ANC STATEMENT ON MAZIBUYE AFRICAN FORUM
21 June 2013
The African National Congress (ANC) in KwaZulu-Natal has met with a group calling itself Mazibuye African Forum which has been in the media in the past few months.
It has been widely reported that Mazibuye African Forum wants Indians in KwaZulu-Natal to lose their Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) status and Affirmative Action status as it argues that they are not African.
The purpose of our meeting with Mazibuye African Forum was to clarify that the ANC is not anti-Indian and it is not associated with the forum's campaign against Indians. We would also like to make it abundantly clear that any member of the ANC who subscribes to the views of Mazibuye African Forum is defining himself or herself outside the constitution and policy position of the ANC.
The ANC has also noted the distortion and one-sided reporting on the meeting we had with the forum. The ANC rejects with contempt the attempts to distort the purpose and the outcomes of our meetings. The meeting was requested by the ANC to ask the forum to refrain from associating themselves with the ANC because their comments are too toxic and anti-Indian. This is in sharp contrast with the ANC policies.
We want to stress that the workshop the ANC recently held in Chatsworth with a focus on Indians, Whites and Coloureds was not convened because there was a complaint. The workshop was part of the ANC programme to engage these communities on a wide range of issues.
The ANC stands by the statement made by our Chairperson of the province, Cde Senzo Mchunu that the forum is not part of the ANC. We want to clarify this and dispel the distortion of facts peddled by certain individuals within the forum who are creating confusion within our organisation.
The ANC wants to make it clear that the campaign against Indians is nothing but a divisive and chauvinistic approach that could end up pitting our people against each other. As the ANC we invoke the spirit of the Freedom Charter which says that South Africa belongs to all who live in it. We distance ourselves from this campaign and we will not tolerate the use of the name of our movement to further the objectives that are detrimental to the unity of the people of South Africa.
The ANC meeting with the forum has agreed to constitute a team of four comrades to prepare for a broader meeting in order to listen to their concerns and provide them with tangible progress that has been made since 1994 in terms of uplifting the Africans in particular and Blacks in general.
We assured them that as the ANC we are totally in disagreement with their approach on the matter, but in a democratic country we are prepared to engage with them on any matter. We have agreed to convene another meeting in the next three weeks.
The ANC is a non-sexist, non-racial, democratic liberation movement pursuing the National Democratic Revolution with an objective of liberating Africans in particular and Blacks in general from the imbalances of the past. We are not a group of misguided opportunists who are driven by hatred and narrow personal interests.
The distortion that suggests that Africans will be the sole beneficiaries after 2030 is hypocrisy of the worst kind. We believe this is unfortunate. Ignoring the immense contribution of other races to our freedom should be rejected.
We understand the triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality in this country but to target one race in our society as the source of these challenges is devoid of truth and objective analysis. We urge people of this country, black and white, to unite in the fight for a better life for all.
Statement issued by Senzo Mkhize, ANC KZN Spokesperson, June 21 2013
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