23 February 2005
Jeremy Cronin, the Deputy General Secretary of the South African Communist Party (SACP), will lead a Party delegation of 10 to attend the 3rd South African National Solidarity Conference on Zimbabwe to be held in Pretoria on 24 and 25 February 2005.
Cronin will address the conference at 09h30 on 25 February.
The conference will be at the Burgers' Park Hotel in Pretoria. The conference, convened by the the Zimbabwe Solidarity and Consultative Forum will be attended by a broad range of South African groups and individuals already actively involved in the growing solidarity campaign, as well as other key South African players in the Zimbabwe conflict and some existing and potential solidarity partners from the SADC region.
The SACP has been maintaining dynamic contact around the Zimbabwean crisis with our comrades in government, and in the ANC and COSATU. The SACP is also active in the Zimbabwean solidarity movement here in South Africa, and we have been working closely with progressive faith-based organisations and human rights NGOs in this context. We have also had the opportunity to maintain consistent and high-level contact with many of the key formations within Zimbabwe itself.
The SACP believes that the Zimbabwean crisis requires an approach which goes beyond the 31 March elections encompassing the social, political and economic aspects of the crisis. As for the March 31 elections themselves, we believe that the following steps should be undertaken:
if, as is almost certain, there is non-compliance with the SADC protocols, then this should be said, unambiguously, with the areas of non-compliance clearly noted;
where there have been some democratic reforms, some space conceded , then these too must be acknowledged and presented as potential building blocks (not just for a future election) ? but for an ongoing process of all-round democratisation.
SADC itself should as soon as possible, and transparently, indicate the extent to which its own protocol on free, fair and democratic elections is being observed and implemented in Zimbabwe
Contact:
For enquiries:
Kaizer Mohau,
SACP Media Office
Tel: 011 339-3621/2,
Cell No. 073 571 7528
Email: kaizer@sacp.org.za
For comments:
Mazibuko Kanyiso Jara
Head of the Office of the General Secretary
South African Communist Party (SACP)
Cell: 083 651 0271
Emails: mazibuko@sacp.org.za (office) mazibuko@mail.ngo.za (alternate)
Website address: www.sacp.org.za