SOUTH AFRICA – INTERNATIONALIST 360°

Irvin Jim: “The Time Has Come, Justice Must Prevail, Mumia Abu-Jamal Must Be Set Free”

Irvin Jim (From February 16 to March 16, trade unions and people’s movements across the world are organizing a campaign to demand the release of US political prisoner, militant and journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal, who has been in prison for over 41 years. The global action comes at a time when his defense is mounting a…

Amilcar Cabral and the South Africans

Phethani Madzivhandila Amilcar Cabral’s influence stretched far beyond the Portuguese colonies, profoundly influencing the political struggle in South Africa, past and present. In 2021, the South African government was provided with funding of around €700 million (ZAR13 billion), from the German government to decommission its coal-based power stations in order to transition to green energy….

Global South: Gold-Backed Currencies to Replace the US Dollar

Pepe Escobar The adoption of commodity-backed currencies by the Global South could upend the US dollar’s dominance and level the playing field in international trade. Let’s start with three interconnected multipolar-driven facts. First: One of the key take aways from the World Economic Forum annual shindig in Davos, Switzerland is when Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan,…

Women, Resistance and Power in South Africa

Roberto Sirvent and Koni Benson Roberto Sirvent interviews Koni Benson about her new book Crossroads: I Live Where I Like, that draws on decades of research, to tell a sidelined story of the creation of the city of Cape Town, and the role of movements led by African women who were central in campaigning for public…

25 Years of Sino-South African Ties Celebrated

Gert Grobler The long-standing fraternal relations and solidarity between the Communist Party of China and the African National Congress and other South African liberation movements culminated in 1997 with the signing in Pretoria of the Agreement on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between South Africa and China, with the provision for it to take effect…

US Threatens African Countries, Demanding They End Relations with Russia

Lucas Leiroz South Africa’s Minister of Defence and Military Veterans Thandi Modise © Twitter / South African Government Even with the emerging countries several times making clear their solid position of not supporting the sanctions against Russia, the US remains with an absolutely interventionist foreign policy, threatening the states that maintain relations with “blacklisted” nations….

South Africans are Fighting for Crumbs: A Conversation with Trade Union Leader Irvin Jim

Vijay Prashad, Zoe Alexandra NUMSA General Secretary Irvin Jim South Africa is sitting on a tinderbox, says Irvin Jim, General Secretary of the country’s largest trade union NUMSA. The solution is to foster a spirit of solidarity which will have to come from people’s struggles and movements In mid-December, the African National Congress (ANC) held its…

“Effectively Operating as a Firing Squad”: The Guilty Must Face Justice for the Marikana Massacre

Kate Alexander As part of our dossier on South Africa’s Marikana massacre 10 years ago, ROAPE’s Kate Alexander looks at which police officers were responsible for the killing. Alexander’s account highlights the role of the operational commander, Brigadier Adriaan Calitz. Briefing his troops two days after the massacre, Calitz told them: “From the planning to the execution…

An Image of Hope: Abahlali baseMjondolo’s Fight for Dignity and Land, 17 Years On

Tanupriya Singh (EKhenana was founded as a land occupation in 2018 and has faced numerous violent and illegal evictions over the years. On December 27, 2019, the shack dwellers’ movement Abahlali baseMjondolo won an interdict in the high court in Durban, preventing the municipality from continuing with illegal evictions. It was reaffirmed on April 20,…

South Africa: Rise of the Reactionaries

Jason Love It is safe to say that AfriForum has grown into one of the largest interest groups in South African society and politics. The self-proclaimed “civil rights” organization has grown massively in recent years, from just over 9,000 members in early 2010 to more than 300,000 currently. Originally seen as a fringe movement concerned…

South Africa: The Electricity Crisis Demands a Solution that Benefits the Majority

Vashna Jagarnath Load shedding, implemented when the state-owned electricity company Eskom is unable to provide power to the whole country and the electricity grid needs to be kept stable, seems to have reached a new nadir in recent days with most areas going without power for up to 12 hours a day. South Africa will…

Abahlali baseMjondolo Demands Justice for its Members Lost to “the Politics of Blood”

Peoples Dispatch AbM members carry the coffin of slain leader Nokuthula Mabaso. Photo: Siya Mbhele AbM leader George Mqapheli Bonono called on the UN to take a stand against the murders of the movement’s leaders, and for the South African government to set up a commission of inquiry to ensure justice for all victims of…

Referendum Observer from South Africa: ‘People Really Wanted it For a Long Time’

The youth league of South Africa’s ruling party has been slammed by the country’s Ukrainian community after it endorsed the referendums on joining Russia that were held in four regions there. RT talked to Khulekani Skosana, the chairperson of International Relations for the African National Congress Youth League.

South Africa: Civil Society, Human Rights Organizations Call for Urgent Intervention to Protect Abahlali baseMjondolo

PRESS STATEMENT 14 SEPTEMBER 2022 CIVIL SOCIETY CALLS FOR URGENT NATIONAL INTERVENTION TO PROTECT ABAHLALI BASEMJONDOLO On Friday, 9 September 2022, the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI) sent a letter concerning the ongoing attacks on Abahlali baseMjondolo to various members of the South African executive and legislature, as well as commissioners of regional…

SADC Rejects Anti-Russian Bill in United States Congress

Abayomi Azikiwe 16-member regional organization in Southern Africa exerts in independence from Pentagon war in Ukraine Geopolitical Analysis A recent gathering of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) has expressed its displeasure with recent legislation making its way through the United States Congress which is aimed at punishing the continent for its diplomatic and trade…

South African Shack-Dwellers’ Leader, Lindokuhle Mnguni, Assassinated in Durban

Pavan Kulkarni Lindokuhle Mnguni, chairperson of eKhenana commune of Abahlali baseMjondolo. Photo: Siya Mbhele Chairperson of the eKhenana commune of Abahlali baseMjondolo (AbM), who was out of prison on bail, was gunned down at his home two days before he was to appear in court. This is the third murder of AbM leaders in eKhenana…

Marikana’s Legacy: Justice Denied and Capital’s Greed

August 16 marked 10 years since the brutal massacre of protesting mining workers in Marikana in South Africa. In all these years, the families of victims have not received justice and the links between the state and mining capital remain strong. What is the state of the mining sector today and what are the demands…