an ultra-left scheme, it actually has resonance in the working class and oppressed masses at the moment.
Neville mentioned, the survey in which 60 per cent of a random sample of black people here thought a mass workers party should be formed. Also the largest trade union in South Africa, NUMSA, the Metalworkers Union, passed a resolution at it's last congress saying a workers party may be necessary to unify the left and for workers demands.
It is not only in NUMSA that this debate has taken place. In several unions there has been a very sharp debate around this question. It has raised a very real tension in the ranks of the South African Communist Party, with on the one hand sections of the leadership denouncing the idea as being inspired by 'dupes of the South African Intelligence Services' and on the other hand members saying 'no comrades, this is a serious question to which we must give serious consideration.
Workers' List
So it is in this context that we in WOSA, along with several other left groups and individuals active in the trades Unions and the Civic movement, have taken the decision to stand in the forthcoming elections as the Workers List Party as part of our ongoing strategy to bring about the formation of a mass workers party.
We do have serious misgivings about the elections. An interim constitution has already been decided upon and entrenched before a representative governmental structure has been established, and in particular, clauses have been included that preserve white domination in both the economic field and the civil service.
And that's not to mention the power sharing compromise for the next five years and the constitutional court that will outlaw any radical attempts at wealth WOSA understands the need to patiently relate to rank-and-file ANC support re-distribution.
Despite these misgivings, we took a significant majority decision in WOSA to take part in the elections in order to propagate the mass workers party idea.
We decided on the name the Workers List Party for two main reasons: firstly, we have a list of working class demands and secondly a list of working class candidates.
Premature We do not call ourselves the Workers Party because this would be premature. We are very much aware that the timing of the launch of a real mass workers party will be of the essence, and that it should coincide with big working class struggles and significant working class support moving in our direction.
However, we believe that it is essential that a list of working class demands are raised in this election.
To those who say 'well surely the ANC are promising Jobs, Homes and Free Education for all, and its simply sectarianism to stand against them', we would answer with the following.
The ANC have at present made it very clear that they will not be prepared to challenge the power of big business interests, and will therefore be unable to do much more than tinker with the major inequalities and social problems we have in this country.
We are talking about a situation here "The ANC have made it very clear that they will not be prepared to challenge the power of big inequalities and social problems we have in this where we have more than eight million people who are unemployed, probably an equal number who are homeless, we have people who are literally starving in some rural areas, we have hundreds, even thousands of street kids, children between the ages of 7 and 14 living on the streets...
And we have an extreme concentration of wealth in the hands of a few monopoly companies...and the ANC has ditched its commitment to anything more than perhaps re-nationalising some public utilities recently privatised by the National Party!
For us, this is simply not acceptable as a strategy for true liberation.
We are called unrealistic because we argue for nationalisation under workers control of the commanding heights of the economy. But we respond that the real unreality is believing that dependence on foreign investment, the world bank and the benevolence of capitalism is going to benefit many more than the small existing and emergent middle class as far as the black population of the country is concerned.
Labour costs
Capitalism will only invest here if it believes labour costs can be kept to a minimum, and in comparison with the Pacific rim countries, South Africa is not a major contender in the global beauty contest to attract high finance.
So we believe we are correct to point this out forcefully at this stage, to put our marker down because we are aware that our standing in the election serves primarily to increase our profile and raise working class demands.
As far as the list of working class candidates goes, we stress this in sham opposition to the make-up of the list of candidates adopted by other parties.
For example, on the ANC list, there are several prominent former collaborators with the apartheid structures, such as Nelson Ramadike, the leader of the Lebowa 'homeland', and General Ramashuwana, former head of the Venda 'homeland' and now the leader of the National Peacekeeping Force.
He was involved in the 'elimination' of several ANC and MK comrades in his former role in the South African Security Police. They have greatly enriched themselves in the process to the tune of millions of Rand.
There are many others, including Ishmael Richards who was the person who actually turned us over to the security forces during the uprisings around the boycott of the tri-cameral parliament in 1983-84. So when we talk about a workers list we are talking about people who have served the workers struggle rather than riding on the back of it.
For all these reasons we believe our decision to stand in this election is a necessary one and is not an ultra-left We also need to take the opportunity while we have it, for many of us believe that repressive measures against the nonANC left could well be not so far away given the social pressures outlined, the ANC's unwillingness to take the radical measures necessary to deal with them, and their probable willingness to deal with working class reaction to this.
And that is not to mention the everpresent threat of all-out civil war instigated by the extreme right with their strength in the state security structures and the civil service.
What we have embarked upon has serious risks, but also tremendous possibilities for progress, not only for us but for the left globally. We feel we have an enormous responsibility here to hold up the banner of real democracy, socialism and independent workers struggle, and also to expose the role of those who have for years held up the stalinist societies as examples of socialism.
But we also think that our struggle is your struggle and urgently appeal to you to support us by contributing financially to our election fighting fund so that we can put up as many candidates as possi ble and really get our message across at a national and local level. • Cheques payable to WOSA can be deposited by bank transfer directly into: Account no. 1979 318433. Ned Bank, 100 Main Street, Johannesburg, South Africa.
SOCIALIST OUTLOOK No. 59, 26 March 1994, Page 10 Yeltsin curries favour
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