The ANC has always claimed to be oriented towards non-racialism but under the current leadership the opposite appears increasingly to be true. All the gains made by Nelson Mandela since the liberation in building an inclusive and non-racial society are being reversed in populist pursuits for the preservation of the ANC’s political hegemony.
In 1996 when Louis Farrakhan was visiting South Africa, Nelson Mandela said to him: “In the 1950s, one of the principles we established was non-racialism. We have defended that policy without fear, and have now triumphed and are building a non-racial society in this country. Our basic objectives are to address the demands of the black majority, which have been disadvantaged … but in carrying out this mandate, we will make sure we do not do anything which could be seen as reverse racism.”
We all vividly remember the words of Mandela in 1964 during the Rivonia Trial, when facing charges of treason and possible death. He said: “During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons will live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for. But, my lord, if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”
There can be no doubt that Mandela — after spending many years in incarceration — demonstrated his commitment to realising the very ideals that he was banished to Robben Island for. Nelson Mandela knew that transitioning into a democratic dispensation, burdened by personal grudges and suffering under the repressive white regime would sabotage concerted attempts to building this democratic and free society in which we all live together in harmony. A large number of men and women committed to building this non-racial society have made great strides to accommodate their fellow white compatriots, in order that all can join hands and together define the future as it is should be.
It is therefore disconcerting that in 2008 when progress has been made towards the realisation of ideals of Mandela, we have leaders within the ANC who are determined to dividing society along racial lines and create animosity towards other racial groups. The ANC secretary general, Gwede Mantashe, during his campaign in East London on December 7 2008 said:
“Counter-revolutionary forces have been saying that the ANC is just too strong and the ANC must be divided, weakened and defeated. But they forget a long time ago that the opposition parties and the Afrikaners had never had the capacity to destroy the ANC and they never will … They have been hunting for people they can use inside the ANC, its alliances and the broad democratic movement, people who would divide this movement … Now volunteers must go to the people and tell them that the enemy of our people, the enemy of the freedom we fought for have now found the gang of three (Shilowa, Lekota and George). That gang of three has been given a task. You see when you give people a sum of money they can do anything you tell them.”
When accusing the founding members of the Congress of the People (Cope), Mantashe proceeds in accusing Afrikaners of being enemies of the people. Mantashe is deliberately arousing historical animosity between black people and the Afrikaner community in order to mobilise the desperate and poor masses against Cope. By labelling Cope as an agent of Afrikaners, Mantashe attempts to pit whites against blacks, saying all those people are against you. To call whites counter-revolutionaries, the ANC believes our fellow compatriots are determined to destroy our country, an allegation that is a blatant insult to every white person in this country.
Jacob Zuma had been going around visiting poor white communities with the media entourage; an act, which clearly is nothing out of genuine concern for the plight of these poor white communities but the desperation to win their votes.
Mantashe has revealed the true colours of the ANC and their disregard of white people as sharing the same love for this country as any other black person who fought against apartheid. The politics of the old that are characterised by colour will not propel our beloved country forward.
The days when we judged one another by colour and not the content of character are over. Cope ushers a new era where all South Africans, black and white, would express their inalienable and democratic rights without fear and victimisation. With Cope, ours is a commitment to building a truly multicultural and non-racial society — a commitment that is shared by all members and supporters and reflecting through the participation of people from all backgrounds in all the structures of the movement.
“We have triumphed in the effort to implant hope in the breasts of the millions of our people. We enter into a covenant that we shall build the society in which all South Africans, both black and white, will be able to walk tall, without any fear in their hearts, assured of their inalienable right to human dignity — a rainbow nation at peace with itself and the world,” Nelson Mandela said.
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