# What about coloured fears, Mr President?
THE ANC has failed to heed the concerns raised by activists from the coloured community. These concerns centre around the continued marginalisation of the community and access to resources. Fears around affirmative action are not taken seriously, yet the ANC has bent over backwards to address white fears on the same issue.
The growing wave of African chauvinism, especially within the ranks of the ANC Western Cape, is an old problem. Attempts to raise these concerns have always been viewed suspiciously and activists were branded ethnicists. This contrasts sharply with the sensitive manner in which the ANC always seems to be addressing white and Indian fears.
The ANC developed formal relations with ethnic organisations like the Transvaal Indian Congress and the Natal Indian Congress and even supported an initiative by its own members in kwaZulu/Natal to address Zulu fears in the region. These are important contradictions in the ANC’s strategy when dealing with minority communities.
The apartheid era in a sense dulled the contradictions among the broad black (African, coloured and Indian) community and the emphasis was correctly placed on a united approach. However, these contradictions remained and they begin to challenge the very principles of the
Non-racialism is a noble objective, yet real divisions, especially among the broad black community, cannot be ignored. The ANC needs to deal with the matter in a sensitive and honest manner. — Karima Brown, (former ANC Youth League member), Yeoville, Johannesburg
# HRC a fair human rights watchdog
Inkatha Freedom Party Senator Philip Powell made a number of accusations against the Human Rights Committee (February 10 to 16) to which we would like to
The Human Rights Committee (Powell appears ignorant of the fact that our name changed from Commission to Committee 10 months ago) is an independent, non- partisan human rights organisation, and has been widely respected as such both locally and internationally for more than six years. The HRC has dedicated itself to impartially exposing violations of first-generation human rights, irrespective of the race, gender or political affiliation of the victims and violators of these rights. We have found cause from time to time to condemn certain activities of the government, security forces and political parties, of which the IFP is no exception. For this we make no apologies.
Every effort is made by the committee to report every political killing in the country. Our weekly and monthly reports (clearly unread by Powell) consistently report on the deaths of both IFP and ANC leaders, members and supporters. Our monthly report gives a count of deaths of IFP and ANC members in incidents where the affiliation was identified.
>From mid-1990 to December 1994 the HRC has reported on more than 800 IFP deaths. We readily acknowledge that the actual figure is in all likelihood higher, given the vast number of deaths where the affiliation could not be established.
Contrary to allegations made by Powell, the HRC has reported on the assassination of IFP leaders, including a special focus in the May 1993 report — a special privilege afforded to the IFP as the HRC has never done an equivalent focus on the assassination of ANC
The HRC has always encouraged negotiation and we would give our support to an appeal by the IFP to the kwaZulu/Natal MEC for Safety and Security to convene a summit on violence in the province. — Jeremy Sarkin, national chairperson, HRC
# The ANC’s rotten eggs
An elderly nyanga (traditional healer) in Matabeleland, Zimbabwe, once told me and a group of angry communal farmers the following Ndebele saying: Although a rotten egg may look alright on the outside, once you crack it open its horrible smell tells you it is completely rotten. This saying was directed at an extremely eloquent and charming, but unpopular and corrupt, government official in the village.
During the early 1990s, the ANC, with Nelson Mandela at its helm, provided the nation and in the international community with impeccable moral and ethical leadership. The ANC’s image is now being seriously threatened by a small group of ANC loose- cannons, crooks and opportunists. We now have a situation in South Africa where charismatic self-styled “radicals” such as Winnie Mandela and Peter Mokaba have managed to establish themselves as “populist” leaders, and are therefore able to get away with virtually anything.
A few years ago it may have seemed wiser to have these individuals firmly within the ambit of the ANC rather than have them running around the country causing havoc and mayhem wherever they went. But these extraordinary opportunists have, over the past few years, embarrassed the ANC leadership far too seriously to allow them to continue unchecked.
Their opportunistic politicking seems to know no limits. Perhaps the time has finally come when their “talents” for cheap populist politics can no longer be tolerated. Perhaps the time has come when the embarrasment they cause the ANC outweighs the advantages of the votes they may or may not bring in. Without the ANC they are fish out of water. Let them form their own parties or join the IFP or PAC or anyone else who will have them.
