The SACP has expressed concern over what it terms the “rise of populism and identity politics globally” characterised by race and ethnic politics, which it believes is represented by the MK Party in the South African context.
This is contained in the SACP ‘s discussion documents ahead of the party’s special national congress billed for December 11.
According to the documents, the SACP locates the MKP at the centre of this phenomenon, which it says threatens nation-building. The national-building, it says, is among the fundamental values of the so-called national democratic revolution of the ANC-led alliance.
The SACP believes the electoral results of the May 29 elections support its characterisation of the MKP.
The party contends that the MKP’s near-annihilation of the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), a province primarily inhabited by AmaZulu, the ethnic group from which MKP leader Jacob Zuma derives his ethnic identity, was no coincidence.
“There was a major swing from the ANC to the MKP, mainly among isiZulu speakers, mainly in KZN.
“The ANC won in only two of the 44 regions: Greater Kokstad and uMzimkhulu. Interestingly, these regions have significant numbers of Xhosa residents,” reads the document.
“The new feature of these elections is the role that ethnic identity played in the voting for the MKP.
“While the main reason for the ANC’s dismal performance was its own failures, ethnic populism was a key reason for MKP’s support,” reads the document.
“MKP also won some support among non-Zulus, mostly in Gauteng and Mpumalanga, but here too it was mostly supported [by] Zulus.”
The SACP is also convinced that the ethnicity that it believes defines MKP will extend to Cosatu and SACP and ultimately destroy the entire tripartite alliance in the province.
“The MKP is working towards forming a trade union federation. This may undermine not just Cosatu but the SACP and ANC too, particularly in KZN. Most members of Cosatu unions in KZN voted for the MKP. Some SACP members, mainly in KZN, also voted for the MKP,” the document says.
The SACP insists that it remains opposed to the inclusion of MKP in the GNU because Zuma’s party, in their view, is home to forces of the state capture phenomenon. This while they also continue opposing the “neo-liberal” DA. “The SACP’s position is neither neo-liberalism nor state capture ‘and opposes any coalition that includes the DA or MKP.”
On the question of the rise of ethnic politics, the SACP noted, “It may be of relevance too that the highest percentage of provincial votes for the ANC came from Limpopo, where Cde [Cyril] Ramaphosa has some ethnic resonance [though Limpopo is multi-ethnic].”
The communists have laid out a plan of action to nip in the bud this ethnic populism phenomenon and set the country back on the course of non-racialism and nation-building. Among other moves, the SACP will embark on building a powerful socialist movement of the workers and poor because it believes that it is under conditions of extreme social inequities that ethnic, regional, and racial identities most surface.
The establishment of a social movement for the workers and the poor, in their view, will reduce at least some of our economic and social polarisation that brings about ethnic mobilisation and voting along ethnic and racial lines.
“By bringing together people across the ethnic divides and fostering a class consciousness and greater solidarity among the poor through action, we can reduce ethnic divides.
“The same approach, more challenging though it is, can be used to bridge gaps between workers and the poor across the racial divides.”
The SACP said it was also a cause for concern that South African voters in the previous polls mainly voted along racial lines.
“Africans voted for ANC, MKP and EFF. Whites, Indians, and ‘coloureds’ voted for the DA.. The voting reveals the consistent overall racial divisions in voting patterns.
“Given the increasing significance of ethnic and racial identities, we need to consider campaigning for greater expression of African culture and customs in the state, the Constitution, and society in ways that enhance our democracy, deepen non-racialism, and advance nation building, not divide us and undermine democracy.”
