Re: SA's "revolution" Re: Dialogue from Black-Left

["Charles Brown" <CharlesB@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>>> "Patrick Bond" <pbond@xxxxxxxxxx> 03/07/00 05:04PM >>>
Allow me a couple of comradely ripostes...

> From:          "Charles Brown" <CharlesB@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> CB: Imperialist ? Where are the neo-colonies of the South African government ?

There's lots and lots to say about SA economic domination
of Southern Africa. A bit relating to class formation is at
the end of this note. But you want to talk politics, right?

**********

CB: My assumption is that Apartheid S. Africa was an imperialist power, regional
gendarme in southern Africa. Of course, imperialism is an economic category, so 
I also
assumed that this relationship was economic, though, the military control of the
region had to be heavy duty.

So, I assume the government role as gendarme is over, though the economic 
exploitation
probably still exists.

So, who is the commander of these troops ? Who are these troops ? What is the
composition of the army ? Did old apartheid just hand everything over to the 
ANC and
Black soldiers ?

**********


Here's a Sunday Independent report from Maseru, Lesotho
(14 February 1999), reporting on the September 1998
invasion of that country--especially the World Bank-
designed Katse Dam, Africa's biggest public works
project--by SA troops:

     The common perception here is that two South
     African helicopters flew to the site of the dam
     which was being guarded by Lesotho Defense Force
     (LDF) troops. From the air, they opened fire on
     the sleeping soldiers. South African special
     forces troops were then landed and massacred any
     LDF man they could find alive. The only dispute,
     especially in the highland villages near the
     dam, is the numbers killed. Some say 16, which
     is the official figure; others say 27. A serving
     South African officer, on condition of
     anonymity, maintained that "a certain captain"
     had perhaps been "rather over zealous" in
     securing the Katse dam. But he insisted that the
     context should be understood. When the South
     African troops entered Lesotho, they were aware
     that some opposition politicians had threatened
     to blow up the dam and there was a real fear
     that troops at the dam might damage the
     installation... The anger apparently triggered
     the rioting, directed initially at the many
     South African businesses in Maseru, but which
     soon spread to all foreign businesses. Once the
     rioting started, indiscriminate looting began
     and spread rapidly. "Nobody stopped them. South
     African soldiers just laughed and Basotho
     soldiers were looting too," said an Indian
     shopkeeper whose store was burned to the ground
     and who now works as a casual shop assistant.
     "They brought trucks and took away furniture on
     the top of cars." In the aftermath, Lesotho has
     had to deal with the loss of as many as 20,000
     jobs in central Maseru and a massive dent in
     already badly battered investor confidence. It
     also faces ongoing bickering among the three
     major and nine minor political parties,
     widespread disillusionment with the entire
     political process and considerable anger and
     resentment about the events of recent months.
     All in all, an extremely volatile mix. But the
     water has begun to flow to South Africa from the
     multi-billion rand investment in the mountains
     and millions in royalties have begun to flow
     into the coffers of Lesotho. Given that the
     financial stakes are so high and the local
     political fabric so fragile, Pax South Africanus
     seems here to stay.

...

> CB: I don't trust your loyalty to and concern for the best interests of  the 
> masses
>of South Africans more than the ANC.

Comrade Charles, Russell and I have lots and lots of disagreements
(and he's a white male), but I'd put his orientation and commitment
to the black working class way way higher than those of the main ANC
leaders. Right now, the conservative core dozen ANC leaders ARE the
ANC for all effective purposes, as much as heroic comrades in the
ANC, SACP and Cosatu still fight for a bit of space.

*************

CB: This is a bit of circularity here. The question in dispute is whether the 
more
radical policies that Russell advocates would result in somekind of hit on South
Africa by the combined forces, military and economic , of imperialism and the
remaining apartheid forces, such that the conservatism of the ANC core is in 
the best
interest of the population at this time, despite the fact that it is a 
capitulation to
imperialism , and results in many capitalist and not social democratic programs 
on the
ground in S. Africa now.  Given the heroism of the ANC in apartheid, it is not
unsensible for me to be skeptical that the ANC leaders have just turned bad. I 
have no
information on Russell comparable with that I have on the ANC.  Frankly , there 
is
such a thing as being overly revolutionary, and theoretically radical , but not 
as on
as one thinks, so on balance, right now , I don't trust Russell more than the 
ANC,
despite their conservative policies.


Thanks for below.

Comradely,

CB

************
More on South African subimperialism in a forthcoming Socialist
Register chapter (intro section here):

***

              The Production, Reproduction and Politics
                of the Southern African Working Class:

                   Regional Class Power and Strategy
                    during Sustained Economic Crisis

      by Patrick Bond, Darlene Miller and Greg Ruiters
                      Presented to the conference
             "The Global Working Class at the Millennium"
                   York University, Toronto, Canada
                            15 January 2000