UPND plans to block Monde at Parliament
By Kombe Chimpinde
Tue 26 Feb. 2013, 14:00 CAT
OPPOSITION UPND is planning to prevent its expelled Itezi-Tezhi member of parliament Greyford Monde, from entering Parliament today. UPND deputy spokesperson Cornelius Mweetwa yesterday said his party was not expecting Monde to be anywhere near the Parliament buildings today.
According to some UPND members of parliament, some members had been delegated by the party to make sure Monde does not enter the House.
And Mweetwa said the party had written to the Speaker of National Assembly Dr Patrick Matibini concerning Monde's expulsion and that they were expecting him to declare Monde's seat vacant yesterday.
And Monde said he received his expulsion yesterday around 10:00 hours and that he would wait for official communication from the Speaker on the matter.
Monde was suspended and eventually expelled by the party days after President Michael Sata appointed him deputy agriculture minister.
Mweetwa, who described Monde as shameless and myopic, warned that Monde would receive political baptism for electing impunity against the party.
"That will make him grow as a young politician. I think self recommendation, evaluation and elevation should be discouraged," Mweetwa said.
"We are wondering what he means when he says he would rather lose a seat than be an ineffective member of parliament. First of all, to draw a parallel of what he has said, we as UPND would rather lose a seat of parliament than have an undisciplined member of parliament who does not know why he was voted to go to Parliament."
Mweetwa said he expected all members in UPND to know that it was time for the party to be in the opposition and not to serve in government.
"We expect that our members of parliament are well informed to know that this is PF's time to be the ruling party and this is UPND's time to be in the opposition to provide credible checks and balances. So each of us should respect this mandate and responsibility placed upon. If you are in opposition, you have to hold the ruling party to account on its promise in the manifesto and rule of law. This is our job," he said.
"Those who were in PF, who thought they were bigger and cleverer than the party, and decided to take a position different from the party… all those people today are wishing they did not do that. Some of them could have been ministers. I think every day they wake up, they reminisce over their wrong decisions and regret."
Mweetwa said Monde lacked knowledge of his role as a member of parliament in a democratic dispensation.
"The idea behind democracy is we should not sing one song. To have a figmentation in one's mind that you can only serve at the level of minister or deputy minister is myopic and shameful," he said.
Mweetwa also accused Monde of compromising some district and council officials to defect to the PF with him.
"Like those who are supporting him in Itezhi-Tezhi. We don't know, maybe he has bought them bags of fertiliser or seed or even a cow. That is expected," said Mweetwa.
Labels: CORNELIUS MWEETWA, DEMONSTRATION, GREYFORD MONDE, UPND
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UPND rally order wasn't served properly - Malila
By Kombe Chimpinde, Mwala Kalaluka and Allan Mulenga
Tue 11 Sep. 2012, 10:30 CAT
ATTONEY General Mumba Malila yesterday explained that he could not sign and advise police on the ex-parte order granted by the High Court for the UPND to hold its rally in Lusaka because it was dropped at his house in the night.
But Law Association of Zambia president James Banda said LAZ was deeply concerned that acts of intolerance and similar documented actions of arbitrariness on the part of the police, about which the lawyers' body had commented in the recent past, had continued unabated by the PF government.
However information minister Kennedy Sakeni said police were professional and well organised in the manner they treated the UPND issue.
On Sunday, police sealed off the venue of the UPND rally in Lusaka's Kanyama Compound and sent away party officials that were supposed to address it.
This was despite a High Court order asking police to allow UPND to hold a rally.
Police explained that they had not been availed the court order.
In an interview, Malila said claims that he had signed for the order, delivered by the High Court on September 7 was a 'blue lie'.
"They obtained an ex parte order, meaning they went to court without us on Friday, September 7. When they (police) called and told me about that, I said I have not been with the order service. I am therefore not in a position advise you," he said.
"The Attorney General is a party to the proceedings, so the normal thing they (UPND) would have done is to come and serve the order on the Attorney General as soon as the order was made."
Malila said UPND had failed to serve him with the order on both Friday and Saturday on time, as advised, and only served him with the same on Saturday night at around 21:00 hours after they erroneously sent the same to police.
"The following day on Saturday, somebody dropped a copy at the Zambia Police Service and the police were not party to the action," Malila said.
"They were not cited as a party and so the police obviously couldn't do anything. They said 'this belongs to the Attorney General and therefore, we are not in a position to do anything. Serve it on the Attorney General'."
Malila said it was unfair for UPND to expect him to start advising the Inspector General of Police regarding the order at 21:00 hours.
"I came to the office, worked and went away on Saturday and after I left, that is when someone from the UPND called me and said 'we are trying to find you to give you a copy of the order'. I said well, but you know where to serve, so you come to the office," he explained.
He said the UPND officials didn't meet him until he left the office.
"Then in the night around 21:30, they came to my house when I was not at home at the time. They left this court order and asked my son to sign for it," he explained.
"So now in those circumstances, what am I expected to do? Take the order and start waking up the Inspector General of Police… Come I want to advise you? When the police had already made arrangements to ensure law and order is observed?"
Malila said he however could not speak on the conduct of the police as it was beyond his jurisdiction.
"I cannot of course speak on behalf of the police on how best they should preserve law and order, they themselves know how to do it but I never advised them at all because I got the order very late in the night," said Malila.
And Banda questioned why the government always remained mute in the midst of strong public comments against growing lack of professionalism and intolerance exhibited by the police.
Banda said government should not bless and keep the senior police officers that disobeyed a court order in their blocking of the rally.
"It is public knowledge that in a bid to proceed with the rally, UPND had recourse to the High Court for Zambia and were granted an order directing that they should proceed with the planned rally. Unfortunately, the police in their acts of intolerance and in clear breach of the law elected to block the holding of this rally by UPND notwithstanding the UPND availing them the order," he said.
