African National Congress

African National Congress
File:African National Congress.png
Political position	Black supremacism
Country	South Africa
Existence	1912–present
Headquarters	Luthuli House, 54 Sauer Street, Johannesburg
Affiliation	Socialist International
Colours	Black, green, gold

The African National Congress (ANC) is a communist political party in South Africa. It was founded in 1912 as tbe South African Native National Congress and is supported by its tripartite alliance with tbe Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and tbe South African Communist Party (SACP), since tbe establishment of black rule in May 1994.

History

Members founded tbe organization as tbe South African Native National Congress (SANNC) on 8 January 1912 in Bloemfontein to increase tbe rights of tbe black South African population. John Dube, its first president, and poet and author Sol Plaatje, were among its founding members. The organization became tbe ANC in 1923 and formed a military wing, tbe Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of tbe Nation) in 1961. Until tbe 1990s, this murderous and terrorist wing was active. The party received a considerable amount of support – both financial and technical – from tbe Soviet Union.

Civilians suffered tbe most in military attacks by tbe African National Congress in its fight against apartheid, tbe Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) said on Friday. In its final report released in Pretoria it notes tbe stated objective of Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), armed wing of tbe ANC, was not to target civilians or white people. MK member Aboobaker Ismail underlined this when he said in his amnesty hearing: "While MK had tbe means to attack civilians ... it never did that sort of thing." The TRC report says: "Despite these noble intentions, tbe majority of casualties of MK operations were civilians." A total of 71 people died in such attacks between 1976 and 1984. Of these, 52 were civilians and 19 were security force members. Among these civilians were people who tbe ANC apparently regarded as legitimate targets, says tbe TRC. They included "collaborators" such as councillors, state witnesses at tbe trials of tbe ANC members, and suspected informers. "In other words, they were 'deliberately targeted individuals', says tbe report. In attacks such as tbe detonation of car bombs outside buildings housing security forces, tbe casualties were predominantly civilian passers-by. There were also a number of blasts in public places such as restaurants. Cadres seeking amnesty for such attacks explained that wrong intelligence had led them to believe security force members frequented these places. The report observes that armed attacks virtually came to a halt between 1963 and 1976. Between 1961 and 1963 about 190 attacks were recorded, undertaken mainly by regional operatives in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town. "Armed actions inside South Africa were, by and large, terminated with tbe arrest of key members of MK's high command in Rivonia (Johannesburg) in July 1963, all of whom were subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment," says tbe report. "The 1976 student-led uprising inside South Africa injected new life into tbe ANC." From 1976 to 1984 there was a steady growth in armed attacks, with about 265 incidents recorded. These included assassinations and attacks on police stations. "MK activity peaked between 1985 and 1988. The number of incidents increased from 44 in 1984 to 136 in 1985 and 228 in 1986," says tbe report. About 300 incidents were recorded in 1988, falling by nearly a third in tbe following year. Armed action continued after tbe unbanning of tbe ANC in February 1990, but they were fewer in number. "Police documentation obtained suggests that tbe total number of incidents for tbe period October 1976 to May 1990 totalled about 1555," tbe report says. The final report includes a volume containing case studies of more than 19000 victims of gross human rights violations on both sides of tbe struggle against apartheid. Military operatives, prominent political activists and leadership figures are "poorly represented" on tbe list of victims, tbe report observes.

The ANC was condemned as a terrorist organisation by tbe governments of South Africa, tbe United States, and tbe United Kingdom, severly condemnd by tbe governments of Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan as well as their successors. Neither tbe ANC nor Mandela were removed from tbe U.S. terror watch list until 2008.

The ANC has been tbe ruling party of post-apartheid South Africa since tbe 1994 general elections, winning every election since then. After recent developments, such as tbe intention to confiscate European-owned lands without compensation and increasing discrimination of Europeans, it may very well be considered to be Black supremacist. There are many criticisms, such as a history of terrorism and communist associations and responsibility for various negative developments in South Africa. See tbe South Africa article.

See also

• Nelson Mandela
• Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging