POPCRU 1st Edition Newsletter 2016

2 “Transforming the Criminal Justice Cluster in defense of the Working Class Struggle for the advancement of the National Democratic Revolution”

POPCRU House1 Marie RoadAuckland Park2006Tel:0112424600Email:[email protected]

The SecretaryPOPCRU House,

20 Muir Street, Southern WoodEast London,5200Tel: 043 743 8700

Email: [email protected]

The SecretaryPOPCRU Free State,

Penbell Building,29 Elizabeth StreetBloemfontein, 9300

Tel: 051 448 1996Email: [email protected]

The SecretaryPOPCRU,124 Marshall Street3rd Floor, Lunga HouseJohannesburg, 2001

Tel: 011 834 7758Email:[email protected]

The SecretaryPOPCRU Kwazulu Natal,

Kings Place Field, 10th Floor,30 Field Street,Durban 4001


The SecretaryPOPCRU House Limpopo,78 Dahl Street, Pietersburg,0699Tel: 015 297 5435

Email:[email protected]

The SecretaryPOPCRU Mpumalanga,

Hansa Building, 2nd Floor21 Arras StreetWitbank1053


The SecretaryPOPCRU North West,91 Leask StreetTel: 018 464 3053Email:[email protected]

The SecretaryPOPCRU Northern Cape,

Flexeley House, 3rd floor 24/28 Du Toitspan RoadKimberley,8301


The SecretaryPOPCRU House Cape Town,No. 5 Grasmere StreetAthlone 7764


POPCRU Provincial Offices

POPCRU Head Office Limpopo

Eastern Cape Mpumalanga

Free State North West

Gauteng Northern Cape

Kwazulu Natal

Western Cape

“Transforming the Criminal Justice Cluster in defense of the Working Class Struggle for the advancement of the National Democratic Revolution” 3

CONTENTS

EDITORIAL TEAMEditor-In-Chief

Nkosinathi Theledi

Editor

Kgeilelwa Richard Mamabolo

Sub-Editing

Bonny Marekwa, Dliswa Mthimkhulu,

Busisiwe Mazibuko, Tryphina Phihlela,

Oupa Sebiloane, Mahodiela Ramafalo,

Gloria Yeki, Mokgadi Monyepao

Designed by Mokgadi Monyepao

THE EDITOR

POPCRU NEWS,

P.O. BOX 8657 Johannesburg 2000 or

email:

[email protected]

Fax: 086 625 3054

Alternatively visit POPCRU Website at

www.popcru.org.za

Chief Editor’s Comments 4

Editor’s Notes 5

Provincial Congresses 7

Developments within Sectors 10

Collective Bargaining. 18

Alliance News 23

Perspectives 30

International News 55

Developmental Programmes 2015 62

National Staff meeting 63

POPCRU Membership Form 65

POPCRU Recruitment Paphlet 67

PAGES


We want a COSATU that is based on its constitution and founding principles of one country - one federation, one union - one industry, paid-up membership, worker control, worker solidarity, non -racialism and unity…” , the federation is indeed going back to basics and redefining itself as the workers’ only hope.

This union has indeed demonstrated to both detractors and those faint-hearted comrades whom were overwhelmed by these challenges that our common historical duty to unite workers of this country and to ensure the improved working conditions in all sectors of employment under a single, militant and disciplined federation is worth the painstaking efforts made by us all in defending this federation.

COSATU is key to the Alliance and a united Alliance is critical for the future of the country. The workers of the country need a COSATU that remains focussed on the mandate to serve their needs and to remain a beacon of hope to all. Long Live to a united and worker-led COSATU!

Editor in Chief

Over the past year, we saw many challenges facing the working class in general, but more specifically, the labour movement of our country was being pushed to the brink of collapse, a state of affairs engineered by both local and international sympathisers and funders for a regime-change program that was and still is hell-bent on presiding over the collapse and rupture of our historical alliance.

This attempt manifested itself in varying forms that pursued to deligitimise the single biggest workers’ federation, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU).

This gigantic federation has indeed defied all odds and is decisively passing through its worst period of internal instability since its establishment in 1985.Through its internal cleansing process, which is well captured by the 2015 COSATU Special National Congress which states, “We want discipline within the federation and in our affiliates.

CHIEF EDITOR’S NOTE

Nkosinathi Theledi


Editor

With this first edition of our newsletter in the year 2016, we bring forth a variety of issues covered towards last year’s recess period, the current and future discourse within the sectors we organise under.

This being the year for the Local Government elections, and with the recently held National Congress of the biggest labour federation on the continent, we take a glimpse of pertinent issues on workers struggles and their quest for the attainment of decent living wages, successes achieved within bargaining councils and the many challenges still faced.

The countless number of police killings that have marred our country over the past year had been an issue of contention as it relates to the methods that need to be applied in realising their reduction and ultimate halt, whilst the reality of improving relations with communities hangs in the balance due to the recent nature of conduct as displayed by police management in the country, that being demonstrated by the very fact that it is seemingly isolating potent

stakeholders in confronting such common challenges.

We make an assessment of the burden confronting the majority of the South African youth in accessing education, and get views from progressive youth structures around what they define as solutions at the backdrop of these ever-challenging economic conditions our country finds itself.

In celebrating the lives of one of the staunchest liberation fighters, we also make an assessment of the 21st Anniversary since the passing of Cde Joe Slovo, and what it means in the current day discourse, more so for youth in taking up struggles for access to education, and what prospects lie ahead in making it fashionable, as the YCLSA says.

We hope this newsletter will generate dialogue aimed at finding common solutions to the challenges faced, but also cherish our areas of strength which revolves around you the workers.

EDITOR’S NOTE

Kgeilelwa Richard Mamabolo


The book titled “The Historical Background of POPCRU” was published in June 2015. This book encapsulates a rich history of a progressive trade union, the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union. It narrates who this enormous organisation is, right from the inception in 1989 until 2015 (25 years). Among others, highlights of this book are on the role played by POPCRU during the liberation struggle, its role of transforming and unionising the Police Service (then SAP), Correctional Services (previously Prison Service) and Traffic Policing in South Africa and within the SADC region. It also entails a very fascinating chapter on the entire journey of POPCRU’s structural developments from the 1st National Congress in 1992 until the Central Executive Committee Meeting held in November 2014. This chapter was sponsored by

the founding, former and current leadership of POPCRU, a distinctive section which provides first-hand information on the challenges and the successes of this very first Police trade union in South Africa.

This is a must-have book for all South Africans who want to enrich their knowledge on trade union movement, as well as other Africans and other internationals who require a motivation and key lessons on how to successfully establish a trade union or unionise employees, more especially within the Security Cluster. A copy of this edifying book can be purchased from the following book stores:

Exclusive Books at OR Tambo International and Domestic; Exclusive Books in Centurion; and Best Books in Durban. This ironic book sells at retail

recommended price of R200.00, and the ebook is also available for R199.00 on the following link:

h t t p : / / w w w. p o r c u p i n e p r e s s .co.za/shop/histor y/historical-background-of-popcru-detail.html

Distribution in other provinces is currently in progress, more details will be provided in the next edition of this Newsletter.

Knowledge is Power!

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF POPCRU


Provincial structures of POPCRU held their 8th Provincial Congresses across the country throughout the month of September 2015. During these Provincial Congresses, one common factor demonstrated was unity of purpose, this being so due to the nature of open and frank debates POPCRU members across the spectre have accustomed themselves to, and in light of the many challenges that were facing both our Federation and our genuine struggle for the attainment of the National Democratic Revolution, provinces took it upon themselves to act out their concluded decisions in a disciplined manner, therefore affirming to become the first line of defence of our historic revolution.

These demonstrations, all in all, verified that our membership’s concerns were and still are discussion-oriented rather than leadership-oriented. That, by far, has been a major challenge faced by many progressive organisations in a post-democratic South Africa, and in this regard we are surely setting good standards and remaining focused on the substantive realities faced by our members and the broader society.

The appreciation that before we are workers, we are members of society has indeed postured POPCRU as more than just a union of choice, but a vehicle with which to bring about positive change in society, and this essence was well captured through the union’s strategic and tactical perspectives under which its programmatic direction is based.

These Provincial Congresses, taking cue from the 8th POPCRU National Congress, further interrogated the latter’s resolutions and culminated them into different programmatic goals as defined by their specific provincial needs and conditions, and to that extent, we are jovial in that the general membership is in good hands.

The following is a list of the 8th Provincial Congresses leadership outcomes;

1. Eastern CapeDate: 28-29 September 2015Venue: Fish River Sun Hotel, Port AlfredThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);

2. Free StateDate: 16-17 September 2015Venue: Welkom Inn Conference CentreThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);

PROVINCIAL CONGRESSES

Amelia MahlatsiProv Secretary

Pakiso MokalapaChairperson

Sandile PeakeDeputy

Chairperson

Kelepile DirekoDep Secretary

Nelisa RietProv Treasurer

Zamikhaya SkadeProv Secretary

Loyiso MdingiChairperson

Bongiwe McitwaDeputy

Chairperson

Xolani PrusenteDep Secretary

Ntombizonke TwetwaProv Treasurer


3. GautengDate: 5-6 September 2015Venue: St Georges Conference Centre, IreneThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);

4. Kwa Zulu-NatalDate: 17-18 September 2015Venue: LaVita Conference Centre, eThekwiniThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);

5. LimpopoDate: 22-23 September 2015Venue: Karibu Leisure Resort, TzanenThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);

6. MpumalangaDate: 19-20 September 2015Venue: Forever Resort, White RiverThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);


Vusimuzi TshabalalaChairperson

Naughty MagoaiDep. Chairperson

Lerata MotsiriSecretary

Johana Mahlobogoane

Dep. SecretaryRashie MankoeTreasurer

Jeff DladlaChairperson

Amina SadeckDep. Chairperson

Nthabeleng MolefeSecretary

Nkosinathi MthembuDep. Secretary

Mncedisi Dlamini Treasurer

Life MoniniChairperson

Star MmadiDep. Chairperson

Sipho NkambuleSecretary

Stephina MokoenaDep. Secretary

Evelinah YendeTreasurer

Marurung MasemolaChairperson

Getruth MalunganeDep. Chairperson

Hangwani Mashao Secretary

Nelson MaeselaDep. Secretary

Alice MabotjaTreasurer


9. Western CapeDate: 29-30 September 2015Venue: Fountains Hotel, Cape TownThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);

7. North WestDate: 24-25 September 2015Venue: Hunters rest Hotel, RustenburgThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);

8. Northern CapeDate: 26-27 September 2015Venue: Protea Hotel Big Hole, KimberleyThe following are the elected Provincial Office Bearers (POBs);


Boitumelo PheleoProv Secretary

Zamani MathisoChairperson

Themba SmitDeputy

Chairperson

Margaret MolefeDep Secretary

Kelebogile MoengProv Treasurer

Solomon LekhuChairperson

Johnnie DingakeDep. Chairperson

Nomalanga MabokelaSecretary

Veronica Mokokong Dep. Secretary

Johnny MekgoeTreasurer

Fransisco FieldsChairperson

Xolile MarimaniDep. Secretary

Kathy Amadou-Yalandi Treasurer

Beauty StoffelsDep. Chairperson

Mncedisi MbolekwaSecretary

POPCRU HOUSE HEAD OFFICE


A. Police Killings

In light of the many police killed over the past year, we are yet to see any formidable plan of action on the part of the SAPS management or the Minister of Police. With the un-concluded outstanding white papers on the new Criminal Justice cluster and that of the Police act which are by now gathering dust, a lot leaves little to be desired.

We are deeply concerned on the silent stance they have clearly adopted. The Acting Commissioner seems to continue with the ‘business as usual’ mentality and has shown no sign of concern to those tasked with the responsibility of protecting the entire society. The killing of police cannot just be treated as a normal incident which authorities seem to care-less about. We are at a stage of abnormality!

Clearly, the time has come to stand up and defend ourselves and protect the communities who rely heavily on us for their safety. All Police officers must effectively defend themselves against any form of violent attack by criminals.

It is our stance that we condemn any form of brutality, be it brutality against the society or against the police. Within this understanding, the act of police officers’ defence against the continued onslaught directed to them should never be construed to be police brutality.

These targeted killings also brought about a

discussion aimed at promoting private security companies from right wing organs such as the Afri-Forum, aimed at discrediting our government institutions merely as redundant, therefore attempting to belittle our democratic gains as insignificant and of declining standards. Further, these attacks were equally aimed at diminishing the public’s trust in this institution.

Police officers must never surrender to the criminals; instead they should reinforce and take them head-on with everything at their disposal. Police Officials must at all material times stay vigilant and claim back their authority over criminality and law-breaking propensities.

Our many police officers who remain committed to serving our people with dignity and pride shall never despair, cause we fully understand that beyond policing, we are committed to building a just society where inequality, which is among the root causes of criminal activity brewed by the social ills prevailing in our state of squalor are socio-economic in nature, and are not God-given but man-made.

Here forth, we are to go out in our numbers in ensuring we work closely with communities as the most important stakeholders across the country and create good working relations with the purpose of securing them from criminality. We will not stand idle while these men and women in blue are being attacked.

Police killings should be an occurrence of the past, and for this we shall fight tooth and nail! A POPCRU member is our priority.

DEVELOPMENTS WITHIN SECTORS

1. SAPS


B. Marikana and the Farlam Commission outcomes

Events emanating from the developments leading to the fateful day in which 44 miners stationed at the Lonmin mine in Marikana lost their lives resulted in a Commission of Inquiry being set up by President Zuma, and he appointed retired Judge Ian Farlam in heading that commission.

This commission’s terms of reference, in particular on the conduct of the South African Police Service (SAPS), was to look into, among others, the nature, extent and application of any standing orders, policy considerations, legislation or other instructions in dealing with the situation which gave rise to this incident.

The outcomes of the Farlam Commission, in its findings, argued that, among others, it is necessary to give far more prominence to questions about ‘emotions in understanding the events of that week. In particular a key argument is that, as a result of the confrontation of the 13th August, many police at Marikana had feelings of fear, as well as strong feelings of antipathy, towards the strikers.

The document later argues that these emotions played an important role in contributing to police conduct on the afternoon of 16th August, most notably at scene 2. Further, it is therefore apparent that someone decided, apparently on the 15th of August, that the strikers had to be removed from the koppie the following day, irrespective of the consequences. It is argued here that it is most likely that this ‘decision’ took the form of a directive of some kind that was communicated to the National Commissioner by Minister Mthethwa.

On the basis of some of the outcomes from the Farlam Commission of inquiry, this commission further recommended probes into the fitness to hold office of both national police commissioner Riah Phiyega and North West police commissioner Lt-Gen Zukiswa Mbombo.

C. Opposition to transformation: Phahlane and Solidarity

The background of this matter is that the South African Police Service (SAPS) was processing the promotions for members in accordance with a progressive Collective Agreement we concluded in the Safety and Security Sectoral Bargaining Council (SSSBC).

The collective agreement was intended to effect the transformation agenda, particularly Affirmative Action, within SAPS in correcting the injustices of the past inflicted by the previous racist system of apartheid to the Black majority members. Therefore, SAPS was correct to enter into this collective agreement and implement it. Conversely, Solidarity (representing Van Der Walt, Stone and Le Roux) approached the Labour Court challenging implementation of the Collective Agreement.

We now know that on the 23 December 2015 Phahlane entered into a covert settlement on this important transformation matter with Solidarity. Beyond that, he had the guts to go to the media to say the SAPS members are going to benefit on promotions.

We noe know that an agreement was indeed covertly reached between Solidarity and SAPS. At no stage whatsoever were we as POPCRU ever involved or advised of the negotiations and/or agreement entered into. As stated above, we heard through the media the status of the dispute despite, us being party to the Labour Appeal Court litigation regarding the matter.

In the premise we have since requested the full details of the terms of the settlement to be provided to us as a matter of urgency in order for us to consider our position herein. As the matter stands, we are in the process of attending to the drafting of heads of argument which are due in the Labour Appeal Court during January 2016.

We will consider what the effect of the settlement has on the litigation in the Labour Appeal Court



as we are a party to it but not a party to the agreement covertly entered into between SAPS and Solidarity. In the premise the litigation that we form part of cannot simply be withdrawn on the basis of this covert operation between the acting National Commissioner and Solidarity. Within this ambit, our rights remain reserved in full.

D. Restructuring within SAPS

At a time where there had been countless police officers killed, and since the Acting National Commissioner started acting, we were of the view that a priority would immediately be given to dealing with this encounter as a matter of urgency, and also based on the need to bring about public confidence to men and women who commit themselves daily to protect and serve our society.

However, it soon became apparent that instead of urgently attending to this catastrophe, he soon became preoccupied by expanding the organisational structure, which is merely resulting in exorbitant expenditure.

These contradictory sub-structures within the SAPS have created amongst others:• Duplication of functions on top; and• Paralysis of efficient policing operation at

grass root level.

Drafting of policing methodology can no longer be a sacred domain of top management – better part of which constitutes anti–labour, undemocratic and anti-transformative agendas.

There is no need at all to bring people from abroad (as attempts are already underway in this regard) to do something for us which we have the capacity to do on our own – with perfection.

The lack of coherent, integrated and collaborative Criminal Justice System also contributes to the current state of affairs.In this regard, we

have called for a halt in the restructuring of the SAPS management, which has thus far seen unjustified suspensions of many.

POPCRU applied for an Urgent Court interdict to halt any further restructuring processes, and the application was rejected by the Labour Court on the basis of its urgency, yet without dismissing facts we had put on the table, which are factually correct in that there was no meaningful consultations and engagements around the restructuring process that had already begun to take effect, this therefore constituting a contravention of the signed Safety and Security Sectoral Bargaining Council (SSSBC) agreement on the part of the SAPS.

E. POPCRU March Against Police Killings

Despite the many attempts POPCRU has advanced at working jointly with the SAPS management in finding solutions to the trend under which police officers had been killed and wounded while on their duties in the past year, with 83 having lost their lives, there was little or no action from the SAPS management as to how this sensitive and grim issue is to be tackled.

Even worse, there was no willingness on the latter’s part to engage us in finding common elucidations.

This happened at the backdrop of police service management that dedicated most of its time to top-level structural changes and infighting which resulted in the many squabbles that had nothing to do with devising strategies on halting police killings, but occupying space and sealingthe fate of those the new administration clearly out casted.

POPCRU exhausted all means in trying to resolve this debacle, which fell on deaf ears, therefore leaving us no further ultimatum but to take to the streets.



POPCRU 2nd DGS Lawrence Msinto addressing demonstration

Like the say goes, ‘you cannot win in the boardroom what you have not won on the streets…’, taking to the streets demonstrated the public support and confidence in the stance POPCRU has taken by sending out a clear message to the police management that police lives do matter.

We held a series of demonstrations and pickets across the country, with the POPCRU Gauteng march being followed by a National march on the 20th November 2015 to the Offices of the Minister of Police, the Acting National Commissioner and that of the Minister of Justice.

Comrades in their numbers on the way to submit memorandums

Among the demands made by POPCRU were the following;• Immediate Plan and Action by the South

African Police Service for the defence of police officers against the continued onslaught unleashed against them.

• Members criminally charged for defending themselves against this continued onslaught, must be defended by the South African Police Service and they should have proper professional counselling provided to them.

• Establishment of a component tasked with responsibility to look into the plight of police officers since IPID looks into actions against police officers.

• Set up a Special unit to investigate progress reports on all cases of the killed Police Officers while within the scope of employment.

• Instead of wasting tax payers’ money to create “Job For Palls” through the bloating of the SUPERFLUOUS Top-Heavy structure, more police officers must be recruited immediately to capacitate all police stations around the country.

• SAPS must immediately start preparing submissions to assist government on the review the gun laws currently applicable in the country where some sections of the society create arsenals at home.

POPCRU President Zizamele Cebekhulu addressing crowds • The South African Police Service must



embark on a process of putting together submission to Parliament to enact legislation for the mandatory sentencing for those found guilty of killing police officers.

• Safer working conditions (Improved bullet-proof vests, cars, etc.) and Maximisation of Safety tools for Police to conduct their work.

• Strict Police visibility in all Metros (similar to the 2010 World Cup model).

POPCRU General Secretary Nkosinathi Theledi reading out the Memorandum

• Urgent Introduction of armoured Police vehicles to protect Police officers when confronted with criminal elements.

• Urgent Improvement of Employee Assistance Programmes

• Guaranteed safety of members’ transport to and from work and police officers to be armed at all times.

• Continuous remedial and training of police officers

Since the submission of the Memorandums on the 20th November 2015, it had not even taken two weeks that we saw a clear defiance of the workers’ demands, demonstrated by the continued restructuring process and the deployment of student constables to malls, a clear indication of what is yet to come.

F. Deployment of Student Constables

The month of December saw the SAPS management consciously, and defiantly opting

to deploy student constables to different malls across the country, the main reason being that they aimed to increase police visibility throughout the festive season. As important as we regard police visibility being one of the imperative features of minimising criminal activity in our country, the manner in which it was done and the people deployed to these areas was a total risk to the lives of these student constables.

In line with the SAPS prescripts, these students are not allowed to be utilised on any operational matters of this nature until they complete their training and then work for a determined period in Police stations first.

At a time when there had been so many fully qualified Police officers killed and those hospitalised, student constables who are, by law, not allowed to arrest, are not firearm competent and therefore cannot carry or utilise firearms, do not have a minimum requirement for Operational functions and not even an Appointment Certificate, were being sent out in full uniforms to do Operational duties, only with reflectors, bullet proofs and torches by the South African Police Services (SAPS) management.

For us this revealed some misguided arrogance on their part as we directly raised the matter with them on the 15th December 2015 where management became self-justifying to precede with their illegitimate actions of exposing unqualified and unready students to the potential dangers which had seen 83 police officers killed.

It is unblemished that whilst they pretend to be sympathising with the killing of police officers, their actions prove them to the contrary when they deliberately expose these poor students to be butchered by cruel and merciless criminals.

The situation was unfortunate, and could have turned out for the worse had any of the student constables gotten harmed in any way.

The implication of this action could have resulted in lawsuits against the SAPS, resulting



in financial implications. We are determined to continue fighting that this eventuality never repeats itself.

Krugersdorp 4: Who Must Die?

Demonstrators in solidarity with the Krugersdorp 4

Among the burning issues that caught many by surprise was the debacle that took the town of Krugersdorp and the country by astonishment. In a clearly media-orchestrated public perception drive to continue portraying police in a bad light, a video clip depicting Police officers shooting an armed suspect in an attempted robbery was blown out of proportion.

Certain sections of the media chose to depict a carefully selected part of what had actually transpired and chose, willingly or not, to ignore the fact that the suspect had initially fired 8 stray bullets in the direction the officers were coming from.

As a consequence, these bullets could have easily hit by passers and/or the police themselves, children could have easily become orphaned and wives widowed. Families could have lost breadwinners. That is a sad tale of the daily lives of police. This resulted in the arrests of these officers, who were then detained and denied bail on unreasonable grounds.

This matter created a national uproar on the basis of the following reasons;1. There had been about 72 police killings at

the time, and the SAPS management was not responsive in finding urgent solutions to this perpetual encounter.

2. The 4 police officers were refused bail without any formidable motive in that they were not in any way constituting a flight risk and were not a threat to anyone’s lives.

POPCRU President Zizamele Cebekhulu (3rd from right), 2nd Deputy President Bonny Marekwa(2nd from right) and the Secretariat HOD Dliswa Mthimkhulu (far right) attended the court appearances of the Krugersdorp 4.

In comparison to this, there had been many other high profile cases where the suspects whom can be defined as constituting a flight risk had been given bail, therefore demonstrating the impartiality some magistrates seem to lack, hence our continued call for the transformation of the judiciary. The four police officers have since been granted bail, and POPCRU has since submitted memorandums of demands to the Offices of the Minister of Police, that of the Acting National Commissioner and the Minister of Justice to, among other issues, review some of the laws governing the SAPS, most of which were enacted during the apartheid era and now finding themselves in conflict with some of our democratic constitutional frameworks.



In erecting a formidable Police service for the improvement of our safety as society, an approach that unifies both communities and police is vital as crime negatively affects us all. There cannot be any results that yield progress in this regard so long as management’s approach excludes stakeholders in this sense.

The fact that most of the progressive proposals made have simply been ignored demonstrate that either those afforded the opportunity to lead this service have got no idea as to what they want to accomplish or are simply ignorant of reality is worrisome and needs to be looked into closely.

President Zizamele Cebekhulu addressing the public after the court hearing.

On the same issue, the 12th National Congress of COSATU spoke at length about the issue, and, in line with POPCRU, agreed that there must be implementable steps looked into that would ensure the transformation of the judiciary at all times, so it serves the South African citizenry equally, regardless of the wealth gap we find.

2. CORRECTIONAL SERVICESA. Where to with Correctional Services and the plethora of outstanding matters?

It does not require rocket science to realize that the Correctional Services doesn`t have the appetite to amicably resolve all outstanding matters currently serving on the agenda of the MTT despite our patience and the employment all efforts to reach amicable solutions to this plethora of issues.

Over a period of five years, POPCRU has been agitating for resolution of outstanding matters such as the Second Phase of the OSD for correctional officials, Shift patterns, backdated overtime and second group of 2008 amongst without concrete outcomes.

There is consistent changing of goal posts and laxity to finalize issues and it is time to treat this differently. Our structures are urged to engage and redirect our approach on the Department noting that transformation has fallen flat and that there is no program for such.

We should also deal with the fact that we have hotel type of corrections where members’ stabbings and idleness of inmates is the order of the day.

The ball is in our chord and we are the architects of our own future. We must turn the tide and make sure that it is not business as usual whilst we remain marginalized and neglected with huge amounts of money being returned to Treasury all the time without our dues being to us.



3. TRAFFICA. Developments on Nationalization of traffic

Having gone through a series of turbulences in the delivery of this milestone, clear and timed head ways have been in the delivery of nationalizing Traffic and working towards establishing a single police in South Africa as resolved by the African National Congress in its 52nd National Congress in Polokwane in 2007.We have finally turned the corner, with the 1st April 2016 marking a turning point in the harmonization and standardization of service conditions for traffic officers including the single branding of vehicles as the first phase.

The second phase of which shall include the transfer of the law enforcement function form the Cross-Border Road Transport Agency to the RTMC including those at Municipal level at intervals yet to be engaged and agreed upon with the RTMC and other role players moving towards the Single Police.



Member benefits

After tough battles with South African Police Service (SAPS) over a period of time, we have something to write home about in relation to the benefits of our members and take pride in having achieved the promotion of the lowest categories of the Police and the upgrading of salaries of Public Service Act appointees employed by the SAPS. We did this through a collective agreement and decisions reached between ourselves and the SAPS in the Safety and Security Sectoral Bargaining Council as detailed hereunder;

• All Constables who have been in the service for 11years in the rank and above as at 30 September 2015 shall be grade progressed to sergeant backdated to 1st June 2015.

• Sergeants who have been on the service for 11years in the rank and above as at 30 September 2015 shall be grade progressed to sergeant backdated to 1st June 2015, and;

• All Constables who have been in the service for 10 years in the rank and above as at 30 September 2016 shall be grade progressed to sergeant.

• Sergeants who have been on the service for 11years in the rank and above as at 30 September 2016 shall be grade progressed

to warrant officer as further negotiating on the grade progression of warrant officers B1 and B2 and in due course.

We also attained the upgrading of salaries for Public Service Act appointees who are cleaners, grounds men, switchboard operators, mess people and dog breeders just to mention a few at the cost of R62MILLLION to the SAPS. We are determined to continue fighting all injustices including pulling all strings to fight the recent unilateral restructuring currently underway in SAPS and to have a safer South Africa under a transformed police service.

Our energies are also focused unifying all law enforcement agencies under the command of a well transformed police service in the long term starting with nationalization of Traffic under the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) as 1st Phase towards the Single Police.

Transverse matters serving on the agenda of PSCBC

The major task in the PSCBC is the implementation of signed agreements, having concluded 8 collective agreements in the last round negotiations. The effects of which were communicated to provinces during the last quarter of 2015. The implementation of these



agreements is a tedious and an involved process which requires a clear strategy and implementation plan which is carefully structured and properly implemented to the latter to ensure that there are no overlaps to the next round of negotiations earmarked to take place towards 2018 and the council is finalizing the implementation plan and shall roll it out before the end of the first quarter of the year.

However, we are prepared to take the Employer to task on non-implementation as we did with the dispute on non-payment of housing allowance to home owners which was settled in a pre-arbitration hearing in favour of workers whereby all eligible home owners are now enjoying their increase in housing allowance backdated to 1st July 2015 as per clause 4.5.2 of PSCBC Resolution 7 of 2015. Our eyes should also be on those who are hell bent on reversing our hard earned gains in all sectors where within the criminal justice and we should consolidate our power to that and to advance transformation and reshape our future.

Consolidating power within the criminal Justice

The road towards 2019 should be characterized by a clear program whose pillars will be to consolidate power within the criminal justice, the improvement of quality of lives of our members and the advancement of the National Democratic Revolution amongst others. Plans are afoot to establish a bargaining council for the criminal justice cluster with a view of strengthening centralized collective bargaining for the sector as one of many interventions that we should employ to consolidate power.

The realignment collective agreements relating to the release bearers and fulltime shop stewards including promoting self-reliance are key focus in effort to ensure that we render quality services to our members and member satisfaction and we must assess our strengths and weakness and position the Organization for growth and capacity towards 2019.