"One cannot help but conclude that these actions on the part of the police are undertaken with instructions of the executive. This is particularly so because, while other organisations have made strong comments on such police actions in the past, the executive has always remained mute in the face of glaring lack of professionalism exhibited by the police."
Banda said the right to freedom of assembly and freedom of association were inalienable and sacrosanct and that the same were guaranteed in the Bill of Rights as by the Constitution established.
Banda said on that basis, no person or government authority had the right to violate those constitutional rights of citizens, unless under compelling and clearly deserving circumstances.
"The position of LAZ is that the reported reasons advanced by the police that there would be no manpower to police the rally cannot, without violation of language, be considered good enough to stop a political party from holding a political rally. Strikingly, the same police who cited lack of manpower as the reason for cancellation managed to deploy officers to prevent the holding of the rally," Banda said. "The public may wish to be reminded that when a similar reason was advanced by police to deny citizens the right to hold a rally, the late Mr. Justice Peter Chitengi passed a High Court judgment which was well reasoned and which placed the law on police permits in its clear perspective."
Banda also stated that in its quest to block this planned rally, police were prepared to pour scorn on and frown in the face of a validly obtained court order giving the UPND permission to go ahead with the rally.
"LAZ wishes to give a timely reminder to the government, through the instrumentality of the Zambia Police Service, and to the citizenry in general that in a democratic dispensation such as the one Zambia ushered in, in 1991, we are all called upon to the legal duty to respect and implement decisions of the courts established to preside over the laws of our land," he said. "This is the hallmark of the rule of law and actions to the contrary are a rich recipe for unbridled anarchy, injustice and the break down in the rule of law because such actions greatly undermine the very laws which courts were established to foster and implement."
Banda pointed out that the police's acts of arbitrariness and disregards for legality in Kanyama deserved strong condemnation and LAZ called upon the executive to ensure that the institutions through which it had been elected to preside over national governance, operated in the most professional and generally acceptable standards of public expectations.
"It is our expectation that the executive will not bless the actions of the police by keeping the senior officers who disobeyed a court order and brought shame on the Zambia Police Service and indeed on the executive as a whole," Banda stated.
And the UPND says the process to seek legal redress over the police's cancellation of the rally had started.
And UPND chairperson for legal affairs Jack Mwiimbu said in an
interview from Mumbwa yesterday that their legal counsel Sakwiba Sikota was working on the papers.
Mwiimbu said the party was also not aware of any UPND cadres from Southern Province that were detained in Kafue after their buses which were believed to be heading to the Kanyama rally were impounded.
And Southern African Centre for Conflict Resolution and Disputes (SACCORD) executive director Oscar Tembo wondered why the police failed to effect an arrest on machete wielding PF cadres when they knew that it was offense to display dangerous weapons in public.
Tembo urged the police to put its house in order, saying that their conduct was unprofessional.
And Sakeni said: "Zambia Police Service is a well-organised and a disciplined security establishment, which follows the laws of the land to the letter. Thus, hate speech and isolated verbal attacks on the police command and the service in general is nothing but a worthless exercise."
He said that as a government fully supported the impartiality exhibited by police in the manner they handled the matter.
"The legal position regarding service of documents is well set out in the High Court Rules. Service of court documents is good service on the Attorney General if the document is left at the Attorney General's office," Sakeni said.
"However, although under the rules, service cannot be done on Sundays, Good Friday and Christmas day only, service of the document by leaving a copy at the office of the Attorney General on a Saturday afternoon or delivering a copy to the Attorney General's house after 21:00 hours on Saturday, is technically irregular. UPND should have endeavoured to serve the order on the Attorney General during working hours on a working day."
Sakeni said in any event, this being a judicial review, the police should have been made party to the action because they made the decision and the order was directed at staying their decision.
"On the face of it, the order does not say what the Attorney General who is the respondent should or should not do," said Sakeni.
The order stated: "IT is ordered that the application be allowed and the said applicant do have leave to apply for judicial review as aforesaid. The court further directs that all decisions, proceedings now being challenged, including the decision to cancel the rally of the 9th September, 2012, be stayed until after hearing of the motion for judicial review herein or until further order and that the said rally go ahead."
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, MUMBA MALILA, UPND
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Protest against Sata fails to take off in Mongu
By Allan Mulenga and Fridah Nkonde
Tue 17 July 2012, 11:00 CAT
THE planned peaceful protest among Mongu residents against President Michael Sata's remarks over the Litunga failed to take-off on Saturday after police intervened.
And Western Province police commissioner Fanwell Siandenge confirmed the cancellation of the protest because the protestors did not have a police permit. Sources disclosed that pockets of people from various towns in the province gathered at Shoprite as early as 07:00 hours to stage a peaceful protest.
The source said some of the people from Western Province were seemingly angered by President Sata's statement at State House that the Litunga, like any other chief, did not enough powers.
President Sata, in response to an opposition leader's remark that the government was planning to take away some of the Litunga's powers, said government had no intention of getting any of the traditional ruler's powers.
And Siandenge explained that protestors, who wanted to walk along Mongu road from Shoprite, were told to use the right forum when airing their grievances and not to take to the streets.
"We just got wind of it, then we called their leaders yesterday at the office where we had a very fruitful discussion with them. We advised the organisers of the same protest that it was not the right forum.
They should have informed us seven days before getting on to action. Demonstration against the head of state, it is not possible that as police we can grant it. But if they are aggrieved, we have the provincial administration. They can take their grievances to the two.
Then it is from there, that is when we can know the way forward… not to protest. They agreed to our advise so tomorrow today they are supposed to meet the provincial administration to hear their grievances," he said.
Siandenge explained that the police command in the province sought an audience with leaders of the planned protest.
¨They wanted to protest on Mongu Road from Shoprite, but when we called their leaders they all came to the police station. It was quite a big number that came to the police station. But they never protested. I just phoned them.
I have their numbers and then they came together with their youths at the police station. We had a Mr Sinonge and Muyangana Muyangana," he said.
Siandenge said the leaders of the protestors talked to those who wanted to demonstrate.
And Western Province minister John Kufuna allayed fears of insecurity in the area.
Kufuna said the situation in Western Province was peaceful, adding that he was not aware of any protest in the province against President Sata's statement over the Litunga.
"As far as I'm concerned, I did not see any protest in the province. I was at the office from morning up to very late in the afternoon and I did not see or hear anything," he said.
When asked whether he was aware about the Litunga's subjects had planned to match to the provincial offices on Monday (today) as a way of showing their displeasure about President Sata's remarks against their chief, Kufuna said he was not aware.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, LITUNGA, MICHAEL SATA, MONGU
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This means war: Unions vow to stop DA march on Cosatu
13 May 2012 04:06 - Nickolaus Bauer
Unions, the ANCYL and YCL have vowed to disrupt a DA-led march on Cosatu's headquarters, warning it will mark the beginning of "open class warfare".
Numsa's Irvin Jim addresses the media on Sunday, announcing the intention of Cosatu affiliates and the youth wings of the ANC and the SACP to stop a march on Cosatu's HQ by the DA this week.
The Democratic Alliance announced its intention to march on the labour federation’s headquarters in Johannesburg after party leader Helen Zille accused Cosatu of working against the interest of unemployed people in her Workers’ Day address on May 1.
But at a press conference in Johannesburg on Sunday, Cosatu affiliates and political youth bodies promised to put a stop to the DA’s march, which the party insists will go ahead on Tuesday regardless of any efforts sabotage its demonstration.
“The DA march marks the beginnings of an open class warfare that will characterise the South African political landscape,” said Irvin Jim, the general secretary of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa). “We welcome this provocation and will grab the opportunity to be frontal against white monopoly.”
Jim was speaking on behalf of a tacit coalition between Numsa, the South African Commercial Catering and Allied Workers Union (Saccawu), the Communication Workers Union (CWU), the ANC Youth League, the Young Communist League and the South African Students Congress (Sasco).
Following a meeting last week, the allies agreed to oppose the DA-led march, labelling it a “provocation” of the working class.
“This march is not for unemployed youths, it is a celebration of what it perceives as a victory over the popular forces of democracy in South Africa since 1994,” Jim said.
Bias against the unemployed
The DA is marching to protest against what it says is the labour federation’s bias against the unemployed and in favour of those who already have jobs, as well as to highlight its concerns with Cosatu’s opposition towards the introduction of the youth wage subsidy.
The opposition party claims the labour movement is “perpetuating unemployment” by denying young South Africans “a foot on the economic ladder”.
Negotiations over the subsidy have stalled at the National Economic Development Labour Council (Nedlac), the body facilitating policy discussions between government, labour, business and civil society.
The plan proposes a reduction in the cost of hiring and training inexperienced youth, with the government setting aside R9-billion for the initiative.
Jim said, however, that the DA’s push for the implementation of the subsidy was camoflaging its continued support for “white monopoly capital”.
‘Swimming in white capital’
“Those who own the economy have become arrogant,” he said.
“They dictate to the people whose labour has produced the wealth this economy, who they must be ruled by.”
Jim also said the DA represents a group of right-wingers, hellbent on “swimming in [the] capital” they gained during apartheid.
“We cannot allow the DA to mock us. Having plunged us into poverty, unemployment and extreme inequality; they now want to spit on the shield of the black and African working class,” Jim said.
Jim would not elaborate on how those opposing the DA march would prevent it from being going ahead, saying only that the opposition party would not be allowed to deliver any memorandum to a Cosatu official.
“The people who organise a march must be held responsible for what happens at that march. Comrade [Zwelinzima] Vavi can’t honour the DA by accepting any memorandum from them. They must hand it to the workers,” he said.
Neither would Jim comment on how many marchers are expected to oppose the DA demonstration: “Just know there will be more than DA.”
‘It’s going to happen’
Attempts to receive comment from Cosatu on the matter proved fruitless as the labour federation’s office bearers or spokespeople did not respond to requests for comment.
The DA’s national spokesperson, Mmusi Maimane, said Cosatu and its affiliates were “shying away from the real issues”.
“If they had a better economic plan for the future of this country they wouldn’t feel threatened by our march,” Maimane told the Mail & Guardian.
Accordingly, Maimane said the DA isn’t fazed by “intimidation tactics” and insisted the march would go ahead as planned. “We have the necessary approvals and have met all legal requirements. Rest assured: It’s going to happen.”
Labels: ANC, ANC YOUTH LEAGUE, COSATU, DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE (SOUTH AFRICA), DEMONSTRATION, HELEN ZILLE
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MMD women threaten to strip over de-registration
By Kombe Chimpinde, Allan Mulenga and Speedwell Mupuchi
Fri 16 Mar. 2012, 11:59 CAT
THE MMD Women's League has threatened to strip naked tomorrow in protest against the de-registration of their party. And Clement Andeleki has insisted that the de-registration of the MMD is not politically engineered.
But MMD national treasurer Mwansa Mbulakulima says that the MMD has documented evidence indicating that it has never defaulted on remitting its annual returns and change of office bearers' subscription.
And Brigadier General Godfrey Miyanda says President Michael Sata should dissolve Parliament and call for fresh general elections if the MMD remains de-registered.
Speaking at a briefing in Lusaka, an emotionally charged MMD women's affairs chairperson Catherine Namugala, who was flanked by several women clad in party regalia accused the PF of attempting to obliterate opposition political parties.
"We do not want our country to go back into a one-party state. We refuse that. We will not allow the country that belongs to our children, the future generations to go back to a one-party state," Namugala charged.
"We will not allow the Patriotic Front government to undermine our hard-earned democracy, to use state machinery to obliterate the opposition because we know the opposition is good for good governance."
Namugala said that the opposition MMD was needed to keep the PF government in check.
"And only a strong opposition can do that. The power that PF has assumed should not be used to obliterate the opposition, but to improve the livelihood of our people," Namugala said.
"We, therefore, call on our President to immediately reinstate the registration of MMD as a political party," she said.
And in an interview yesterday, Andeleki, who is Chief Registrar of Societies, said he would leave it to the Zambian people and the courts of law to judge him.
"I would leave that to the Zambia people. My job is to collect revenue on behalf of the Zambian government and what I have always said is that I would engage any erring society, asking for the said money to be paid. That is what I would do and I will continue to do that. That is exactly what I have done to the MMD, I am a revenue collector, I am a law enforcement officer," he said.
Andeleki urged the public to study what was contained in the Societies Act Chapter 119 of the Laws of Zambia.
"What I can say is that as Chief Registrar of Societies, the Act is very clear. You must look at the Act, the problem we have here in Zambia is that people debate things that they don't understand. They are accusing the President that he has directed me. If you are very keen journalist you will understand that I first wrote to the MMD and they wrote back to us," he said.
Andeleki said the MMD only paid for one branch out of 43 countrywide.
"I don't fight with them MMD, then I replied to our colleagues and I attached the documents because if somebody says we didn't receive you have to write back. I attached the bill to that gentleman. They have 43 registered, they have only been able to pay for one which is their headquarters," he said.
Andeleki said he would not want to been arguing with the MMD in the media, saying that if the party felt aggrieved it should seek legal recourse as provided for by the law.
"I would encourage them to seek the remedy of the law because we also have all the documents showing that the MMD is indebted and they have only been able to pay for one branch and have not paid for the other branches. The law requires that they should pay for particular branches," said Andeleki.
But Mbulakulima yesterday at a briefing at the party's secretariat challenged the Registrar of Societies to show the nation proof that it had failed to comply.
"We want to clarify the issue of payments so that we know who is telling the truth and put this matter to rest," said Mbulakulima as he handed receipts dating as far back as 1993 to 2012 to journalists.
"We have physical receipts here. We want to demonstrate that there has not been any default whatsoever by the party."
Mbulakulima who was flanked by election chairperson Gabriel Namulambe and party spokesperson Dora Siliya also assured members across the country to remain calm and that the party was intact.
And Namulambe said that Andeleki did not have the constitutional mandate to nullify parliamentary seats as earlier suggested.
And Siliya described Andeleki as a treacherous individual.
In a statement yesterday, Brig Gen Miyanda stated that the de-registration of MMD had raised constitutional and legal questions beyond the registrar's mandate.
He stated that although the Registrar of Societies had the discretion to de-register a political party and that he was within his jurisdiction to de-register the MMD if they have not been paying their due statutory fees, he does not agree that he had the power to nullify a parliamentary seat as he declared.
"...We believe that the Registrar has only succeeded in creating an undesirable constitutional crisis in a democratic state as Zambia. The crisis I see is that there may not be any by-elections to be held as several people have been suggesting. It seems that under the current Constitution (Articles 65 and 71) there are only three circumstances under which a by-election may be held, namely through the death of an elected member of parliament, through a resignation or when a member crosses the floor by joining a different party from the one that sponsored him or her or by an independent MP joining a political party," he stated.
"Apparently there is no provision for a by-election following de-registration, in which case we could have a constitutional crisis as the National Assembly is already elected and formed. The quorum of the National Assembly is one third of the total number of MPs. At the current count, the MMD holds slightly over one third of the elected MPs. Even if we include the eight nominated MPs, the scenario remains the same. It means that the National Assembly cannot hold any credible sessions and pass legislation in such a situation unless the PF is scheming to create a de facto one party system and their actions so far seem to confirm this."
Brig Gen Miyanda stated that Andeleki had already made his decision and the ball was squarely in the PF's court.
"If MMD remains de-registered, then the President must dissolve parliament and call for fresh presidential and parliamentary elections. But of what benefit will this be other than to satisfy the PF's desire to increase their numbers in Parliament?" he wondered.
Brig Gen Miyanda also wondered whether a mere department of government could have the power to abridge or take away guaranteed fundamental rights of assembly and association.
"In this case, there are no proper grounds for such a draconian step other than a failure to pay statutory fees. For example, could a limited company be de-listed for failing to pay tax? I urge the government to rescind this decision by the Registrar of Societies without waiting for an appeal. The Registrar has carried out his perceived mandate but the government must not pass the buck because of the serious constitutional issues that have arisen or will arise," stated Brig Gen Miyanda.
Labels: CATHERINE NAMUGALA, DEMONSTRATION, GABRIEL NAMULAMBE, GODFREY MIYANDA, MMD, MWANSA MBULAKULIMA
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Mazabuka realignment Demonstrations
By The Post
Thu 23 Feb. 2012, 12:00 CAT
IT is not right, and there is no need, for the police to stop demonstrations in Mazabuka against the removal of Chirundu and Itezhi-tezhi districts from Southern Province. And one doesn't need to belong to a registered organisation to enjoy freedom of expression, the right to protest government decisions or actions.
There is no need to cancel these demonstrations. Let them demonstrate and say all that they want to say. What the police need to do is simply police or manage the process so that it is peaceful and arrest those, and only those, who become violent and destructive. Cancelling demonstrations is not something that will lead to peace, law and order.
It is something that will lead to lawlessness and breakdown in order because those whose fundamental rights of freedom of expression have been violated should not be expected to react politely. You are taking away their fundamental rights, their humanity and you expect them to react politely.
When they explode, you want them to explode politely! Why? We can only say this is not the right way to deal with the Zambian of today - you are dealing with a wrong Zambian at the wrong time in the wrong way.