Principled political leadership cannot continue while Winnie Mandela continues to make a mockery out of a liberation movement which many have served loyally and died for. I for one will seriously reconsider renewing my ANC subscription unless something is done about Winnie Mandela and the numerous other allegedly corrupt ANC leaders. Now she is implying that the 11 ANC Women’s League members who resigned because of her behaviour were involved in the misappropriation of funds. How dare she treat women of integrity such as Adelaide Tambo and Gertrude Shope in such a manner. What about her diamond buying escapades, Stompie …? If she’s not implicated in allegations of corruption, she’s involved in disloyal and embarrassing speeches.
The longer she stays in the Cabinet the more suspicion will be cast about the nature of her relationship with senior leadership.
Who is protecting her, when will it end? A rotten egg may appear alright on the outside but break the shell and …– Robinsky, Vredehoek, Cape Town
# Submit to mediation
IT will be far better to submit to international mediation now rather than later, when a national emergency or civil war demands it. It is no disgrace or denial of national sovereignty to submit to international mediation. Instead it is a sign that we accept our responsibilities under international law.
What is ultimately at stake in the dispute over mediation is the issue of power sharing between central government and the provinces. Today, federalism is a sweeping trend worldwide. It is a trend that many members of the ANC do not accept and fail to see the wisdom of. They think that federalism will lead to volkstaats and ethnic separatism, and they see this as the road to civil war. This is a mistake and indicates a misunderstanding of what federalism is all about.
In our culturally diverse society we need the unity in diversity that only a federal constitutional arrangement can guarantee. In a profound sense, world history is on Chief Buthelezi’s side. — Dr John Rund, Department of African Law, University of the North
# More Indians please!
I AM concerned about the issue of traditional leaders demanding extra powers rather than democratic
All people are born in the same way and are born free. But it now seems that it’s a different thing with traditional leaders. Even a fool has the right to be a leader by virtue of being born to the so-called royal
My own experience of the rural areas in kwaZulu/Natal has taught me something about traditional leadership. All these people stand for is the abuse of human rights and corruption. They conduct kangaroo courts where they fine the people without proper investigations and
They do not have title deeds for the land but they sell the sites and the buyer gets no receipt. And when the chief feels like evacuating that individual from that area he can do that easily without even paying back the
I foresee a danger in accommodating extra powers demanded by the chiefs on this local government issue. To me in a real democratic state there can be nothing like traditional leadership. — Mandla Mncwabe,
# MEDIA reports on the illegal occupation of houses in Lenasia Ext 13 have been criticised by the local ANC branch as “unbalanced”. Despite the umbrage the print and electronic media may take to being so accused, the charge is entirely valid. Reports have appeared decidedly one-sided in favour of Basil Douglas and his South Western Joint Civic Association. As the mouthpiece of the “occupiers”, their views have enjoyed greater prominence in daily news coverage of events in the township. One suspects that the media’s bent for sensationalist rhetoric above reasoned argument is to blame. For the media, the ravings of Basil Douglas are no doubt more colourful and controversial than the sensible and considered statements that come from Lenasia’s democratically elected representatives.– Feizel Mamdoo, Lenasia
# THE WM&G seems to have grasped the significance of the news that the US Congress no longer wishes to support UN peacekeeping and could bring the world organisation to its knees.
Even if President Clinton vetoes the challenge, the political will to isolate the US from the world will still exist, thus ending any pretence about the existence of an international will for a new world order. The US, forgetting what it owes to global indivisibility, is now retreating back into the shell of the Monroe Doctrine. — George Ivan Smith, Stroud,
# WE write to express our deep concern regarding an article headed “It’s not a bargain at the fleece markets” (February 24 to March 2 1995). It claims that Newtown Market Africa is fighting a losing battle against crime. This is completely untrue. On the contrary, we are winning the battle! Newtown Market Africa and the entire Market Precinct employ an independent security company called Spot-On Security — the first South African security company which is completely owned and run by black people. Under the vigilant eye of its personnel (14 of whom are on duty at the Flea Market every Saturday), crime has effectively been eradicated from the Market Precinct. – – Ireen Avidan, on behalf of Newtown Market Africa
# WE, the South African Students Press Union (Saspu), appreciates the fact that your newspaper saw the need to carry an article in your 10 to 16 February 1995 edition on community radio entitled “Radio of the rainbow nation”. Our only disappointment was in relation to the radio stations you seemed to make reference to. This article does not at any stage make reference to any of the community stations which are affiliated to both Saspu and the National Community Radio forum (NCRF).
We are tempted to conclude that the media’s obvious marginalisation of our stations is not accidental, but a deliberate attempt to undermine the existence of our stations and therefore their national coordinating structures, in particular Saspu and NCRF. — J P Louw, President, and Zach Motloi, National Radio Co-ordinator