28 July 2011
Message of greeting to the fraternal SACP on its 90th Anniversary
Dear Comrades,
On the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the foundation of the fraternal South African Communist Party, we convey to you the wholehearted greetings of Iraqi Communists, wishing you further successes along the glorious path of struggle charted by SACP since its foundation on 31 July 1921.
On this occasion, which is cherished by progressives all over the world, we recall the vanguard role of your party in the national liberation struggle and its consistent fight against the hated regime of apartheid, culminated with victory in 1994. The SACP`s role was enormous and indispensable in developing the strategy of this struggle, building the African National Congress as the leading formation of the national liberation movement, and preserving and enhancing its unity. In this context, the contribution of South African Communists in the people`s army, uMkhonto we Sizwe, is recalled with great pride. The SACP has also provided an inspiring example since the democratic breakthrough of 1994 in relentlessly waging mass campaigns to defend the democratic rights and freedoms, and trade union rights, of workers and the poor in South Africa.
We salute and honor the memory of the many heroic comrades of SACP, and its successive prominent leaders, who devoted and sacrificed their lives to consolidate the party, enhance its status in the hearts and minds of millions of South Africans, and achieve its noble objective in building a free, democratic and non-racial South Africa, as an essential step towards a more humane alternative, a socialist South Africa.
We seize this opportunity to recall with pride the internationalist ties and relationship between our two parties that extend several decades back, when both our parties were fighting against tyranny and bloody repression. In this respect, Iraqi Communists will never forget the internationalist support and solidarity they received from SACP comrades and outstanding leaders, including the late Cde Yousuf Dadoo and Cde Joe Slovo, against the fascist repression under Saddam`s dictatorship, even while SACP was fully immersed in the difficult struggle against apartheid. This special relationship has continued during the since the overthrow of apartheid, and we shall continue to consolidate bilateral relations in the joint struggle for peace, democracy, and social progress, and to build a better world, free of exploitation, dependence, oppression, poverty, hunger and social and economic backwardness.
Once again, we send our warmest comradely greetings to all your comrades on the 90th Anniversary, and reiterate our firm support and solidarity with your heroic struggle.
The Central Committee
Iraqi Communist Party