Retirement Reform

Government is predominantly preoccupied with the notion of preserving funds, insinuating that public servants cannot save money for survival after retirement without consideration of the gaps that exist in the social security with adverse consequences to the workers who saved their hard earned wages which they can no longer access in full from the 1st M arch 2016. It is important to put this into context, note and acknowledge that;

Retirement insurance began in 1928 in South Africa after the Pension Funds Act of 1928 was passed. Like all other social policies, it was originally primarily intended to cover whites, the poor-whites in particular, and to some extent the coloured people. Interestingly, this was a non-contributory pension scheme, whereby only the employers made contributions.

In the aftermath of the World War II, in response to the resultant widespread poverty and income insecurity, the British government published the Beveridge Report, whose recommendations called for a comprehensive social security system – for instance, recommendation of this report led to the creation of its famous National Health System.

This report became considerably influential across the world at the time when many countries were generally committed to addressing poverty – in the context of the end of colonization, independence and socialist struggles inspired by the Soviet Union.

Even though some governments had already begun introducing social security schemes, from then onwards a lot more followed - introducing a range of social insurance plans, including public pension schemes. Social democratic states such as Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Iceland emerged – pursuing more public and expansive nets of social provision. These countries set the benchmark in guaranteeing everyone’s right to a pension (and other social provisions as citizenship rights), including the



life-time impoverished senior citizens with no record of contributions before their pension days.

Together with other social insurances, these measures rolled-back the market and ensured social reproduction was largely kept as the responsibility of the state and capital, rather than shunted to the workers either as individuals or as part of an exploited class. More importantly, these countries introduced their extensive social security provisions at the time when they were relatively poor (in the aftermath of the World War II). Thus, these extensive social measures became directly instrumental in the development of the economies of these countries.

In the South African public debate about social security reforms, including in relation to the Basic Income Grant (BIG) and NHI, Neoliberals have virtually succeeded in creating a conventional wisdom in society that these extensive social security provisions are only possible in rich countries or that the country must first develop economically before it can embark on such policy interventions. In contrast to most of these countries that substantially extended social security after the World War II, South Africa stuck to its largely privatized retirement insurance system covering white workers in the private sector, alongside the huge public sector pension funds including those established by parastatals.

With the Apartheid job-reservation policies in place and since social insurance provisions were linked to employment, the design of the retirement insurance schemes was typically reflective of racial discrimination - benefiting white people in the main.

Thus, the low-skill, migrant and weekly paid workers who were all African were excluded in term of the 1956 Pensions Act. However, by the 1970s, the rising black trade unions began to expand work-place demands with the broader socio-economic rights and the political struggle.

In part, this influenced the Riekert Commission to propose a range of reforms pertaining to existing racial discrimination in the labour-market, with a view to maintain social exclusion of the black people mainly through the market-forces.

Thus, in the wake of these cosmetic reforms in the labour-market, including the uplifting of the banning order on black trade unionism, over time the black workers scored some gains in their work-places and in the Apartheid labour-market in general, including securing agreements that covered retirement insurance.

COSATU, through this struggle saw many affiliates achieving provident funds in the 1980s and 1990s. Despite this historical milestone and its gains, to date the South African retirement insurance system outside the public sector funds, evolves largely from a fully privatized arrangement based on occupational and individual forms of cover in contrast to most countries. However, the system remains largely fragmented and goes against the social security principles of solidarity whereby beneficiaries in the private sector are mostly the middle and high income earners who are properly insured and who largely enjoy public subsidies in the form of tax rebates which are meant to be incentives to encourage retirement savings.

There are more than 2 700 retirement funds in South Africa, excluding the double-counting caused by those participating in more than one fund with the actual numbers of active members or contributors being estimated to be 6 million. And excluding agricultural and other unspecified workers in terms of the Labour Force Survey, the total potential contributors are 12 million whilst the total number of workers without any retirement insurance is about half of the workforce.

Government subsidizes private retirement provisions through Tax Expenditure Subsidies (TES’s) and this was worth about R17 billion in 2009. Worse to this being the fact that the “for-profit” private asset management companies



are responsible for administration and investment of the workers’ retirement savings, including some of the assets of the public funds remaining inferior from a social security point of view because of their defined contribution benefit structure. Another shortcoming is the fact that in the long-term the cash runs out, leaving the worker to lead the rest of their life in poverty and dependent on old age grants raising the question of preservation amongst other things.

Preservation

The question of preservation of funds is important in terms of the long-term transformation of the retirement system which cannot be treated outside the comprehensive social security system. It is also not a panacea of all problems given the high-level of unemployment and lack of any social protection for the unemployed in South Africa in particular the ages from 21 – 59 amongst others.

Currently as things stand, the retirement funds are a differed wage of workers whereby neither government nor employers have any right of interfering in and these funds were created precisely to cater for the retirement needs of workers. It is also nonsensical for anyone including Government to have a notion those workers, black workers in particular can’t manage their financial affairs and we condemn this with contempt.

Way forward

We fully support the COSATU`s call in rejecting the piecemeal approach to retirement reforms. Demanding a total scrapping of this legislation to allow genuine engagements as agreed in the past until there is agreement by NEDLAC constituencies and call on government to release the Comprehensive Social Security & Retirement reform paper without any further delay to be tabled for engagements NEDLAC including protests because; The law introduces the concept of preservation through the back

door without an agreement at NEDLAC with effect from 1st March 2016.

New contributions to any retirement fund will be subject to the same a new tax dispensation whereby contributions and growth on the investments will be subject to annuitisation requirements when members retire (that is, that no more than one-third may be taken in cash and the rest must be taken in the form of a pension).

• The law as it stands will destroy all provident finds as we know them and will create only massive profits for the private sector as workers will be expected to buy annuities.

• The law criminalizes the right to choose and it signals the emergence of an overbearing state that wants to have a say in how and when workers can spend their money.

• The poor will end up subsidizing the rich because poor workers with no medical aids and working in vulnerable and exposed workplace environments have a high mortality rate.

• The systems of employers and service providers are not ready for this law.

• We are still unhappy with the piece meal approach in the absence of a holistic framework as a reference point as agreed many years ago in NEDLAC.

• Some elements of Social Security are implemented in different government Departments where double if not triple dipping takes place while other citizen have benefit.

• That workers are now used as a cash cow by the unscrupulous service providers, who are advising workers to cash in their money and promise to invest it and or create annuities for them, failing to advise them about the tax implication and their brokerage huge fees, and;

• The failure by government to release IDTT paper on Comprehensive Social Security over many years of waiting is a sign of a Treasury that is running amok and running the country with no mandate from workers.

The war is far from over!



This is how the acting National Commissioner understands back to basics



JANUARY 8 STATEMENT

The African National Congress’ (ANC) January 8 statement comes as a long historical tradition founded within the ensuing struggles for the liberation of South Africans from the brutal and exploitative nature of the apartheid regime. Its main aim, as is the case to this day, was to provide a line of march for all freedom fighters and to encourage the oppressed people of South Africa to keep the struggle for their liberation going. Since then, as the ANC is now the ruling party in South Africa for the past 22 years, this event has also provided light into what we can expect from government.

As is the case with this historical trend, and in line with this tradition, many supporters and members descended to Rustenburg to celebrate this year’s January 8 Statement. With the past national general elections having shown a decline in the votes for the ANC, and considering that the country is to hold the local government elections later this year, it was important that the President spoke out about some of the internal challenges the organisation needed to deal with as a matter of urgency.

Reflections on factionalism, infighting and gatekeeping were key to the input, as these are, to a greater extent, more threatening to the organisation’s dominance than any opposition parties can be capable of.

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2016 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS

With the 2016 Local Government Elections around the corner, a lot of outstanding work awaits us all as progressives in rallying our communities behind the ANC-led alliance’s anticipated overwhelming victory.

The past elections have, to a greater extent, shown that the assumption that people will simply go out and vote without a clear understanding of our programmatic perspectives in improving their conditions yields in low voter turn-out, and for us to maximise our output, campaigns such as doing door-to-door remain vital.

As we enter into this very important year in defending our democratic gains, we are called upon to defend our movement through a vigorous and active campaign that would ensure an increased electoral victory in all areas that we have not done well in, and a consolidation of our traditional strongholds.


21st Annual Joe Slovo Commemoration

Joe Slovo (23 May 1926- 6 Jan 1995)

On the occasion of the 21st Annual Joe Slovo Commemoration held at the Avalon Cemetry in Soweto, comrades from the mass democratic movement and communities came in their thousands to celebrate the life and times of Joe Slovo, one of the most revered revolutionaries and leader the oppressed people of South Africa and the world has seen in the 21st century.

The South African Communist Party (SACP) indicated that at the time of his death on 6 January 1995, Slovo was the National Chairperson, Politburo and Central Committee member of the SACP. He was also first Minister of Housing in our country’s first democratically elected government and a member of the African National Congress National Executive Committee.

Inspired by the success of the Cuban revolution on 1 January 1959 the SACP considered armed struggle against the apartheid regime. Following a decision by the Party and the ANC in the early

1960s to include armed struggle in the fight against apartheid and for national liberation, Slovo was tasked, together with Comrade Nelson Mandela, to lead and was accordingly involved in the establishment of the joint ANC-SACP armed wing uMkhonto weSizwe.

Cdes Lucky Lukhele of SSN and Norman Mampane of COSATU among the attendants to the commemoration

Slovo held various positions of responsibility in the army, including as MK Chief of Staff.Slovo was involved in key sites of struggle and strategic centres of power as an activist, a leader and an intellectual of note. He participated in developing the strategy and tactics of our ANC-led national liberation movement and the political programme of the SACP.

Cde Ray Russon, a founding member of PUDEMO in Swaziland having a light moment with the SACP 2nd Deputy General Secretary, Cde Solly Mapaila

Slovo’s intellectual work, strategic and tactical thinking, working in the context of collective

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leadership, spans ‎almost all key documents of our struggle for national liberation and social emancipation, including, our very Constitution as a country.

YCLSA National Secretary Mluleki Dlelanga addressing at the Commemoration.

In his address, the YCLSA National Secretary, Cde Mluleki Dlelanga also said, in light of recent developments, ‘we feel it is important to lift that Cde Joe Slovo was not a racist. He fought against white supremacy or white domination, he fought against racism and on his words “No matter what vision one has of South Africa, the first thing that must be done is to destroy racism” He Further said “It’s not difficult in South Africa for the ordinary person to see the link between capitalism and racist exploitation, and when one sees the link one immediately thinks in terms of a socialist alternative”.

The YCLSA National Secretary further, and correctly so, went on to say ‘As YCLSA, we refuse to be victims of Penny Sparrow. She is the victim not us. She is the one carrying the burden of hate and racism. She is the one who sees a monkey reflected on her mirror not us. We are not going to be angry against her just because she has succumbed to the temptations of superiority, hate, stupidity and racism.

All we will do is to mobilize and continue to mobilize and organize all South Africans to fight and bring to an end white privilege, illegitimate white power and the system that seeks to protect it.’

The YCLSA will be embarking on their Annual Joe Slovo Right to Learn Campaign which, among others, seeks to ensure that education is made fashionable as an alternative to the rot of relying on tenders that had for some time misleadingly engulfed a big portion of our youth in past years.

The current General Secretary of the SACP was the keynote speaker, and in his address weighed in on recent racial spats, ‘There are still many internet-based media comment sections that nevertheless continue to accommodate comments that are racist, sexist, offensive and contain insults and hate speech. We called on and written to the South African Human Rights Commission to investigate the problem. We will consistently follow up with the commission in the interest of our constitutional vision of a non-racial South Africa!

Comrades in song

If left unattended, racist internet media trolling will cause other, and much bigger, problems.’He continued, “The DA was trying to fool the public when it suspended its MP, Dianne Kohler Barnard for sharing a racist social media post calling on the former President of apartheid: “Please come back, P W Botha – you were far more honest than any of these (ANC) rogues”. At that time the SACP said Dianne Kohler Barnard expressed the views that are built into the DNA of the DA. When DA reinstated her last month it clearly confirmed what we have said from the onset.

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As if that was not more than enough, again from within the DA, emerged one Penny Sparrow with racist comments referring to black people as monkeys. And of course the DA is trying to fool the public again by suspending her. Evidence exists beyond any reasonable doubt that there is home for such racism in the DNA of the DA.

In contradiction to the DNA of the DA, never again must we allow our country South Africa to be a haven where racists are harboured and are a resource as an electoral base. How can the DA be expected to do away with its own DNA? That party of racist acquired white privilege must never be trusted especially when it comes to the fundamental principles of our constitution - important principles such as the principle of non-racialism.

Wealth in this country still reflects racial inequality to the historical disadvantage of the black majority. Ownership, management control and highly paid positions in industry are still held on the same basis. The workplace remains a pyramid that is predominantly white and mainly males at the top and black at the bottom. This social engineering is not a product of the acts of nature but a long process of racist exploitation and privileges. It is this that the DA and its like are defending in opposition to democratic transformation, including affirmative action to redress the imbalances of the past - which continue to this day.

We support the ANC’s view that racism and expression of support for apartheid must all be criminalised. For instance, in Germany it is a crime to praise or comment positively about the holocaust. Nevertheless, the campaign against racism must be taken up as a mass campaign, with the working class at its head, to be waged in all key sites of power - in workplaces, in our communities, in the media.”

On the SACP’s second, radical phase of our

transition, the General Secretary had the following to say, “Problems also occur in post-colonial societies when liberation movements concentrate too much on providing services, on doing things for the people - as important as these things are - rather than also and more importantly concentrating on building production, developing and diversifying the total national productive capacities and making sure that the benefits of production are distributed among the most deserving people. As production develops, more people will be in productive work and our capacity to deliver social programmes will be greatly increased. These strategic tasks are mutually reinforcing. The absence of lack of economic transformation will inevitably lead to problems in the sphere of social delivery.”

MK soldiers doing the parade of honour in memory of Cde Joe Slovo

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Following its 12th National Congress, COSATU celebrated its 30th Anniversary of relentless struggles in defence of the rights of workers in the country. This 30th Anniversary was celebrated on the 5th December 2015 across the country, with the main event being held at the very area it was first launched back in 1985, the Curries Fountain Stadium in eThekwini.

Scores of members and supporters marched to the event, with alliance leaders jubilant at the fact that the federation had been tried and tested, with the road to the 30th Anniversary being a tough episode.

In his address to the thousands of supporters gathered, President Sidumo Dlamini stressed the point of unifying workers, and that each generation had its mandate to fulfil, as had the older generation of the Mandelas, Tambos and Sisulus done. It was our current task on this 30 years since COSATU’s formation to ensure it is strengthened and continues championing workers’ interests for more years to come, and that can only be done through nurturing a strong alliance movement rooted among the people.

Central to the priorities the president reflected on, emanating from the mandate given by the 12th National Congress are;

1. Back to Basics• Back to basics is based on advancing a

programme to build the organisation on the ground by ensuring that leaders, organisers and shop stewards must spent their time and the resources of the organisation servicing workers at the workplace.

• No leader must spend the resources of the organisation on anything else except on advancing workers interests. Leaders’ primary responsibility is to defend workers interests and not employers’ fears and profits.

• No one must go to a constitutional meeting without a mandate from workers.

• Leaders must report to workers about every decision and resolution taken in meetings.

• We must ensure that for everything we do, it is done on the basis of the mandate from workers

• We must at all times defend the constitution, the founding principles and policies of COSATU

• We must fight corruption inside our ranks, in the private sector and in the public sector.

• We must work to ensure that COSATU remains independent and is conscious of the dangers of being co-opted by employers and politicians.

• We must continue to strike a balance between the immediate concerns of our members to the need for ‘stability’ and ‘national development’ without subordinating each to the other.

2. Building the Alliance

This includes waging campaigns on the ground to build the Alliance. We must work on the ground to build an alliance which respects and implement its own resolutions. We want an alliance which is at the centre of driving the National Democratic Revolution.We want to build an alliance on the ground

Happy 30th Anniversary to COSATU

ALLIANCE NEWS

Comrades attending the celebration


which collectively deploys and collectively recalls those deployees when they refuse or fail to implement progressive policies. We will not stop to raise issues about some sections of the NDP in particular the economic and labour market sections. We want the concerns we raise together with the SACP to be addressed now! Our back to basics means building a strong SANCO which leads visible struggles in communities. It means building and strengthening our ANC to leading a working class biased and radical National Democratic Revolution.

Building the ANC based on asserting the centrality of the working class as the primary motive force in the NDR. This will include openly contesting and defending the centrality of the working class as the primary motive force in the NDR. It will also include openly contesting and defending the working class biasness and the mass based character of the ANC through visible programmes on the ground.

Part of the task will be to develop programmes aimed at linking mass power and state power.• Building and strengthening the SACP to

advance the struggle for Socialism• We must consciously work to build a strong

SACP that has the resources and capacity to advance the struggle to deepen and advance the NDR as a direct to socialism.

• This work must include consciously working to strengthen the socialist axis under the

leadership of the SACP to advance in a programmatic way the struggle for socialism. This will also include participating in the SACP process towards a decision on how it will relate to electoral politics in the future guided by our 9th Congress resolution and the SACPs 12th National Congress and its Special National Congress resolution in this regard

• We must run joint programme with the SACP focusing in ideological training of our leaders and members. In this regard we must focus on ensuring that unions put aside 10% of their budget for political education and that COSATU head office has enough capacity for this formidable task.

• We must mobilise towards the ANC victory in the forthcoming local government Elections

• We are going back to our communities to mobilise our people for the overwhelming victory of the ANC in the forthcoming local government election.

• This mobilisation will be a principled mobilisation based on ensuring that all the concerns raised by our people in the previous elections are addressed. This will include removing from the lists those candidates who are known for being corrupt, ill-disciplined and those who are not being supported by the majority in communities.

• The campaign will not just be a walk around to ask for votes but will be about ensuring that the demands of our communities are address effectively.

3. Campaigns

The first thing we want to say is that Neo - liberalism has failed and our government must stop pursuing an economic policy trajectory which is based on the neoliberal paradigm• We want a more visible role of the state

in the economy. We want government to continue increasing social expenditure.

• We want government to intervene in the economy to ensure that our economy is taken away from the hands of the white monopoly capital to the people as a whole

• Re- industrialisation of the African Continent

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Republic of South Africa and ANC Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa addressing the media


Campaign for the re-industrialisation in the African Continent as a whole. In the same that Neo - liberalism has failed in South Africa, it has also failed in the continent as a whole when it was presented as structural adjustment programmes.

Our continent continues to be colonised. Some in the continent continues to pay colonial tax to France. Millions of our money in the continent continues to leave our borders through illicit outflows. We want to build a strong African trade union movement to advance the struggle for radical economic transformation in the continent as a whole.

• Campaign for the Nationalisation of strategic sectors

We want our government to nationalise specific strategic sectors of the economy. We want a state mining company, we want a state bank. We want a state-owned pharmaceutical company. We want SASOL and Accellor Mittal to be nationalised now. We want the implementation of the National Health Insurance now. We want free Education at all levels as agreed in Polokwane and in Mangaung.

• Campaign of a National minimum Wage

We want government to work with us until we arrive at the figure for a National Minimum wage. This work cannot be outsourced.

• Intensify the Struggle for Free Education

SASCO and the Progressive Youth Alliance has led the way in the fight for free education which included demands against outsourcing in many higher education institutions.

We applaud SASCO for leading the struggle

for Free Education in South Africa. This is the struggle which must be taken to its logical conclusion. In this regard working with the PYA, the Education Alliance, and the federation will convene a meeting to take forward the broad based struggles on the education crisis and the realisation of free education. This will be linked to a programme focusing on the transformation of basic education and the expansion of

vocational education and training.

• Campaign against Police Killings and attacks against Public Servants

We will fight against the killing of the Police and attacks directed at public servants. We have noted with anger the continued killing

of the police and merciless attacks directed at public servants and civilians which happens with impunity.

We have seen nurses and teachers raped and physically attacked at work and in our view all these are intended to undermine the state and the security establishment of the country. We are worried that the state security capacity continues to be dwarfed by the capacity of private security firms who are three times more resourced and more armed than the state security agencies. What is even more worrying is that these are foreign owned and remain unregulated.

We will heighten our campaign in defence of the police and public servants. We call on government to impose strict regulatory measured against private security firms.

Police killings should be treated as treason!

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Comrades performing songs for the crowd


With the South African Police Service (SAPS) having celebrated the National Police Day on the 27th January 2016, one really struggles to conceptualise the essence of what this day means for our many police officers who have increasingly become targets to concerted efforts by criminal elements in killing them while the SAPS management moves at a snail’s pace in finding solutions to addressing their plight.

It leaves little to be desired the kind of attitude displayed over the past few months where the posture, or rather the lack of, demonstrated by both the Minister of Police Nkosinathi Nhleko and acting National Police Commissioner Khomotso Phahlane has been.

Instead of their speedy reaction to the engulfing crisis, they ventured on a blind expedition by skulking while the lives of police officers were under attack.

Aggravating to this fact is that their undivided devotion was solely engrossed on ridding the top SAPS management of those whom were deemed to have been sympathetic to the suspended National Commissioner, whilst

bloating the SAPS organisational structure, which is perforated with contradictory sub-structures that have, among others, created a replication of roles and continue to paralyse proficient policing manoeuvres at grass-root level.

With the emergent trends that seek to undermine the role of unions -that of defending member rights- the acting National Commissioner ventured on an anti-union spree in all provinces as part of his ‘back to basics’ campaign attended by Provincial managers, where he reprimanded Senior police officers, warning them not to be represented by their juniors, claiming it is a sign of ill-discipline.

For someone placed at the helm of this big and important institution like the SAPS to utter such gobbledygook is at most disgraceful, horrendous and inexcusable. Such reflected his lack of understanding of processes put in place within the ambit of the Labour Relations act, as it practically means, for him, union representation within and among SAPS members must be dealt away with.

PERSPECTIVES

National Police Day has bypassed Police By Nkosinathi Mabhida


His utterances are a direct threat to the rights that multiple workers so hard fought and died for, the rights we now enjoy in the current South Africa. Wishing to reverse these gains is a clear sign of his dastardly nature, typical of those opposed to any progress.

To him, unions are an irritant element to his free will in doing as he pleases, looking down on police officers in lower ranks and pre-determinedly writing them off. This is tantamount to the acting National Commissioner undermining junior police officers’ thinking rights.

This all happened and continues to ensue under the watchful eye of ‘big brother’ Minister, who equally turned a blind eye, preoccupied by his self-styled reference group, aimed at discrediting and ridding the SAPS of those he clearly did not approve of. With his list of failed attempts and lack of accountability, they have taken the SAPS two steps forward, three steps aback.

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As a matter of addressing police visibility, they opted to utilise the services of student constables instead of equipping qualified police officers. Without any defence mechanism and in full uniforms, they were literally sent to their potential deaths, and by the stroke of luck, their lives were spared.

Clearly for our many committed police officers who continue risking their lives on a daily basis for the safety and security of us all, having such people who continue compromise the very same service delivery they claim to champion is a tragic episode.

Under such circumstances where many have left behind orphaned children and widowed wives, where their rights to representation and rights of association are undermined, where 2nd hand priority is given to their livelihoods, there was nothing to celebrate on that day. Indeed, Police National Day has bypassed many officers.


In his writings at the time, one of the earliest renowned Greek philosophers Aristotle pondered on the purpose of man on earth, this was done by firstly trying to define what man is.

In accordance, he defined man as a rational animal, therefore unique from the rest of the animals wandering the earth, a definition affirming that those animals whose nature is inclusive of reason as a distinctive character falls within his definition.

The implications of this assertion is such that any other animal with human being features, but without reason does not qualify as a human being, therefore drawing the confines between purpose and unpurposive, which practically meant the two had different roles to play, with different obligations to serve, therefore establishing the nature of the relationship between those inside and outside the scope of reason.

This would mean those who were seen to be unreasonable were disallowed in advance to demand obligations that befit only rational animals.

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Aristotle’s legacy was extremely rooted in the mind of the subjugator, and his philosophy denied humanity to all animals which were viewed as unreasonable, and this was later applied when the subjugator came into contact with Africans and the red Indians of America.

This is so because the former had convinced themselves that Aristotle’s definition of man being a rational animal excluded the African, among others.

This exclusive claim to reason encouraged voyages of discovery which were aimed at ensuring the reasonable explore into other parts of the world for the purpose of honouring the mandate as given by Christ to go and teach the entire world, with the Roman Empire at the helm, with those who were to be discovered having only one right which was to submit to Christianity or face death as had been demonstrated even in Europe towards the end of paganism, by the very same Roman empire.

In line with this grossly misused mandate and because Africa was excluded from those reasonable, they had to be subjugated and enslaved, leading to enforcing the established relationship between superior and inferior, which

Maimane’s “Democratic Alliance” caught between a rock and a hard place By Nkosinathi Theledi


became a one-way relationship prohibiting the possibility of mutual relations, therefore meaning the African had only obligations towards the subjugator but no rights.

This state of affairs, though in changing form from time to time, mainly swayed by the many oppressed across the world for equal rights, has informed certain behavioural patterns still present today, and South Africa is not an exception in this regard, mainly also influenced by the introduction of the Apartheid policy which successfully managed to entrench the isolation of blacks in particular from the benefits of major economic activity on their turf.

To this day, though there have been major achievements in the country as led by the African National Congress and its alliance partners, whom among others seek to reverse this centuries-long burden of dispossession, we still have a large section of those who prescribe to this historical injustice.

Needless to say, the recent spats over controversial social media comments attributed to some individuals whom are integral members of the Democratic Alliance (DA) only go so far as dispelling the much-lied-about myth that the DA is an organisation aimed at serving the interests of all South Africans, regardless of colour.

In fact, they expose this organisation as one that had to adapt to the pressing, compelling changes in environments which led to the democratic conditions we find ourselves in

current day South Africa, where each citizen, regardless of race, can have a right to vote. For them though, this was a compromise willing to be made so long as the economy remains untouched, which, to a far greater extent has been achieved thus far.

Through its h i s t o r i c a l background, the DA has always been an organisation aimed at preserving white privilege, and what better way to go about it while co-opting into their ranks a black section of the populace in neutralising any discontent about their organisation’s

outlook in a ‘democratic’ country? Even to an extent

that it would be conveniently comfortable for one to be led by a black person, so long as the real interests (white privilege) remains intact?

Most revealing to this reality is that the realisation of possibly preserving these privileges had to come with compromises which, among others, the organisation, while entrenched in defending these privileges, had to front with sections of the black middle class who identify with their policies for the purpose of luring a black vote.

This organisation is borne out of the resultant transition from the apartheid era dominance over the lives and affairs of the majority, economically and otherwise, and therefore would be misleading to think it has completely shed its bloodline.

It is a direct successor from the National Party which led this country since 1948, done so through the combination of the Democratic Party and the New National Party, which was supposedly supposed to fool people into

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Members marching against racist comments within the DA


believing that by adding the concept “new” would have us distinguishing it from its true nature.The reality is that the DA will permanently remain incapable of representing or advancing the interests and aspirations of black people if it does not delink itself from its historical mission, and that cannot only be done through name changes, but only through changing their liberal policies towards attaining realistic objectives that are aimed at nation-building.

Of recent, we have seen a number of worrying trends that demonstrates i t s backwardness, such as the inaction or a pat in the back on senior members who have failed to resist their inner-demons by making racist remarks like Dianne Kohler Barnard, who was let loose from her comments about wishes of Verwoerd’s ideals revisiting our country.

This had publicly demonstrated Maimane’s incapacity to decisively deal with certain characteristics, precisely so due to the fact that he is not the captain of the ship called the Democratic Alliance.

In dealing with these seldom hidden, seldom open racist connotations which advance white supremacy and the economic subjugation of blacks, the simple approach Mr Maimane takes, that of dismissing racism as though it is a separate entity from the integral course of the DA, would not yield any positive results in the long term.

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It is then clear that he equally appreciates the extent and impact to which coming all out against this ill will do in the midst of him trying to nurse the interests of those who subscribe to racism as a tool for black subjugation and economic marginalisation.

Even Maimane knows that when addressing this matter, he needs to carefully choose his words by not angering this constituency, or being very much aware that what he says in public is mere talk which cannot be followed by any practical steps as in the case of Dianne Kohler Barnard.

For the progress and affirmation of blacks in p a r t i c u l a r , relying on the DA would be a lost cause r e p r e s e n t i n g the spiralling backwardness demonstrated by the typical category of slaves of the Americas whom worked inside

the house as opposed to those in the fields, settling

for the minor privileges and undermining their thinking rights by imagining they are better than the latter.

Front page article in the Mail and Guardianover Maimane’s lessons with FW De klerk


South Africa’s history has been marked by deep divisions as a result of apartheid imposing a series of social and economic measures that were aimed at separating South Africa’s four racial groups. It created disparities in employment, occupation and income and left an enduring legacy that even among designated groups some groups were, by dint only of their race, afforded more advantages than others.

Since racial d iscr iminat ion was one of the defining features of our history, shying away from race as a central thesis of remedial constitutionalism would be cowardly and a betrayal of South Africa’s cons t i tu t iona l objective of the achievement of equality.

In the exercise of reversing the pernicious effects of apartheid’s unfair discrimination, race is therefore a principal consideration. This is inevitable because race, more than any other factor, was an absolute determinant of one’s status in the employment space in South Africa during apartheid.

In recognising the injustices of the past, the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 [“the Constitution”] strives to heal those divisions and establish a society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights.

The Employment Equity Act 55 of 1998 [“the Employment Equity Act”] seeks to give effect to South Africa’s constitutional injunction in section 9[2] of the Constitution which is “to promote the achievement of equality … [by] advanc[ing] … categories of persons disadvantaged by unfair discrimination”.