We maintain that freedom of expression is the mark of humanity. Freedom of expression is a precious thing, and the inalienable birthright of all who travel this earth. And freedom of expression doesn't exist so that we can freely praise and agree with our public officials, with our President. It exists so that we can freely criticise them, disagree with their decisions and actions.
Freedom of expression is about tolerance - to believe, speak, congregate and lobby as you see fit, while allowing others to do likewise, even people whose expressions you find abhorrent.
Tolerance for demonstrations, protests is the touchstone for democratic societies. Liberty of expression benefits more than the protestor, the demonstrator. We all suffer the violation of our liberties if they are denied the right to express themselves, to protest the President's realignment of some districts in Southern Province.
It seems our politicians and our police officers never learn that suppressing expression can be worse than the underlying conduct. In our popular discussions, unwise ideas must have a hearing as well as wise ones, dangerous ideas as well as safe, unpatriotic as well as patriotic. The need to protect what we detest is the reason freedom of the mind both exists and remains under siege. Liberty is one thing no person can have unless he grants it to others.
And we don't believe any tyrant, any totalitarian regime ever succeeded in imposing a moratorium on thought, on expression.
And men are never so likely to settle a question rightly as when they discuss it freely. It is easy to embrace freedom of expression for ideas we accept. But the essence of freedom of expression is that we must protect the ideas we hate, we disagree with.
The freedom of expression must be fought for and won over and over again. The first step in this battle is to understand the threats we face. It is the fervent of ideas, the clash of disagreeing judgments, the privilege of the individual to develop his own thought and shape his own character that makes progress possible.
We all know that the impulse to restrict individual rights is as ancient as the very history of mankind. We are better than that impulse. What we have to do is to find ways to celebrate our diversity and debate our differences without fracturing our communities.
In a democracy, the freedom of discussion and the freedom of expression are of the highest value. Without them, democracy turns into a caricature.
It may be argued by the police and their political masters that it's necessary to stop these protests. But we have heard this before. This was the argument in the Mongu protests that led to the deaths and maiming of so many innocent people. Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants.
We think the greatest thing about freedom of expression is that it extends to everyone, the wise and the foolish. Some of the arguments coming out of those opposed to Michael Sata's realignment of districts are really foolish. But they have the right to be foolish and say whatever they want to say.
Every person should have an undoubted right to lay what sentiments he or she pleases before the public; to forbid this, to stop this, is to destroy the freedom of expression. Of course, appreciating the fact that the right to express oneself in any form does not automatically include the right to be taken seriously.
You cannot have a democracy and you cannot have a community if you do not have a way to share ideas. Only a strong and secure democracy can guarantee the fullest and freest exchange of ideas, no matter how much those ideas hurt or incite.
It is not right to stop people from protesting the decisions and actions of their president. The decision by the police to stop protests in Mazabuka is wrong and should be opposed. We have to stand for what is right and not worry about what is politically feasible. Freedom is never given; it is won. And all freedom springs from necessity.
We can disagree or agree with the realignment of districts. There is nothing wrong with that. But we cannot afford to disagree in defending freedom of expression. We should all defend the rights of those people in Mazabuka who want to protest the realignment of districts. In our view, our sincere view, they are wrong in their opposition to the realignment of districts. They are opposing something that is right, just and legal. Their arguments are very poor and jaundiced in many aspects.
But they are right in protesting these realignments. It is within their constitutional rights to do so. And let's all come together - whether we agree or don't agree with them on realignment of districts - and defend their rights to freedom of expression, their rights to protest government decisions and actions. On this we should all agree to disagree with our government's decision to stop their protest.
Some people erroneously believe that having freedom of expression is a natural phenomenon. It is not. It is the result of intense care and vigilance. And if there is any principle of our Constitution that more imperatively calls for attachment more than any other, it is the principle of free thought and expression - not free for those who agree with us but freedom for the thought we hate.
We must suppress our emotions on this issue. The idea of diversity becomes our strength, sacred to us - the range broadening, the potential becoming a way and a song. Many have fought this reality. We know the wounds. To hear one voice clearly, we must have the freedom to hear them all.
The right of peaceable assembly and of protest is the constitutional substitute for a revolution. To silence criticism is to silence freedom. And while enjoying your freedom of expression, it is wise to remember that the toes you step on today may be connected to the rump that you must kiss tomorrow.
We shouldn't forget that the suppression of any individual or group of people for opinion's sake has rarely had any other effect than to fix those opinions deeper and render them more important than they should be. And freedom is hammered out on the anvil of discussion, dissent, protest and debate.
The arguments of those opposed to the realignment of districts have little, or no, merit. But there is merit in their right to protest what is being done by their government.
And those in government have a duty to explain what they are doing and why they are doing it; and they should never get tired of explaining and of seeking support for their decisions and actions. But there is laziness and arrogance on the part of those in government.
They think they can do as they please since they are the government and no one has the right to question what they are doing as long as they are acting within their constitutional authority. Life is not like that. To govern is to continually communicate with the people.
And instead of trying to suppress their protests, allow them to do so and after they have do so, go there and hold your own meeting and explain what you are doing to the people.
If you fail to convince them, think twice about what you are doing and probably go back to the drawing board.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, DISTRICTS, MAZABUKA DISTRICT, PROVINCES, SOUTHERN PROVINCE
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Let those youths protest realignment of districts
By The Post
Wed 22 Feb. 2012, 12:00 CAT
THE youth in Southern Province, wrong or right, have every right to protest the realignment of districts in that province or in any part of our country.And it is not right for Michael Sata, as President of the Republic, to threaten them with police action, saying he has got "very capable police who will handle them".
We do not agree with these youths and their leaders on the issue of realignment of districts and reorganisation of our provinces. We sincerely believe Michael is doing the right thing and should be allowed to continue doing so.
Michael deserves support on this score. But others have the right, wrong or right, to hold a different position and champion that position with civility and honesty. And this right should be defended by all out of principle and conviction.
