Talking with the ANC ...

Description

This publication provides essential information on a question which is currently exercising many concerned South Africans — the question of whether or not negotiations should be conducted with the ANC. The South African Government's position in this regard was clearly stated by State President P W Botha in Parliament on 15 May 1986: "As far as the Government is concerned it remains adamant that it is prepared to negotiate with citizens of South Africa, provided that they do not resort to violence as a means of attaining their political and other goals, or call in foreign agencies to support them... "Negotiation of necessity implies that participants should accept that not all their requirements are likely to be met; it implies a willingness to listen, to discuss and seek solutions. But these solutions will result from deliberations by South Africans in the interest of South Africans. "Essentially it is a process of give and take during which people are required, on the one hand, to scale down their demands and, on the other, to be lenient when required to make concessions to satisfy reason- able demands". The question is whether the ANC can comply with these reasonable requirements. This publication is based primarily on the ANC's and the South African Communist Party's (SACP) own statements and documents and presents a strong case that; • the ANC has a formal alliance with the SACP and both are committed to the violent overthrow of the present system of government for the purpose of seizing total power for itself; • there are elements in the ANC who view negotiations simply as a tactic to assist it in its endeavours to seize power by violent means and not as a means to share power by way of constitutional compromise; • there are influential elements in the ANG who play a leading role in a two-phase process of revolution which has as its objective the establishment of a com- munist state; • thecommonly applied two-phase theory of revolution has been irnplernented successfully in a number of countries. III-informed non-communists are recruited into "broad national fronts" during the first phase of the revolution to help achieve "national liberation" but are then dispensed with during the second phase; • the SACP. although it acknowledges the ANC's role during the first phase of the revolution, has broad influence within the ANC and will, as the "vanguard party" of the workers, seek to assume leadership during the second phase of the revolution; • the ANC indentifies closely with the objectives of global socialism, with the Soviet Union and its allies. It identifies itself with international terrorist organisations such as the PLO. Furthermore, the ANC strongly opposes the United States and the West. In this publication the ANC,'SACP speak for themselves. Not only South Africans, but all reasonable people would be foolish to ignore the unambiguous statements of these organisations. PRETORIA JUNE 1986