It is therefore of paramount importance to have a sound appreciation of the true purpose for which the E m p l o y m e n t Equity Act was enacted. That purpose is recorded in section 2 of the E m p l o y m e n t Equity Act and is informed by the Legislature’s recognition of the “disparities in employment, occupation and income” that

have come about “as a result of apartheid and other discriminatory laws and practices”.

It is against this background that affirmative action measures and the achievement of equal employment opportunities need to be viewed. While affirmative action serves a panacea purpose to some when compared with the limited employment prospects of the past, it is considered with foreboding by others who view it as reverse discrimination.

However, the debate on the desirability of affirmative action was put to bed when the Constitution came into effect, containing among

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AFFIRMATIVE ACTION AND THE ACHIEVEMENT OF EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES


its provisions section 9[2] pursuant to which the Employment Equity Act was introduced to root out the systematic and institutionalised inequality in the workplace on grounds of race, gender and physiological abilities.

The disparities are still with us and it is the express purpose of the Employment Equity Act to eradicate them, including the crude hierarchy of disparities among designated groups themselves. As the judgment of the Constitutional Court in South African Police Services v Solidarity obo Barnard 2014 [6] SA 123 [CC] says:

“At the point of transition, two decades ago, our society was divided and unequal along the adamant lines of race, gender and class. Beyond these plain strictures there were indeed other markers of exclusion and oppression, some of which our Constitution lists. So, plainly, it has a transformative mission.

It hopes to have us re-imagine power relations within society. In so many words, it enjoins us to take active steps to achieve substantive equality, particularly for those who were disadvantaged by past unfair discrimination. This was and continues to be necessary because, whilst our society has done well to equalise opportunities for social progress, past disadvantage still abounds”.

The profundity of this observation is magnified by another in the concurring judgment of Justice Van Der Westhuizen who reminds us all, and particularly those among the previously advantaged category of persons who protest that remedial measures unfairly target people who had nothing to do with apartheid:

“So it may be a historical fact that the innocent often have to account for sins committed before they were born or able to act independently. However, “innocence” of conduct by one’s ancestors or predecessors that in hindsight are widely recognised as morally repulsive, does not mean that the innocent have not over time benefitted from injustice.

One can benefit from a wrong without being guilty of wrongdoing. Unjustified enrichment as a cause of action is an example. Nor does it mean that measures to restructure a society, heal a country and promote dignity and equality are not necessary.

Several societies have struggled with efforts to overcome past discrimination and injustice. Others have neglected to do so and allowed people to be separated further from each other and painful cleavages to deepen”.

Therefore, arguing now for the grant of ‘equal’ opportunities to secure equitable representation is a cynical view that borders on historic revisionism. It is a view that considers as sufficient the mere repeal of the discriminatory laws by which those disparities have been created, a view that the pre-amble to the Employment Equity Act categorically rejects.

As has been said before by our Courts that: “[T]he recognition of substantive equality means . . . that equality is more than mere non-discrimination. When a society, and perhaps the particular role players in a certain situation, come from a long history of discrimination, which took place individually, systemically and systematically, it cannot simply be assumed that people are in equal positions and that measures distinguishing between them amount to unfair discrimination”.

In National Coalition for Gay and Lesbian Equality and Another v Minister of Justice and Others 1999 [1] SA 6 [CC] the Constitutional Court affirmed the importance of remedial measures to achieve substantive equality. It said: “It is insufficient for the Constitution merely to ensure, through its Bill of Rights, that statutory provisions which have caused such unfair discrimination in the past are eliminated.

Past unfair discrimination frequently has ongoing negative consequences, the continuation of which is not halted immediately when the initial causes are eliminated, and unless remedied,

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may continue for a substantial time and even indefinitely. Like justice, equality delayed is equality denied”.

For purposes of eradicating the disparities in employment, occupation and income, the Legislature has chosen to use “equitable representation in all occupational levels in the workforce” as the measure. To that end, the Legislature has prescribed:

• The identification, by way of analysis, of the extent by which people from designated groups may be under-represented; and

• The setting of numerical targets with a view to achieving the equitable representation of suitably qualified people from designated groups in each occupational level in the workforce; and

• The timeframe within which this is to be achieved; and

• The strategies intended to achieve those targets.

Should we acquiesce in the dispensation for which some contend, it would be inimical to the current constitutional dispensation and will in one fell swoop reverse all the hard-won constitutional and democratic triumphs of multi-racial and multi-ideological progressive forces in our country.

It must be kept in mind that South Africa’s constitutional injunction is not the advancement of categories of persons previously disadvantaged by unfair discrimination as an end in itself. Rather, the advancement is intended as a means to the achievement of a greater constitutional purpose. That greater purpose is equality or equitable representation of all categories of persons.

It therefore means that this important system of remedial action must be defended and continued with to deal with the outlined previous injustices.

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The latest, renewed manoeuvre by Mr Vavi and his ilk to form an ‘alternative’ trade union opposed to the Congress of South African Trade Union (COSATU) comes at a time when our country is faced by the many challenges of both economic and political nature, which have placed the majority of our people, especially the many young casualised workers, at a vulnerable standing, where anything that reverberates anything to do with change is taken or welcome with open hands.

Multiple concepts are thrown around to create the very impression of progress, forgetting that concepts in themselves are just empty rhetoric, and are not inherently progressive as history has demonstrated countless times.

This latest effort took place at the backdrop of a very successful 12th COSATU National Congress, which, amongst others, managed to bring about unity for workers, considering the many challenges having faced the federation over the past few years, with Mr Vavi at the helm of a majority of these challenges.

Clearly, what this demonstrates for those of us who throughout this time made sacrifices in protecting and preserving the very foundation this humongous federation are signs of a concerted, ego-centric acts aimed at disintegrating a democratic structure at the cost

of serving one’s heightened ambitions by way of disregard to its constitutional framework, which is characteristic of dictatorial propensities and smacks of demagoguery.

In his speech, delivered at the COSATU Special National Congress in 2015, speaking on behalf of the federation’s leadership, President Sidumo Dlamini made an unconditional plea to delegates, which at the time was resounding in the many minds and hearts of those whose prioritised goals was uniting all forces for an effective and progressive union movement with workers’ interests occupying the centre stage. The point was around freeing ourselves from

the bondage of those who used their financial muscle in enticing others for the purposes of later determining their role and place within the broader federation.

The fact of the matter is that their willingness to maintain their hold on worker issues has seen

them going out on numerous solidarity-seeking missions across the globe for funding purposes, which was done not to unite, but attempted at belittling and destroying COSATU. It is common for them to complain about everyone while being exclusive on the role they played, or corrective measures they tried pursuing if indeed they were concerned.

This is nothing but an exaggerated fuss to

Individuals’ absence should not be interpreted as COSATU’s demise

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appease their bloated egos, and an attempt at re-experiencing his publicity-seeking manoeuvres which have been swindling away from the once media-happy General Secretary whom during his ‘heydays’ opted to abandon organisational processed by defining himself outside the collective leadership of the federation and consistently communicating his personal views as though he was the organisation.

Mr Vavi has a track record of being a power-monger. We need to remind ourselves that the very same grouping staging a walk-out from this glorious movement are a symptom of failed attempts to hold the alliance at ransom.

It is important to acknowledge that any form of struggle is not an event, but a process. In a process, there are continuous engagements and dynamics at play, and in this regard, our federation has rules and guidelines for maintaining order and guide our scope.

In this sense, the principle of Democratic Centralism provides a uniting knack behind all agreed positions.

He has belittled decisions taken under his leadership and created a false impression that he was not part to such, when a collective had endorsed that members of the union and different affiliates should form part of government, a move that would seek to see more unionists swaying policy issues towards benefitting workers.

He himself had ambitions of being Deputy President of the ANC, a role which would have seen him assuming the Deputy Presidency position, in Government.

To claim that some were defocused by Parliament and that divisions within the Trade Union movement are as part of or resultant to the idea that the ANC under Zuma have simply co-opted the SACP and COSATU is a travesty to past

COSATU and South African Communist Party decisions respectively.

In their fundraising campaign, they failed to be honest to their potential about the role they had been playing in causing challenges for the union. They went to their funders and potential allies across the world

speaking as though this was an event they shockingly watched on TV with disbelief and as commentators.

This is simply so because they know very well that after all and done, decisions were endorsed by a majority and implemented; something which they might not be familiar with, or rather chose to ignore, called democratic centralism.

In essence, we should guard against those who make outcries of disunity whilst they perpetrate that which they publicly condemn. The many workers of South Africa should be on the look-out for such characters who go from ear to ear with misleading detail.

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The past three years have been among the most difficult and challenging for the labour federation Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) since its establishment in 1985.

This due to the growing tendencies that have come to the fore, bringing with them bloated egos that characterised themselves as being beyond organisational reproach, and through the utilisation of certain media houses, portraying an impression that their sole voice championed the interests of workers, to an extent that democratic organisational voices were increasingly becoming shadowed by personal outlooks.

Though, up to this far, calm has, through the many efforts to stabilise the federation, been restored, you still have certain groupings hoping to deviate from this progressive course, therefore making it clear their sympathy lies with those at the driving seat of splitting this federation, and disregarding the views of delegates to the federation’s Special National

Congress and its 12th National Congress, both held in the past year.

As a lesson never to be forgotten, we saw sections of the media continuing to predict the downfall of this federation pre and post-Congresses, which wittingly or unwittingly created doubt on the future of COSATU, especially among it members.

Most recent, in an article attributed to Natasha Marrian, the political editor for the Business Day, she alleges that COSATU unions neglect core work in pursuit of riches, and further predicts the union’s demise.

Central to this argument she so confidently asserts is that unions are not fighting to uphold worker rights, and for that, she relies firstly on the unsubstantiated wild allegation the Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant made at the recent COSATU National Congress, which was rather aimed at derailing the real discussions that would have otherwise fully ensued on the basis of the topical discontent COSATU has long held against the ongoing challenges facing

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A Concerted effort to delegitimise COSATU continues to suffer defeat By Lawrence Rankele Msinto


those workers employed under labour brokers, an allegation which to an extent was aimed at defocusing objective debate.

As a matter of act, it should be noted that the Minister later agreed that those unions involved in these practices had left the federation. Secondly, she relied on asking individual delegates on matters relating to these allegations, and upon that, conveniently concludes the side-talks as factual sources of information.

The fact that she does not in any way demonstrate these allegations she so fondly writes about have been tested for their validity seems to be a secondary issue, and the manner in which she reports on these allegations suggests she neglected being objective, and therefore decided to attribute her generalisations to all unions in COSATU, a dangerous trend that exposes her merely as someone who is unaware of what she is writing of, someone who simply had to deliver a controversial story for the purpose of chasing sales, or someone who had expected different outcomes to the effect that those whom roamed the world fundraising under the guise of defending COSATU from ‘itself’ while undermining its democratic processes would be welcome back with open arms.

Since the break of democracy in South Africa, the state has always been the biggest employer of labour, and COSATU has been at the forefront of defending the labour rights within this country.

Similarly, there have been over the years many unionists in key government positions, whether they have lived up to the expected standards or not, is a totally different discussion, but what we all know is that there is nothing sinister.

Any organisation that is influential will naturally want to have those who understand it, from among its ranks being located in strategic positions, and correctly so.

Whether true or not that unions are split and

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reformed along the lines of who controlled its investment companies, it is rather mischievous that one finds it normal to paint these acts as though they’re a standard norm amongst them all, disregarding the very fact that many, like the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), have invested in building the Elijah Barayi Conference Centres in Yeoville and Midrand respectively, offer bursaries to the children of these mineworkers for example.

POPCRU has been extensively proposing that the Government Employee Pension Funds (GEPF) should be in the forefront in funding infrastructure development in South Africa and many other initiatives that are not only beneficial to the actual members, but those that seek to improve societal conditions for the greater numbers of our communities in finding a better life.

No one has talked about the proposed establishment of a Workers’ bank except the unions themselves. Either the reality that unions are surely becoming forward-looking in terms of their investments is being ignored, or sadly that no one has ventured into interrogating the many unions’ vision as it relates to improved delivery to members and society.

Though there were challenges within COSATU, we need to appreciate that most of these have been overcome in recent times, and should not see mild disagreements within the federation as a sign of collapse. The reason COSATU grew to become a giant that it is was not on the basis of continuous agreements, but on the basis of vigorous debates that accommodated everyone in expressing their views, with the majority view becoming dominant.

Pure speculation without any empirical evidence being used to substantiate and elaborate can lead to one following false premises, therefore relying on false outcomes. Natasha Marrian should revisit her work and adopt a factual approach to such sensitive matters of workers’ importance.


Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) are organs that are neither a part of a government nor a conventional pro-profit business.

They are highly diverse groups of organisations engaged in a wide range of activities, and do take different forms in different parts or issues of the country, such as those focused on advocacy aimed at changing people’s perceptions and behaviours, and those focused on gender relations, while others are more focused on accountability, mainly that of governmental institutions to its subjects.

Our South African government visualizes a bigger role for NGOs and treats them as partners in our developmental activities which cut across the legal, social and economic spectres.

Yet, most NGOs in our country rely on private and governmental donations to further their aims, a point which factors heavily on their independence and opens them up for vulnerability to donor conditionalities and demands, eroding their efficient functionality.

Justifications for the role given to NGOs does not automatically guarantee they will be

executed effectively because they can only have a role in socio-economic development if they do not succumb to the temptation to adopt market based goals that are different from their initial missions.

At the same time, if succumbing to their funders’ motives, like pharmaceutical firms who have in the past used some NGOs to pressurise governments in buying large quantities of their products, they then become defocused from their initial goals and can be a detriment to socio-economic developmental progress.

The origin of funding can have serious implications for the legitimacy of NGOs. In recent decades NGOs have increased their numbers and range of activities to a level where they have become increasingly dependent on a limited number of donors.

Consequently, competition has increased for funding, as have the expectations of the donors themselves. This runs the risk of donors adding conditions which can threaten the independence of NGOs

With over 85 000 NGOs registered in South

Role of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in South Africa

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Africa since 2013, most have had great influence and power is swaying public debate and have provided public goods and services that government is unable to provide to society due to lack of resources.

Service delivery NGOs have to an extent collaborated with government agencies in reducing cost associated with public goods while advocacy and public education NGOs strive to change people’s perceptions and behaviours by strategically constructing messages in socially mobilising communities to promote social, political or environmental changes.

Despite the good intentions of NGO leaders and activists, the objective effects need to be thoroughly interrogated. The sudden rise in the number of NGOs could be linked to being part of the neoliberal model rather than pure humane motivations.

They are seldom seen to be trying to change the conditions in the country without a thorough understanding of the context within which the country finds itself, in short, without understanding the country.

In South Africa, analysing the relationship between NGOs and our unique South African politics is a fraught task. Some are shell NGOs set up to attract funding, while others are a front for foreign funding with the purposes of furthering defined agendas these funders wish to advance.

This has often led many to consider having NGOs being formally held to standard in adhering to the host country.

Some NGOs have been accused of being

championed as an alternative to the state, disempowering people by allowing funders to push for stability over social justice, being designed and used as extensions of foreign policy instruments of certain Western countries and groups and exporting the ideologies of their backers.

This notion again raises the question of legitimacy, which is one of the most important assets on any NGO, which is gained through a

perception that they are an independent voice.

The question of who bestows responsibilities to NGOs and how do they gain the r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of citizens and civil society is still not scrutinized thoroughly.

We need to ask as to whether citizens and their needs represented in civil society, or are citizens as well as their needs constructed by practices of representation? And when we realize that NGOs hardly ever come face to face with the people whose interests and problems they represent, or that they are not accountable to the people they represent, matters become even more troublesome.

In these situations NGOs are being held accountable by their donors, which can erode rather than enhance their legitimacy, a difficult challenge to overcome.

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Once again it will be required from organised workers to unite and deliver the ANC to victory in this year’s local government elections. The impact of organised workers cannot go unnoticed in any election campaign and will never go unnoticed.

It remains the organised workers on the ground that are the force behind the election’s machinery of the ANC time and again. It is our ANC, and as workers, we will therefore continue to vote ANC. We did so comprehensively and decisively in all previous election campaigns and we will do so again in 2016.

All organised workers must give their full participation and support for the election programmes from branch level to national level. We must engage our neighbours, co-workers and friends during the months leading up to the elections on the importance of casting their vote for the ANC. When we are engaging we don’t need to speak about the opposition.

The reason for this is very simple – the opposition did not fight against apartheid; the opposition were not there when our people were forced to live under pass laws; the opposition were not there when our children were shot like dogs while dressed in school clothes; the opposition were not there when leaders, for the sake of their lives and for the revolution, had to flee into exile; the opposition were not there when many revolutionaries were murdered and executed by the brutal security forces of the apartheid regime; it was not the former leaders of the opposition that served life sentences; the opposition were not there when our people were disposes of their land, possessions and dignity.

That’s why we don’t need to speak about the opposition during any election campaign.

Let’s engage our neighbours, co-workers and friends on what the ANC has done for us both pre-1994 and of all what has been done post-1994.

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“Defend the ANC”By OJ Fourie


Yes, we can’t deny that some leaders in the ANC structures have disappointed the electorate as well as the Organisation. We can also include the disappointment of some deployed leaders to the various spheres of government. These leaders whether at national-, provincial-, or regional level have lost their focus on what it truly means to serve as a leader in the oldest liberation movement in Africa.

Let us therefore not be distracted by the opposition that wants us to remember the mistakes of those leaders; but let us r e m e m b e r what the ANC has done and is doing for us as organised workers.

When we needed the ANC most, the ANC was there for us; now that the ANC needs us lets us be there for the ANC, and as organised workers – defend our ANC.

Comrades, as members of Cosatu and as members of the South African Communist Party, we have always been with the ANC since our formation years respectively. We continue to be united with the ANC because we are united in one Revolution which is to fight poverty, unemployment and inequality.

Oliver Tambo stated very clearly that “Ours is not a paper alliance, created at conference tables and formalised through the signing of documents and representing only an agreement of leaders.

Our alliance is a living organism that has grown out of the struggle. We have built it out of our

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separate and common experiences...it has been fertilised by the blood of countless heroes; many of them unnamed and unsung. It has been reinforced by a common determination to destroy the enemy and by our shared belief in the certainty of Victory and this is not a congress alliance.”

South Africa needs to remain firm in the hands of the ANC if we want to secure a good future for all South Africans.

It remains critical that the Alliance ensures that the right c o m r a d e s get elected as public

representatives. We need leaders that will serve the people and not serve their own interests. Leaders that are constantly conscious of the plight of the working class.

Comrades it remains, as it has always been, our revolutionary duty to defend and build our ANC!

Long live our ANC long live!

SACP Deputy District Secretary Kimberley District


Who can register

A person can register to vote in South Africa if they:Are a South African citizen;Are at least 16 years old (you can only vote from age 18 though);Have a green, bar-coded identification (ID) book; smartcard ID; or valid temporary identity certificate (TIC).

Where and when to register

Apply for registration during office hours at the local Electoral Commission office responsible for your voting district, or register to vote on special registration days (often called registration weekends, of which one is scheduled for 5 and 6 March 2016). If you would like to register at your local Electoral Commission office, please always call first to make an appointment, as nearer to an election electoral staff are often out of office to conduct voter education in their communities. Like the Electoral Commission on Facebook (IECSouthAfrica) or follow us on Twitter (@IECSouthAfrica) to get updates on our registration weekend/s dates.

What you need to register

By law, you must apply in person (no online or email registrations are permitted) and you must bring your valid:green, bar-coded ID book, or;smartcard ID, or;temporary identity certificate (TIC).No other forms of identification are accepted (not even passports or driving licences). Only original documents – no copies – are accepted. Please note that no proof of residence is required.

What happens if you’ve moved

During municipal elections and by-elections, you must vote at the voting station where you are registered, and you must register in the voting district in which you live most of the time. If you are already registered as a voter, and you have recently moved or you realise that you will be living in another place on Election Day (for example, if you are a student), you must go back to a registration point and fill in a form to change your registration details. You will then be moved to the correct voting district and your name will be put on the voters’ roll for that district. To find out where your correct voting station is, please go to http://maps.elections.org.za/vsfinder/

What happens if your voting district has changed

During municipal elections and by-elections, you must vote at the voting station where you are registered, and you must register in the voting district in which you live most of the time. If you have been informed that your voting district boundaries have changed, you may need to re-register in another voting district. To find out where your correct voting station is, please go to http://maps.elections.org.za/vsfinder/


The Union of Young Communists should be defined by a single word: vanguard. You, Companeros, must be the vanguard of all movements, the first to be ready to make the sacrifices demanded by the revolution, whatever they might be….And in order to do that, you have to set yourself real, concrete tasks, tasks in your daily work that won’t allow you the slightest letup” Che Guevara

As the YCLSA launches its Joe Slovo Right to Learn Campaign, which is named after our selfless stalwart comrade Joe Slovo, the former General Secretary of the Communist Party who joined the Young Communist League at the age of sixteen, one of the main focuses of this programme is to ensure and guard against any kind of exclusion towards learners and students. This campaign further interrogates and ensures that teaching and learning is effective and conducive in classrooms and lecture halls.

Friedrich Engels always remind us that “an ounce of action is worth a ton of theory”, in this case we must come to the fore and ensure that doors of learning are opened as enshrined in the Freedom Charter, where many communists made a contribution until the final draft which included Lionel “Rusty’ Bernstein, who was in

charge of the propaganda of the Communist Party Johannesburg office from 1940. Let’s ensure that young people go to school and attend to any obstacle that might hinder them not to receive formal education. Let us again assist those matriculants in our wards and communities respectively, who did not apply for access in institutions of Higher Learning.

We should further fundraise items that can primarily assist learners in our poor communities, like stationery, shoes, shirts, or school jerseys etc. We should be in the forefront in ensuring proper admittance in schools to defeat any kind of exclusion. Working with School Governing Bodies (SGBs) is appropriate in ensuring we understand the challenges our schools face.

One of the resolutions taken in the 2nd National Council in Kimberly, on Basic Education: - 5.1.2 (c) YCLSA branches, districts, provinces and National Committee Members must adopt schools to work with as part and parcel of the Joe Slovo Right to Learn Campaign. This must include a focus on achieving improvements in the quality of learning and teaching, learner and teacher performance outcome.

YCLSA must assess the matric percentage or rather pass rate in the schools in our respective vicinities, so as to develop an intervention

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Joe Slovo Right to Learn Campaign: Young Commies intervening in Making Education Fashionable

By Thokozani ‘Stix’ Nene


programmes in line with Department of Basic Education programme, of weekly afternoon classes, weekend classes and holiday classes. This intervention programme has assisted learners practically in previous years.

SADTU as a progressive union on site/school, the YCL and COSAS, should enforce good relations, complement and critique basis, and give direction. We need to have more young people being part of SGB’s, so as to influence decisions, a person that will respond positively on societal trends, attitude, sub-cultures that contemporarily exist in our society. We call the Department of Basic Education to critically monitor the arrival of books and stationery in time in schools. The process of appointing all service providers should be transparent and be at the best interest of the school and other stakeholders. We are also concerned about the partial failure to pay service providers for nutritional programme on time.

We are re-enforcing our campaign of closing shebeens next to schools. We will continue to agitate this campaign until the Provincial Government fully implements it. All young communists must change a life of a person constructively on a practical on a day to day basis.

Those learners who did not qualify for acceptance of accessing Traditional Universities, University of Technologies, should be encouraged to study in FET’s/TIVET’s (Technical and Vocational Education Training) where they study for free courses of their choice. We should liberate our sisters and brothers of dealing with the stigma that seeks to say FET’s are of less value in the job market. Contemporary the workplace and market is in need for SKILLS. We have witnessed a plethora of FET graduates being employed in a variety of sectors.

We recognize the sterling job done by the Ministry of Higher Education led by Dr. Nzimande. A lot still needs to be done; again a lot has been done by this department. We as young people are aware that, the Ministry also

has to deal with previous disadvantages caused by the apartheid regime, which was based on a broad form of segregation. We note that DHET is expanding TVET colleges by constructing more campuses and accommodation in rural periphery and township areas. We further applaud the 69 million set aside for disabled students, or students with special needs.

We are aware that this year 2016, there will be an emergence of reactionary student movements in the form of the EFF student command in institutions of Higher Learning. The unity of all progressive forces on campus is paramount. By being divided on campus will simply mean we will be reversing the gains of the PYA towards the working class students countrywide and internationally.

YCLSA University based branches have and shall continue to work hand in hand with SASCO, ANCYL, and SUCA branches to advance the objective of access and success. However we have noted that in some institutions of Higher Learning, there are no smooth relations. The YCLSA shall be the epitome of unity, not artificial, fabricated unity, but unity of conviction.

As young revolutionaries we must try to unite all progressive forces on Campus, in the main, the PYA which is not a constitutional arrangement or structure (Progressive Youth Alliance). We are not a PYA of messages of support in conferences, but of a strategic alliance. SASCO uses Marxism and Leninism as theoretical guide to action, this simply means we share same societal outlook. Let’s not divide ourselves as young people or rather young comrades over petty resource issues, SRC elections, and these predicaments further delays and deteriorate our struggle for transformation.

Let’s work tirelessly as always and make an impact in our communities, guided by a communist principle of ‘Loyalty to the people’. Communists rise and attend to societal immediate struggles, so as to uproot challenges and continue to be relevant as an organization.

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Over the past year, our country has been marred by senseless acts of police killings which up to so far have left just over 83 families having lost their loved ones at the hands of criminals.

At face value, these acts reflect a state of the multiple challenges our democracy inherited from the apartheid regime, mainly focused on the socio-economic challenges and its remnants borne out of the social ills emanating from these conditions a majority of South Africans face, and at another level, most recently, reflects a concerted effort by detractors to paint a negative image that seeks to portray the police service as being incapable of maintaining law and order in the country, but more so, raising sinister, emergent views that seek to promote the utilisation of unregulated Private Security Firms as an alternative, an idea being constantly sold to the middle class in the country, backed by opposition parties and several NGOs in their quest to diminish the public’s trust in our democratic institutions.

Because the Private Security industry wants to remain unregulated and maintain being a law

unto themselves, they even went to an extent of threatening to litigate the Bill if it gets enacted for regulation. This is in no way, closer to any attempts of supporting government to resolve the scourge of crime but it worsens the situation that only the rich will be in a position to be protected. This is sheer and absolute greed by the Private Security.

Instead of focusing on the root causes of the challenges that need to have to be addressed, much attention from these quarters had been and continue to be channelled towards raising discontent around police training, the questioning of experience in the top police leadership, corruption allegations etc. None of the commentators ever speak to the long-term service we envisage, or possible long-term solutions to these multi-dimensional challenges.

Ours as POPCRU is different in approach and content, and in this regard, takes into consideration the political, social and economic influences this state of affairs is vulnerable to. In this, we believe what is central is not the role of ‘experts’, but the involvement of communities themselves.

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Playing into the hands of Private Security firms a danger to our democratic gains.

By Bonny Marekwa


Many South Africans, blacks in particular, continue to have an inherited perception that the police are a sign of oppression, a condition acclimatised to by the many atrocious acts perpetrated by the apartheid police force.

To this effect, our democratic breakthrough mainly saw an integration of different policing forms taking shape, and thankfully to the ideological perspectives and historical ties the liberation m o v e m e n t had, and their e n v i s i o n e d goals of ove rcom ing the triple c h a l l e n g e s faced by the South African society, this provided a leeway into

conceptualising the actual role police in the democratic dispensation need to play, and to that extent, the formation of POPCRU in 1989 was primarily a means to ensure the transformation of policing and the defending of civil rights for those employed in the organised sector, most importantly, working towards the rights and freedoms inalienable to all South Africans are secured.

POPCRU has been at the forefront in mending relations between police and communities. This has been an on-going trend which we believe needs all stakeholders in working together.

Our plan is to ensure police are respected, not feared by communities, and should play a greater role in creating solidarity among community members in commonly fighting against the scourge of alcohol and drug abuse amongst our youth mostly in impoverished areas. We believe putting more emphasis on youth

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and getting them into different social programs through sports, recreational facilities and keeping them in schools is a way of keeping them out of the social ills engulfing our societies, and for that to be effective, cooperation is vital.

Our structures are currently busy doing what we call a door-to-door campaign in different localities, aimed at consulting communities about the challenges faced, and in that strengthening

cooperation.

We are of the firm view that for us to really rid our country of crime and c o r r u p t i o n , one of the urgent needs is to deal with the socio-e c o n o m i c c h a l l e n g e s such as the state

of unemployment rates faced by youth in particular. It is not in the interest of our country to remain ignorant of the vast social imbalances as the opposition and those for the elevation of Private Security firms would have us believe.

The reality is that these opportunistic acts which have nothing to do with the wellbeing and safety of South Africans are surely being exposed, and we will, through our might ensure South Africans are not misled by those who only seek to make profits out of the challenges faced by our communities.


Down memory lane, in the late 1950’s Mao Tse-tung, the late Chairman of the Communist Party of China classically described the so-called revolutionary elements which pretentiously upheld socialist ideology yet essentially destined to restore capitalism as reactionary forces. Later in 1965 the Communist Party of China referred to these elements as capitalist roaders based on the same idea as developed by Mao.

At times it does take a self-anointed and an imaginary big elephant to be in the room for one to be concerned about why it is in the room, given the extent of damage it may cause not only to some of those in the room but to the room itself, our country.

Henceforth it is also for history’s sake that I address myself on the EFF, unveiling its reactionary opportunism for what it is, and its leading fold for who they are.