In a democratic society, citizens have a right to gather peacefully and protest the policies of their government or the actions of other groups with demonstrations, marches, petitions, boycotts, strikes and other forms of direct citizen action. Direct action should be open to everyone in a democracy.
Protests are a testing ground for any democracy. The ideals of free expression and citizen participation are easy to defend when everyone remains polite and in agreement on basic issues.
But protestors - and their targets - do not agree on basic issues, and such disagreements may be passionate and angry. The challenge then is one of balance: to defend the right to freedom of speech and assembly, while maintaining public order and countering attempts at intimidation or violence. To suppress peaceful protests in the name of order is to invite repression; to permit uncontrolled violent protests is to invite anarchy.
There is no magic formula for achieving this balance. In the end, it depends on the commitment of the majority to maintaining the institutions of democracy and the precepts of individual rights.
Democratic societies are capable of enduring the bitterest disagreements among its citizens - except for disagreement about the legitimacy of democracy itself.
Democracies make several assumptions about human nature. One is that, given the chance, people are generally capable of governing themselves in a manner that is fair and free. Another is that any society comprises a great diversity of interests and individuals who deserve to have their voices heard and their views respected.
As a result, one thing is true of all healthy democracies: they are noisy. All should be free to raise their voices and participate in the democratic political process, whether locally or nationally. In this way, democratic politics acts as a filter through which the vocal demands of a diverse populace pass on the way to becoming public policy.
Freedom of expression is the lifeblood of any democracy. Before people can govern themselves, they must be free to express themselves. Citizens of a democracy live with the conviction that through the open exchange of ideas and opinions, truth will eventually win out over falsehood, the values of others will be better understood, areas of compromised more clearly defined, and the path of progress opened.
The greater the volume of such exchanges, the better. We are defending the rights of the youth who want to demonstrate in Southern Province over Michael's realignment of districts out of the conviction that, in the end, open debate will lead to greater truth and wiser public actions than if their freedom of expression and dissent are stifled.
Furthermore, we believe that the suppression of these youths' freedom of expression and the right to protest government decisions and actions that we find offensive today is potentially a threat to our own exercise of freedom of expression and our right to protest tomorrow - which perhaps those in government or someone else might find offensive.
We also believe that all people are harmed when one group's right to freedom of expression, to protest, is repressed. If they are right in what they are protesting over, we are deprived of the opportunity of exchanging error for truth. If wrong, we lose the clearer perception and livelier impression of truth produced by its collision with error.
Therefore, a healthy democracy depends upon the continuing, informed participation if the broad range of its citizens. And governments protect inalienable rights, such as freedom of expression, through restraint, by limiting their own actions.
It is important for us to realise that many of these tensions we are experiencing in our country today are present in every democratic society. In some way, democracy is in many ways nothing more than a set of rules for managing conflicts of this nature.
At the same time, such conflicts must be managed within certain limits and results in compromises, consensus or other agreements that all sides accept as legitimate. An overemphasis on side of the equation can threaten the entire undertaking.
If groups perceive democracy as nothing more than a forum in which they can express their demands, the society can shatter from within. If the government exerts excessive pressure to achieve consensus, stifling the voices of the people, the society can be crashed from above.
Therefore, a democratic society needs the commitment of citizens who accept the inevitability of conflict as well as the necessity for tolerance. It is for this reason that a culture of democracy is so important to develop. Individuals and groups must be willing, at a minimum, to tolerate each other's differences, recognising that the other side has valid rights and a legitimate point of view.
The various sides to a dispute can then meet in a spirit of compromise and seek a specific solution. There is need to build coalitions because coalition building is the essence of democratic action. We say this because it teaches interest groups to negotiate with others, to compromise and to work within the constitutional system.
By working to establish a coalition, groups with differences learn how to argue peaceably, how to pursue their goals in a democratic manner and ultimately how to live in a world of diversity.
For this reason, the enjoyment of the freedom of expression, of the right to protest would require that the government allows the people who hold a different line of political thinking an open forum to express their views without government interferences, without a threat of police action.
We all know that freedom of expression is a fundamental right of every human being. This right is also enshrined in our Constitution. While this right is not absolute, it is a matter of justice that it is given to all without discrimination of persons and irrespective of the issue involved.
It would be disastrous if freedom of expression were not the same for all but depended on a person who is speaking and the side they have taken on an issue.
By and large, protests are recognised and accepted by the people as an effective and powerful weapon of political struggle. Protests help to refine a good idea.
This is why the question of how the forces of democratic governance and a civil society interact is the challenge we face and have to worth through as a continuing and dynamic process in our young democracy. There is an old saying that freedom and order are constantly in tension with one another in society. Order without freedom leads to totalitarianism. Freedom without order leads to anarchy.
It is also said that societies recover quicker and more healthily from too much freedom than they do from totalitarianism. Let us not forget that tyranny knows no restrain of appetite. Let's allow those young people to protest the good and progressive decisions of Michael's realignment of districts in Southern Province.
Let's vigorously oppose and denounce Michael's threat to use the police against these young protestors. Yes, police should be there to ensure that their protest is not lawless, destructive or violent, but not to stop them from protesting peacefully.
Let us not forget that it is said that hell begins when the simple and necessary acts of life become monstrous, and this knowledge has been shared through all the ages by those who taste the hell men make on earth.
Let us not make it frightful to think and to express oneself through protest.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, DISTRICTS, PROVINCES, SOUTHERN PROVINCE
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Sata warns SP youths planning protests over realignment
By Bright Mukwasa
Wed 22 Feb. 2012, 12:00 CAT
PRESIDENT Michael Sata has warned youths in Southern Province who intend to protest over the re-alignment of districts that they will be met by police. And President Sata yesterday said he has never met former president Rupiah Banda to discuss issues related to his prosecution over alleged corruption that could have been committed during his three year tenure.
