Contemporary Left Politics in South Africa: the Case of the Tri- Partite Alliance in the Eastern Cape
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Contemporary Left Politics in South Africa: The Case of the Tri- partite Alliance in the Eastern Cape Thesis submitted in the fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTERS OF ARTS SOCIOLOGY Of RHODES UNIVERSITY By SIV HELEN HESJEDAL November 2009 Abstract This thesis aims to make sense of Left politics in South Africa within the Tri-partite Alliance between the ANC, SACP and COSATU. The thesis focuses on developments in the Eastern Cape, between 2000 and 2008. The thesis describes the prevalent forms of Left politics in the Eastern Cape and the tendencies in the Alliance that organise this Left. The thesis also examines the historical, social and political conditions and that shape the form and content of Left politics in the province. Based on a survey of literature on what is considered the core manifestations of Left politics globally in the 20th Century Left politics is defined as the elements of the political spectrum that are concerned with the progressive resolution of involuntary disadvantage and with a goal of abolishing class society and capitalism. Although the Alliance as a whole should be seen to be on the Left on an international political spectrum, this thesis argues that the Left/Right dichotomy is useful for understanding the politics of the Alliance, as long as the second part of this definition is taken into consideration. The Alliance Left is understood as those leaders and activists within the Alliance that have the SACP and Cosatu as their operating base. It will be argued that this Left is, in its practice, largely concerned with what insiders refer to as politics of „influence‟, rather than with politics of „structural transformation‟. It is the ANC that is the leader of the Alliance and the party in government and thus it is on the terrain of ANC strategy, policy and positions that contestation in the Alliance plays itself out. Thus, for the Left, there is strength in the idea of the Alliance. However, there are significant theoretical and political weaknesses in the Left that undermine the possibility of making good use of various corporatist platforms to pursue the agenda of the Left in the Eastern Cape. There is also increased contestation within the Alliance Left itself about the continued usefulness of this strategy. ii Acknowledgements I would firstly like to thank the many comrades and activists that gave of their time and experience in conversations, interviews, in looking for information in archives and let me into their confidence about their own and their organisation‟s political practice, both in the research for this study and the now close to six years I have spent in South Africa. Thanks to Prof. J. O. Adesina, my supervisor, for his direction, for pushing me to do my best and not stoping at accepting other people‟s ideas and interpretations. My family and friends also deserves thanks for their patience and support. A special thanks to my partner, Brian Ramadiro, for his never ending ideas, questions and encouragement over the period I have worked on this thesis. Ungifakela ugqosi. iii Table of Contents Abstract ...................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................. iii List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................. viii List of Tables ............................................................................................................................. x Chapter 1: Introduction .............................................................................................................. 1 1.1 Background and context to the study .......................................................................... 1 1.2 Changing policy trajectory and inter-Alliance contestation ........................................ 3 1.3 Studying the Eastern Cape .......................................................................................... 6 1.4 Objectives of the study ................................................................................................ 9 1.5 Approach to the study ............................................................................................... 10 1.6 Structure of the thesis ................................................................................................ 11 Chapter 2: International Left Politics in the 20th Century ........................................................ 12 2.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 12 2.2. Marxism, Socialism and Communism ...................................................................... 13 2.2.1. Marxism, Class and Social Change ................................................................... 13 2.2.2 Leninism and Stalinism...................................................................................... 16 2.3. Social Democracy ..................................................................................................... 18 2.3.1. Social Democracy Takes Root ........................................................................... 18 2.3.2. Welfare States and Keynesian Economic Policy ............................................... 20 2.4. Anti-colonial and National Liberation Movements .................................................. 22 2.4.1. African Nationalism and National Liberation.................................................... 23 2.4.2. Marxism, Class and National Liberation in Africa ............................................ 25 2.5. Left Politics after the Cold War ................................................................................ 28 2.5.1. The Global Social Justice Movement and the World Social Forum .................. 28 2.5.2. The „Pink Tide‟ in Latin America ...................................................................... 29 2.6. Conclusion: Defining Left Politics ............................................................................ 30 Chapter 3: Methodology and Fieldwork .................................................................................. 34 3.1 Qualitative Research ................................................................................................. 34 iv 3.2 Fieldwork in practice: Preliminary research and „snowballing‟ .................................. between 2005 and 2008 ............................................................................................. 35 3.3 Research methods: in-depth interviews and content analysis of primary documents 37 3.3.1 In-depth interviews ............................................................................................ 37 3.3.1.1 The Interview Sample ........................................................................................ 38 3.3.1.2 The Interview Guide .......................................................................................... 39 3.3.2 Content analysis of primary documents ............................................................. 40 3.3.2.1 Selection of documents ...................................................................................... 40 3.3.2.2 Approaches to content analysis .......................................................................... 41 3.4 Data analysis ............................................................................................................. 43 3.5 Conclusion: Reflections on fieldwork and limitations of the study .......................... 44 Chapter 4: A Brief History of ANC, SACP and Cosatu politics in South Africa. .................. 46 4.1 Introduction ............................................................................................................... 46 4.2 The early politics of class and the formation of the Communist Party of .................... South Africa (CPSA) ................................................................................................. 46 4.3 Influence of the Comintern and the Native Republic thesis...................................... 47 4.4 Early Black resistance and the birth of the SANNC ................................................. 48 4.5 ANC turn to the masses and closer collaboration with the CPSA ............................ 51 4.6 The Congress of the People and the Freedom Charter .............................................. 52 4.7 Trade unionism and mass struggles. ......................................................................... 54 4.8 Consolidating the theory of national liberation ......................................................... 55 4.9 Increased worker militancy in the 1970s, and the 1976 Soweto revolt..................... 58 4.10 Resurgence of mass politics in the 1980s.................................................................. 60 4.11 Negotiations and the formalisation of the ANC, SACP and COSATU Alliance ..... 62 4.12 Conclusion: Multi-class alliances and post 1994 contestation .................................. 65 Chapter 5: Left politics in the Eastern Cape 1994-2008 ......................................................... 71 5.1. Introduction ............................................................................................................... 71 5.2. The Tri-partite Alliance ............................................................................................