Of course as a standalone entity, the EFF is not a colossal threat to our country and our revolution but wittingly or unwittingly it is a threat only as a noisy-tailing partner within the anti-majoritarian neoliberal offensive collective.

And on the basis that the proletariat or the working class is not inherently class-conscious, and that there exist some significant sections of the working class that can be easily manipulated into believing that the EFF represents their interests wherein actually the contrary prevails, I am further motivated in addressing myself on this ideological vagabond, the EFF, even if it means mentioning their acronym in every paragraph!

On the outset we are interested into politics because we are actually interested in the betterment of the lives of the downtrodden masses, frankly the working class. It therefore follows that it remains our revolutionary duty to frantically expose and dislodge capitalist roaders, who masquerade as saviours of the working class yet destined to a capitalist direction and perpetual restoration of capitalism.

Even if it means continuing to genuinely identify and isolate such elements within and outside our movement, we shall and should do so.

But as for pseudo-leftist elements who are actually echoing the vices of capitalist roaders within our movement, we can only leave it to the internal platforms of our movement because

Beware the Capitalist Roaders and Ideological cocktails- Know ‘Your’ EFF By Sikhumbuzo Mdlalose

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this is an awkward platform, this one belongs to the opportunist EFF and its vacillating folks.

Without a single iota of doubt and on many occasions since its inception, we have observed how the opportunist EFF have used every trick in the book to sway the attention of everyone who cared to listen to their pseudo-militant and quasi-revolutionary rantings.

As so did the NUMSA leadership clique, the EFF tries by all means to be an all-in-one kind of a formation not only ideologically, but even on its conduct, be it in parliament, in public and everywhere.

If they are not hijacking students uprisings, they want to be factional mouthpieces of mineworkers and that is if they are not in some press conference with some capitalist c o n g l o m e r a t e s , assuring them ( c a p i t a l i s t conglomerates) of their future existence should they ‘run’ this country. They do these sort of things in order to feed on their narrow interests, especially the egoistic interests of its leadership fold. The birthmarks of the former ANCYL leadership fold caricature led by a paranoid Malema has its remaining dominant genes in the EFF.

As they used ANCYL stature as an armament to shoot from the heap, to all directions and as a tool for looting government resources in order to sustain their individual lives of ease, a life defined in terms of access to luxurious possessions like a 16 million house, R50 000, 00 watch, Porsche cars and the like, they are doing exactly the same with the EFF, and sustaining the life of ease represents real uncompromising cardinals of the EFF.

Zooming into what they call 7 Cardinals bears evidence to their uncompromising discourse for what Lenin referred to as Social-chauvinism. In themselves, these Cardinals present a purely reformist essence towards the concept of economic freedom. Clearly the so-called struggle for economic freedom linked with sounds and calls for de-colonisation of our economy without the emphasis on class struggle exactly represents a concealed yearning for sharing of the loot with both petty and comprador bourgeois syndicalists.

The EFF, especially its leadership fold, is not destined to build a true workers democracy for

such a destination will expose their inherent petty bourgeois inclinations.

When they speak of an Open, a c c o u n t a b l e , c o r r u p t - f r e e government and society, they are actually paying lip-service for even a man from the street can tell how corrupt

the presidency of the EFF is. After being expelled from the mass democratic movement they migrated with this special talent and solicited their own nest of corruption; namely the EFF.

While they blame everything on capitalism and the ‘NEOLIBERAL ANC’ (trying to sound communist), on the other side they go visit London, meet with the architects of world monopoly capital and go pass by Karl Marx’s grave for photo shooting on their way back to South Africa. Consummated opportunism at its best!

And Lenin addresses this sort of tendency in his Opportunism, and the collapse of the 2nd International, 1915: “Social-chauvinism and

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opportunism are the same in their political essence; class collaboration, repudiation of the proletarian dictatorship, rejection of revolutionary action, obeisance to bourgeois reality, non-confidence in the proletariat, and confidence in the bourgeoisie. The political ideas are identical and so is the political content of their tactics.”

The less said about what they (the EFF) call the founding manifesto, the better. For what essentially appears in that founding leaflet is an epitome of consummated opportunism, devoid of ideological grounding and with some cut and pasted elements of 2011 Clarion Call Document of the ANCYL.

Double standard blatancy!!

When you want to observe their anarchist outlook, look at how they approach the issue of land redress, they go around encouraging people to forcefully occupy all vacant land while on the other side presenting themselves as law obedient good boys and good girls of the South African justice system which is an inherent protectorate of private property under capitalism. Dali Mpofu’s opportunism never stops crystallising the EFF as a news-headline-thirsty symbol of chauvinism, be it on race and class matters.

Like a political predator, Mpofu (their National Chairperson of their disputed national congress) tried to ride on the sorrows of those who lost their family members during the famous despicable in Marikana, which actually started way before the 16th of August 2012, although Mpofu and Company chose to focus only on the 16 August 2012 events.

Instead of selflessly representing these poor families, the Advocate was preoccupied with the battle of settling political scores with his former ruling party, the ANC, on behalf of his new found home. But all these attempts failed.

Mpofu’s election to be a legal representative of a renowned white racist, Gareth Cliff, is but one

demonstration of how the EFF ilk is determined to steal any form of popularity wherever and whenever it flies and they do all sorts of these things devoid of principle that they so applaud in all media platforms.

When the EFF leadership fold questions the SA-Russia Nuclear deal, they do so as walking-wounded tigers who are still narrowly vengeful of their expulsion from the ANC and particularly their eternal hatred against the current ANC president.

In so doing they close their eyes on critiquing other similar deals that the SA government had concluded since and beyond Mandela’s administration and such deals had been concluded with most of the leading imperialist forces we have come to know in our planet.

From principled perspective, we had always been alone as the SACP and COSATU in critiquing what came to be known as the arms deal in face of socio-economic challenges we faced and still facing as the country and some of those who are the loudest in criticising the SA-Russia nuclear deal were nowhere to be found except when they do so to feed on their sham political-point scoring.

While the German, French and other European languages are almost yearly introduced to many of the South African schools and universities, the levels of criticism levelled against the introduction of one of the Chinese languages, Mandarin, into SA education system, has left so much to be desired about the attitude of the EFF and other small opposition parties in this regard.

And the less said about the DA the better, for it is in its DNA to be staunch representatives of western imperialism through its white supremacist liberal ideology, and they fail to be hypocritical in their pursuit for such an agenda. They are part of our good friends in the enemy camp- at least we know where they stand.

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In actual fact the extremes of populist demagoguery as pioneered by the EFF actually collaborate with DA’s right-wing orthodoxy. The only difference is that on the one hand, the leaders of populist demagoguery are a composite unit of frustrated lame ducks armed with some orate smokescreen of hope ‘appealing’ to the unsuspecting elements of the working class, and on the other hand right-wing orthodoxy is led by western ancestral white supremacists who sing praises to market fundamentalism as the be-all and end-all of our economic woes.

All and sundry, they are blindly at odds with the democratically elected government as led by the ANC. No wonder the President of the country, J G Zuma, lamented about the poverty of politics in his parliament.

For without doubt, there are existing challenges that come with South Africa’s relations with other BRICS countries, and they need to be addressed, and these include cheap labour exploitation by Chinese firms, the Chinese growing monopoly over the clothing industry through import reliant investments and their utter disobedience to South African labour laws.

But the current administration had been able to break some of the imperialist chains with the west and sought to forge economic relations with the eastern powers for mutually beneficial economic relations with such countries.

If we so love our country and given its historically detrimental overdependence to the west, would it not be reasonable for any thinking politician to look into our country’s posture as the huge step to a potentially correct direction?

Although our democratic dispensation was also based on accountability and constructive opposition, but with the current state of affairs, our movement remains the only beacon of our struggle to lead this country beyond mere political emancipation but to economic emancipation through the more radical phase of economic transition.

And moreover, to think that our historic imperialist and colonialist enemies retreated after 1994 is to be narrow and such a school of thought might as well cloud one’s judgement about our current political and economic challenges. Living up to the legacies of President O R Tambo we need to echo his words when addressing the 7th National Congress of the SACP in 1989: “As never before we need to move arm in arm, shoulder to shoulder, with all our allies, friends and supporters. Within our movement, we need to close ranks now as never before and wage intensive struggle with reinforced vigour”.

The tactics employed by our enemies before 1994 will never be the same as those they employ in this current juncture. Our enemies have changing strategies and tactics but with the same goals.

If it means creating and elevating an imaginary elephant like the EFF, our enemies would go out of their way in using it as a tool to hoodwink unsuspecting elements of the working class and thereby manufacturing mistrust within and outside our movement with an aim of turning all of us asunder. They are masters of an old mantra: “The more things change, the more they should remain the same”

By way of conclusion, let us borrow from Franz Fanon:The enemy, in fact, changes his tactics. At opportune moments he combines his policy of brutal repression with spectacular gestures of friendship, manoeuvres calculated to sow division, and “psychological action.” Here and there he tries with success to revive tribal feuds, using agents provocateurs and practising what might be called counter-subversion.”

THE WRETCHED OF THE EARTH

Sikhumbuzo Mdlalose is the former National Working Committee Member of the YCLSA and current PEC Member of the SACP, Moses Mabhida Province.

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We waited for a hundred years and in 2010 South Africa hosted the first ever World Cup on African Soil. History is about to repeat itself. We have waited for 71 years and now on October 3-South African unions under the banner of COSATU will host the first ever World Trade Union Congress on African soil.

The 17th Congress of the World Federation of Trade Unions-WFTU will take place in Durban bringing more than 1500 delegates from around the world.

This is a proud moment for our members and the workers of South Africa and the people of KwaZulu Natal as this will also bring massive financial spinoffs to the province and boost the economy.

The WFTU is the oldest unified international trade union federation in the world representing

more than 95million members around the globe. Some of the most prominent leaders of our revolution such as Moses Mabhida, Moses Kotane, Stalin Mtshali and many others worked in the head offices of the WFTU during the struggle against apartheid, coordinating international solidarity from those offices.

At the formation of the WFTU in Paris, South African trade unions formed part of the founding delegation that founded the federation on 3 October 1945. The formation itself was not a sudden development.

It was a result and culmination of theconsolidation of worker struggles around the world “the working class in different countries intensified activities, attained higher political awareness and realised better

organisation”(Swadesh Dev Roy Deputy General secretary of WFTU ).

South Africa to host World Trade Union Congress in Durban

INTERNATIONAL NEWS


He continues to say “the WFTU is the child of unity of workers’ joint struggle against fascism, of the will to build peace and liberate colonial people, of the struggles for better living conditions, the battles against exploitation monopolies and warmongers”

The growth of the WFTU and the hosting of the 17th congress in South Africa follow hard work from the vibrant General Secretary Cde George Mavrikos who took over the reigns in the Havana Congress of 2005, re-elected in the 16th congress in Greece.

The congress in Greece made fundamental declaration and set the WFTU on a growth and transformational path, declaring an “Class oriented - uniting - democratic - modern – independent – internationalist!” broad united movement of the working class ; says the WFTU Congress declaration Athens, Greece, 2011 From the Durban Congress the WFTU should emerge even stronger and bigger, in particular with the expected formal joining of COSATU with its 2million members! COSATU took the resolution to affiliate to the WFTU in our 11th Congress.

Those opposed to the unapologetic ideological orientation of the WFTU which we fully subscribe to have sought to discourage the South African trade union movement including our federation COSATU from participating in WFTU structures and activities advancing an argument that many of the unions in the WFTU are left leaning.

That is not new for us. We are aligned to the SACP. We feel at home in the WFTU. But also our beloved Nelson Mandela has a very important lesson for all of us in this regard when he said : “One of the mistakes which some political analysts make is to think their enemies should be our enemies.

Our attitude towards any country is determined by the attitude of that country to our struggle. Yasser Arafat, Colonel Gaddafi [and] Fidel Castro support our struggle to the hilt.

There is no reason whatsoever why we should have any hesitation about hailing their commitment to human rights as they’re being demanded in South Africa… They do not support [the anti-apartheid struggle]

only in rhetoric; they are placing resources at our disposal for us to win the struggle.

We have the same message for those who are afraid of a growing revolutionary federation like the WFTU which fought apartheid not only in rhetoric but also placed its resources at our disposal…your enemies are not our enemies!

The congress will be underlined by a mass rally open to workers from all unions, even those that are not union members.

The rally will be addressed by the leadership of the WFTU, COSATU and other alliance partners. POPCRU members as always will come out in their numbers to be part of this historic moment, marching side by side, shoulder to shoulder with more than 1500 international activists.

This is an experience not to be missed. We call on all our members who will not be on duty to be part of this once in a lifetime experience.

Working with our sister unions and guided by COSATU, the leadership of POPCRU, members and officials will make sure that the congress is a resounding success as our own contribution to the legacy of the working people of Africa in general and South Africa in particular.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS


The Cuban 5, otherwise known as the Miami Five whom are constituted of Gerardo Hernández, Antonio Guerrero, Ramón Labañino, Fernando González, and René González arrived on our shores on Sunday 21 June 2015.

These Cuban Intelligence officers, who were arrested by the United States of America’s (USA) Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in September 1998, and later convicted in Miami of conspiracy to commit espionage, conspiracy to commit murder, acting as an agent of a foreign government, and other illegal activities in the United States.

The Five were in the United States to observe and infiltrate the Cuban-American groups Alpha 66, the F4 Commandos, the Cuban American National Foundation, and Brothers to the Rescue.

They were spying on Miami’s Cuban exile community, not the US government. Cuba ontends that the men were sent to South Florida in the wake of several terrorist bombings in Havana organized by anti-

communist terrorist Luis Posada Carriles, a former Central Intelligence Agency operative.

A three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Atlanta overturned their convictions in 2005, citing the “prejudices” of Miami’s anti-Castro Cubans, but the full court later reversed the five’s bid for a new trial and reinstated the original convictions.

In June 2009 the United States Supreme Court declined to review the case. In Cuba, the Five are viewed by the government as national heroes and portrayed as having sacrificed their liberty in the defense of their country.

René González was released on October 7, 2011 following the completion of 13 years of his sentence with a further three years of probation in the US. He was allowed to return to Cuba for his father’s funeral on 22 April 2013, and a federal judge allowed him to stay there provided that he renounce his United States citizenship.

Fernando González was released on February 27, 2014. The remaining members were released on December 17, 2014, in a prisoner swap with

Cuban Five visit to South Africa

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Cuba for an American intelligence officer identified by a senior American as Rolando Sarraff Trujillo); the release also coincided with the release by Cuba of American contractor Alan Phillip Gross, although the g o v e r n m e n t s characterized the release of Gross as being unrelated to the release of the Cuban Five members.

The release was sanctioned by President Obama and was viewed by some observers as a first step in the easing of political relations between the United States and Cuba, known as the Cuban Thaw.

The first country they visited after their release was South Africa, mainly for the purpose of thanking the people and the tripartite alliance, who have used every available opportunity to call for their release, a part greatly played by the South African Communist Party (SACP) through their countless marches to the USA embassy in Pretoria on a yearly basis.