President Sata made the remarks when he swore in defence deputy minister Colonel Joseph Lungu, Eastern Province minister Charles Banda, high commissioners, ambassadors, Inspector General of Police Stella Libongani, deputy Inspector General of Police Peter Chingaipe, deputy director general of the Anti Corruption Commission Alexander Museba and Western Province Police commissioner Fanwell Siandenge among others.
President Sata, who gave a historical background to the creation of most districts and provinces in the country, said his government was realigning districts for easy administration.
"When PF came to power, we pronounced two alignments, the creation of Muchinga Province and also Mafinga district. This is the second time Northern Province is being split because when I was a young man, the colonial government had to split Northern Province. It was too big, they had to create Luapula Province," he explained.
"When they created Luapula Province, the chiefs in Northern Province did not rise and say we are going to rise and even the youth is saying we are going to demonstrate, but I know I have got very capable police who will handle them."
Some sections of society in Southern Province, led by the UPND, have vowed to protest over President Sata's decision to realign some districts in the province.
And President Sata urged Zambian diplomats to represent the country and not their tribes and regions they hailed from.
President Sata also urged Colonel Lungu to go back to Msanzala and work on the roads that linked the districts to other places as a way of demonstrating gratitude to the chiefs in the area.
He called on provincial administrations in the country to work to the benefit of the people.
"We don't want a degree holder District Commissioner. We want a District Commissioner of the people, who is going to listen to the people, speak to them in Nsenga, speak to them in Chewa, Tumbuka. So you find that because of unemployment, once we revamp our rural development we are going to create jobs."
Those sworn in were special assistant to the President for economics and developmental affairs Paul Siame, Ndiyoyi Mutiti as High Commissioner to Zimbabwe, Japhen Mwakalombe as Ambassador to Mozambique and Mary Zambezi to Kenya.
Others were Encyla Sinjela Ambassador as permanent representative to Switzerland, Gerald Nyirenda as Ambassador to China and Bwalya Chiti as Ambassador to Germany.
As he awaited credentials from the French and British envoys, President Sata remarked: "Mr (Given) Lubinda, did you tell The Post I met Mr. Rupiah Banda? I have never met Mr Banda and I don't talk about his immunity."
Later in a statement, President Sata's special assistant for press and public relations George Chellah refuted The Post story that appeared in yesterday's edition which alleged that President Sata held a private meeting with Rupiah Banda after a luncheon hosted in honour of the Chipolopolo Boys last Tuesday.
Chellah stated that State House was concerned that the newspaper went as far as basing its editorial comment on a story that had turned out to be untrue.
"This is indeed unfortunate and injurious to the persons accused and therefore an appropriate retraction is required," he stated.
"For the record, the Head of State has never held any private talks with Mr Banda or indeed anyone to discuss his immunity or any matters related to the on-going investigations on corruption against some members of the previous regime. On February 12, 2012, President Sata sent ex-presidents Dr Kenneth David Kaunda and Mr Banda to join the Republican Vice-President's delegation that went to cheer the national team during the African Cup of Nations final in Libreville, Gabon. After the team won the trophy, the First Lady extended an invitation to the two former presidents to join the over 300 other guests at an open luncheon on State House grounds," he stated.
Chellah stated that the luncheon proceedings were open to the media right through and at no point did President Sata and Banda engage in any private or exclusive conversations.
Meanwhile, accepting credentials from British High Commissioner James Thornton and French Ambassador Marie-Annick Bourdin, President Sata said Zambia needed the partnership investment of their governments and its members to boost its developmental efforts.
He said his government wanted to get expert assistance from Britain to help boost operations of Cabinet Office, including provincial and district administration.
Later, President Sata met chieftainess Mwenda of Chikankanta who said she came to Lusaka to congratulate him over his victory and the creation of Chikankanta as a district.
Labels: CADRES, DEMONSTRATION, DISTRICTS, MICHAEL SATA, PROVINCES, SOUTHERN PROVINCE
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EDITORIAL COMMENT: Proposed joint rallies a recipe for disaster
Saturday, 07 January 2012 21:34
Last week it was reported that leaders of the three political parties in the inclusive Government will next month hold joint rallies to urge their supporters to refrain from violence.
It was reported that the three leaders — President Robert Mugabe (Zanu-PF), Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai (MDC-T) and Professor Welshman Ncube (MDC-M) — would use the rallies to preach co-existence and tolerance ahead of elections.
The reports went further saying the scheduled rallies were a follow-up to the indaba on violence that was held in Harare in November last year that drew the three leaders together.
On the surface, this sounds like a brilliant idea that will bring Zimbabweans together and show the world that we are one, but honestly instead of creating an atmosphere for co-existence and tolerance, the rallies could end up doing the exact opposite.
If Zimbabwean politics had not been polluted by outsiders, if all the political parties were truly Zimbabwean, if all the political parties had total control of their supporters and if all the political parties could put the interests of Zimbabweans first, then these rallies would have been a welcome move.
Unfortunately, the British and Americans have polluted our politics, unfortunately all the MDC formations are puppet political parties, unfortunately history clearly shows that the MDC formations can’t control their hooligans and unfortunately the MDC formations put the interests of their sponsors first.
With all due respect, these rallies can’t work and won’t work. Instead, the rallies may spark serious violence.
Picture this — President Mugabe is about to give his speech, rowdy MDC supporters, as they always do, interrupt him and war veterans are in attendance.
Obviously, war veterans won’t take this barbaric disrespect of their leader lying down and violence will naturally erupt.
It’s not a secret that the MDC formations are violent political parties and that their leaders have no control over some of their supporters.
If the MDC-T supporters could disrespect their leaders by unleashing violence during the party’s congress in Bulawayo, what guarantee can PM Tsvangirai give that his thugs will not unleash violence during the proposed rallies?