These are the men who made sacrifices during the war in Angola. All of them served in Angola,

and were in the battleground during the struggle fighting against apartheid forces.

To this day, Cuba continues assisting in building South Africa beyond the apartheid era, with programs of freely training doctors.

We currently have over 3000 South African medical students that are training in Cuba, and this is an annual eventuality, with

various Cuban professionals, especially those with technical skills, also sharing their expertise by coming to work in South Africa.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

The Cuban Five in Angola which was the last destination of their Africa tour

Marchers holding up posters for the release of the Cuban Five


Over 20 businesses in South Africa have terminated their contracts with G4S Security over its involvement in Israeli prisons and human rights abuses. The SA businesses terminated their contracts, totalling more than R7 million per year, after approached by representatives of the human rights and Palestine solidarity organisation BDS South Africa as well as the KZN Palestine Solidarity Forum.

In 2007 G4S was contracted to provide security and other services at Israeli prisons, torture centres and detention facilities. In 2010 Palestinian prisoners and prisoner support organziations called for a boycott of G4S as part of the larger international boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against Israel campaign.

Last year the Methodist Church together with Amnesty International and the European Union were among some of the organisations that terminated their contracts with G4S.

In June 2014, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation withdrew its R1.9 billion stake from G4S after being called on by BDS South Africa and the larger BDS movement. Locally in South

Africa the Trauma Centre in Cape Town ended its relations with G4S in 2013.

This was followed by South Africa’s ruling party, the ANC, in November 2014 resolving that G4S (among other companies that do business in the Israeli occupied territories) be excluded from doing business with the South African Government.

The over R7 million worth of cancelled G4S Security contracts include contracts for more than 140 sites across the country ranging from restaurants, factories, supermarkets and other stores.

Piet Modiba, representing a nationwide manufacturing company said on the cancelling of their G4S contracts: “We come from a very dark and painful past, part of the pain was inflicted by companies that insisted on aiding the apartheid regime. G4S today is doing the same by maintaining relations with the Israeli Government.”

Moosa Sabir, general manager of a chain of hardware stores said: “We were contacted by customers and the general public who saw G4S

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

South African Businesses terminate G4S contracts: BDS


vehicles at our store. They complained that G4S was complicit in Israel’s torture and illegal detention of Palestinian children.

When we investigated the matter we found that G4S was guilty and we could not continue the business relationship in good faith. All and any businesses complicit with Israeli Apartheid should be shunned by peace and justice loving people. We hope more businesses follow our lead.”

N k o s i k o n a Madikizela, a manager of one of the stores that ended their G4S relations said: “We are fed up with the attitude of Israel and multi national companies like G4S that think they can act with utter impunity.

The BDS Movement is proving to hold these international companies accountable for their trade and involvement with Israel. Companies such as G4S, Woolworths and others choosing to trade with Israel, in violation of the nonviolent BDS boycott, must realise that there is a price to pay.”

Recently, the UK’s Labour Party decided at its national executive meeting on 18 November 2015 to boycott G4S. The security company has provided security services to the Labour Party at its conferences. This comes after several protests took place outside Labour’s conferences in recent years about the issue.

On 4 December 2015 the Jordanian branch of the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) terminated its contracts with G4S after earlier international protests calling for the United Nations terminate its relationship with G4S.

Welcoming the announcement by BDS South Africa of the G4S boycott victories were the

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Palestinian Embassy in South Africa as well as the anti-Apartheid icon, Ahmed Kathrada.

Tamer AlMassri, a Palestinian diplomat during his tenure at the Palestinian Embassy in Pretoria, said: “In 2012, the United Nations Special Rapporteur for Human Rights added G4S as one of the international companies that should be boycotted for their illegal involvement in Israel, Israeli settlements and prisons.

We welcome the announcements of these South African companies ending their relations with G4S and supporting the BDS campaign. It is also encouraging that South Africa’s ruling party the ANC has called for G4S to be excluded from Government and State contracts.”

The Ahmed Kathrada Foundation issued a statement saying the following: “That the annoucenment of cancelled G4S contracts comes on the eve of the international Palestinian political prisoner day should not be understated. We hope to see the release of all political prisoners such as Marwan Barghouti from Israeli prisons secured by G4S. Over 750 000 Palestinians (roughly 40% of Palestinian men) have been imprisoned by Israel at one point in time.

About 100 000 Palestinians have been held by Israel in “administrative detention” (the equivalent of Apartheid South Africa’s “Detention without trial”). Similar to the experience of Black families under Apartheid, almost every Palestinian family has been affected by the Israeli imprisonment of a relative.


The Tinkhundla regime continues to oppress the people of Swaziland since 12 April 1973 when the late King Sobhuza II abrogated the 1968 independence constitution and bestowed all legislative, executive and judicial powers upon himself. Political parties remain proscribed, with the People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO), Swaziland Youth Congress (SWAYOCO), Swaziland Solidarity Network (SSN) and People’s Liberation Army (Umbane) further enlisted as terrorist entities under the Suppression of Terrorism Act of 2008. On the 9th of December 2015 the Supreme Court of Swaziland, the highest court on the land, confirmed the 85-year sentence that had been meted on Comrade Amos Mbedzi by the High Court in 2012. Effectively, that means he will spend the whole of his 85-year jail sentence as the High Court had ruled. This ruling on Comrade Mdedzi was not unexpected because in terms of the tinkhundla system, all institutions have to follow the wishes of the monarch. It has always been in the direct interest of the monarch that Comrade Mdedzi be convicted and handed a lengthy sentence. Because of the 1973 King’s Decree which has still not been repealed, the monarch still has power over the courts. Further the current Chief Justice was involved

in the drafting of the 2005 Constitution which strengthened the king’s powers over the three arms of government (Legislature, Executive and Judiciary). Some judges have faced the wrath of the king for defying the king in their court judgments in which he had some interests. It is in this context that the ruling in Comrade Mbedzi is not a surprise to us. Sometime in September last year, news surfaced that the Commonwealth had suggested to King Mswati that there be democracy talks between the leadership of the system on the one hand, and progressive forces on the other hand. Former president of Malawi, Bakili Muluzi, is a special Commonwealth envoy to Swaziland. He was tasked with guiding this programme to its fruition in order that there be multi-party elections in 2018.

King Mswati, however, was strongly opposed to these discussions. He is said to have specifically mentioned that he would not be in any talks in which PUDEMO would also be present. As mentioned above, King Mswati enjoys supreme power over every entity in Swaziland, especially economic and political sectors, and would thus never give up power this easily.

Pius Rinto is a member of PUDEMO, exiled in South Africa for over 5 years to date.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

TINKHUNDLA REGIME SITUATION IN SWAZILAND

Written by Pius Rinto


POPCRU hosted a successful “Basic Writing Skills Workshop” on the 1st and the 2nd of December 2015. The primary aim of the Workshop was to capacitate employees in key positions with improved writing skills and strategies, as well as standardizing the way of writing within the organization. The workshop further provided an in-depth knowledge on the writing of good plain English and distilled this information into four basic easy-to-remember ‘rules’.

This session encouraged the participant to get better results through writing what they really mean, enabling them to influence the reader; to develop a modern approach to “thinking” about written communication using simple, fresh and short words; to be able to identify common mistakes made in writing; and to develop a readable style of writing.

The success of this two day workshop was attributed by the attendance and active participation of all delegates which included nine Provincial Secretaries and Managers, five Head of Departments, three Unit Heads, Human Resource Manager, Media and Communication Officer and three Research experts.

Ironically, the importance of good writing skills in the working world has become more evident

even as organizations rely increasingly on computers and other new technologies to meet their obligations. Indeed, research shows that any organization’s positive qualities will be blunted to some degree if it’s unable to transfer knowledge to the printed page. Excellent writing skill is especially important in client or stakeholder communication; internally or externally, be it in proposals, reports, letters, memorandums, notices, as well as other channels of communication such as e-mails, all depend on clear written communication.

It is a proven fact that many jobs depend upon employee’s ability to communicate effectively using the written medium. This workshop therefore explored the necessity of being able to write well, how to write clearly to communicate the message effectively and elicit a positive response from the reader, how to organize your thoughts, edit your own work and avoid the common traps of writing such as “verbosity”, “gobbledygook “ etc.

POPCRU will continue to empower its employees with relevant skills and knowledge so as to effectively respond to the needs and expectations of the members. We value our members as they are our main priority, as such, we shall not cease to strive for excellent service delivery whilst ensuring improved working conditions at the workplace.

DEVELOPMENTAL PROGRAMMES

Basic Writing Skills Workshop


2015 National Staff Meeting

Once again, POPCRU convened yet another major gathering of its employees across the country – a National Staff Meeting (NSM).

The 2015 NSM was one of a watershed moment in the life and history of all employees and for the first time in its history, POPCRU has employed over 69 employees. It may seem as a dream that a union which started its administrative operations with only one fulltime Administrator and one fulltime National Office Bearer has reached this milestone. It is a fact that as it grows in membership numbers, it should also grow its administrative functions in order to respond appropriately to the needs of its members.

The National Staff Meeting is held once towards the end of the year and used as a platform for all employees to detox through team building activities and also to reflect on the issues that affect them as employees within a union environment. The staff members get the opportunity to be addressed by its employers (National Office Bearers – NOBs) and to further interact with them on a more relaxed atmosphere. Of critical importance, to give recognise and to commend the job well done over the year.

Among the attendees to this year’s meeting was a delegation of National Office Bearers (NOBs) led by President Zizamele Cebekhulu, the General Secretary – Nathi Theledi and the 2nd Deputy General Secretary – Rankele Msinto including POPCRU’s Provincial Secretaries from all nine Provinces.

Recognition of long service

POPCRU prides itself to be an employer of choice and this fact is supported by the fact that it has managed to have in its fold three [03] employees who have served more than 20

years of unbroken service since its inception. The NSM is used not only as a platform to engage with all POPCRU employees across the nine [09] Provinces with a view to enhance employer/employee relations but also as a platform to recognise long serving employees through presenting them with awards. A gala dinner was arranged to recognise long serving employees and the 2015 awards’ recipients were as follows:

a) 20 years long service

The following employees received awards for having served the organisation for a period of twenty [20] years:• Nomahlangu Nkosi: Organising department

and • Fikiswa Gaveni: Provincial Administrator –

Eastern Cape.

b) 5 Years long service

The following employees were the recipients for serving the organisation for a period of 5 years:• Ntandoyenkosi Masilela: Admin. Support –

Legal department;• Mapaseka Matekane: Provincial

Administrator - Free State;• Ephraim Mafuwane: Provincial

Administrative Secretary – Limpopo;• Jeffrey Gaanakgomo: Provincial

Administrative Secretary - North West and• Siyabulela Kulute: Provincial Administrator -

Western Cape.

NATIONAL STAFF MEETING


25 YEARS OF KEEPING THE FIRE BURNING

POLICE AND PRISONS CIVIL RIGHTS UNION POPCRU

Application for membership Police Service, Correctional Service and Traffic

POPCRU House P.O Box 8657, 01 Marie Road JOHANNESBURG, AUCKLAND PARK 2000 2006 Tel: 011-242-4600 Fax: 086 625 3054 Persal Number: Deduction code: Tab 119 Type: 1=Start 2=Amend

3=Terminate Reference: POPCRU

Surname: Identity Number: Full Names: Commencement Date: Postal Address: Postal Code: Telephone [(H) plus code]: Tel[w]: Mobile: Station: Province: Local: I, the undersigned, hereby apply for membership of Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union [POPCRU] and undertake to uphold the provisions as outlined in the Constitution of POPCRU.

Ek, die ondergetekende, doen hiermee aansoek om lidmaatskap van die Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union [POPCRU] en onderneem om my aan die bepalings van die Unie soos in die Grondwet uiteengesit te onderwerp.

I, the undersigned, also apply for the membership of the compulsory Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union funeral scheme [POPCRU Provida] and undertake to uphold the provisions of the scheme as outlined by the Master Policy of the Underwriter. I hereby accept that in the event of termination of membership for whatsoever reason, the policy will also terminate.

Ek, die ondergetenkende, doen ook aansoek om die Verpligte Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union begrafnis skema [POPCRU Provida] en onderneem om my aan die bepalings van die skema soos uiteengesit in die Meesterpolis van die Onderskrywer te onderwerp. Ek bevestig hiermee dat indien my lidmaatskap gekanseleer word vir enige rede, die polis verval automaties.

Signature: Handtekening:___________________________ Stop Order/ Aftrekorder for POPCRU Membership Persal Number: Persoon’s Nommer: Pay Point: Betaal Punt: Surname & Initials: Van & Voorletters: I request and authorise the Accounting Officer of the South African Police Service, Department of Correctional Services or Traffic Department to deduct a single amount of hundred rand [R100] as admission fee and a monthly membership fee of fifty rands [R50] or any increase from my salary. The monthly deductions shall continue until cancelled in writing.

Tick relevant department/ Merk toepaslike departement SAPS/SAPD DCS/DKD TRAFFIC/VERKEER

Ek versoek en magtig hiermee die Rekenpligtige Beampte van die Suid Afrikanse Polisie Diens, Korrektiewe Dienste of Verkeers Departounting Ofement om n eenmalige intreefooi van honderd rand [R100] en n maandelikse ledegeld van vyftig rand [R50] of enige verhooging van my salaris te verhaal en met die aftrekkings voort te gaan totdat dit skriftelik gekanseleer word.

20 YEARS OF KEEPING THE FIRES BURNING

MEMBER ‘S WORK ADDRESS

_____________________ _____________________ _____________________ _____________________ I, the undersigned: Names & Surname:________________________________________________________ Persal number:____________________________________________________________ Rank:____________________________________________________________________ Identity number:____________________________________________________________ Telephone number:___________________________________________________________ I herewith apply to cancel the under mentioned deduction(s) on my salary Hiermee versoek ek die staking van die aftrekking van my salaries Cancellation of POPCRU (must also cancel Lesaka Policy), SAPU, PSA Die kanseleing van POPCRU (Lesaka Policy), SAPU en PSA insluit

Name of UNION Reference number Instalment

I hereby authorize the Head of Finance to cancel these deduction(s) on my salary. Hiermee bevestig ek die kansellasie van aftrekings van my salaries. I understand the excess money that was deducted must be claimed from the institution and not from Head Office. Ek verstan dat die geld wat teveel van my salaris verhaa is, gees moet word van die department en nie van Hoofkantoor nie. _______________________ _______________________________ SIGNATURE (Member) Lid DATE ON WHICH MEMBER SIGNED __________________________ _______________________________ SIGNATURE (Representative of Union) DATE ON WHICH UNION RECEIVED Verteen woordeige van Unie DOCUMENT ____________________________ ________________________________ SIGNATURE (UNION HEAD OFFICE) DATE UNION HEAD OFFICE PROCESS Unie Hoofkantoor CANCELLATION

Documents

POPCRU 1st Edition Newsletter 2016