Yes, Zanu-PF secretary for administration Cde Didymus Mutasa confirmed that the party leaders would jointly address the rallies and MDC-M secretary-general Mrs Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga supported the idea while MDC-T spokesperson Mr Douglas Mwonzora said his party welcomed the idea, but this doesn’t look like a wise move at all.
Let me make it clear here that we are against violence and we want the political parties to find ways of stopping violence, but the rallies are not the solution.
Just the statement by MDC-T spokesperson Mr Mwonzora regarding the issue is enough testimony that the rallies won’t work.
He said: “We also want to know in what order they will speak, i.e. are they going to speak in alphabetical order, are they going to use their ages or their Government positions in taking turns to speak?”
Instead of worrying about the message that will be delivered at the rallies, Mr Mwonzora and his party are already worried about the petty issue of who will speak first? If the MDC-T spokersperson is only worried about who will speak first, surely what about the party’s supporters on the ground? If the leadership is being petty, the supporters will obviously be rowdy.
Why subject President Mugabe to such childish play? It’s agreed that despite being a puppet political party, the MDC is now a player in the country’s politics, but that is no guarantee to throw President Mugabe before the little and easily excitable puppets whose penchant for violence in legendary. NO!
Elections are around the corner and each political party should take its policies and programmes to the people. These proposed rallies will be used as “ambush” tactics to introduce puppets to the people.
President Mugabe, PM Tsvangirai and Prof Ncube can come out together on television and radio urging their supporters to refrain from violence or the three can come up with one speech urging co-existence and tolerance. This is workable and more practical than the potentially explosive rallies that can degenerate into chaos, leaving the police with no option but to use force to restore order.
Rallies by their nature are emotional gatherings and there is no way Zanu-PF supporters can be at the same rally with MDC supporters. This is a recipe for disaster.
Again, let us make things clear here — we are not saying Zanu-PF supporters can’t live with MDC supporters.
All we are saying is supporters of these parties can’t attend the same rally because at rallies emotions run high.
Zanu-PF has its own ideology and the hope is that the MDC formations have by now found their ideology, but whatever the case, these parties can preach the same message even if it is about stopping violence.
Due to their backgrounds, the three political parties don’t agree on what really causes the violence and they don’t agree on who are the perpetrators of the violence and so it would be absurd to think the three leaders can hold rallies to address the issue of violence.
Efforts to stop violence and encourage co-existence are welcome, but this idea of rallies will produce unintended consequences that may boomerang against the country.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, MDC VIOLENCE, POLITICAL VIOLENCE
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"Occupy the Dream": Black Church Revives the Civil Rights Movement.
by Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr.
Global Research, January 2, 2012
One of my favorite mentors and colleagues in the Civil Rights Movement continues to be The Reverend Dr. C.T. Vivian. Whenever I am asked the question, "What is the movement?"
I always first quote Dr, Vivian who once affirmed, "The movement is about moving people. If people do not become active and move, then there is no movement. The Civil Rights Movement is about the organizing, mobilizing and the movement of people forward to fulfill the civil rights agenda in our lifetime. Thus this is about getting people to move in the present to affect the future reality of freedom, justice and equality for all."
It is important here to note that the Black Church in America has always been and continues to be the "backbone" of the historical movements for change across the nation. Such was the case in the heart of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950's and the 1960's. The “Movement” was in a sense a participatory opportunity for people of faith to live out and express their faith in the God of justice and liberation.
In a paraphrase of the eloquent words of the renowned theologian, Dr. James H. Cone, the God of the oppressed calls for people of faith to take action to liberate humanity from all forms of oppression. As we witness today the steady growth and expansion of the Occupy Movement for economic justice and equality in many cities throughout the United States, it is very encouraging to see young and senior Black church leaders step forward to provide strategic vision and prophetic leadership for Occupy the Dream as an important rising constituent of Occupy Wall Street.
In a glaring socioeconomic contradiction, the inequities and inequalities between 1% of people who control the wealth of the nation versus 99% of people who are increasingly being challenged with economic hardship and injustice, it is a sign of the times in which we live to witness a diverse coalition of protestors jell into a national transformative movement for economic and social justice. Occupy Wall Street transcends race, ethnicity, and class status, and other social divisions in our society. Many see the emergence of what Dr. King predicted would eventually happen: the building of the “beloved community” of equality, empowerment and economic justice for all.
Black church leaders are proactively responding to help revive the movement in the spirit and living legacy of the dream of The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King’s dream of equality for all was also focused on the questions of economic justice and equity. Occupy the Dream is the revitalization of the Civil Rights Movement. It is a national revival. It is to renew of struggle for freedom, justice, economic equality and empowerment. This should also be seen as good news for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) as it regains and repositions the historic organization of Black clergy lead and co-founded by Dr. King. Occupy the Dream is an initiative put forth by Black church leaders across denominational lines from the AME, AME Zion, CME, COGIC, UCC, UMC, and UPC to the Progressive National Baptist Convention together with independent or nondenominational churches located in cities and towns across the nation.
I am so proud of the leadership of The Reverend Dr. Jamal Bryant of Baltimore’s Empowerment Temple AME for serving effectively as the National Spokesperson for Occupy the Dream. Check out www.occupydream.org.
We remember that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr gave his last address to the National Convention of SCLC in August 1967 entitled, “Where Do We Go From Here?” In that speech Dr. King wrestled with the issues of “income inequality” and economic injustice. Dr. King stated, “First, we must massively assert our dignity and worth. We must stand up amid a system that still oppresses us …Now another basic challenge is to discover how to organize our strength into economic and political power…The dignity of the individual will flourish when the decisions concerning his life are in his own hands, when he has the assurance that his income is stable and certain, and when he knows that he has the means to seek self-improvement.” Months later Dr. King and SCLC would issue a national call for the Poor Peoples Campaign for economic justice and equality to occupy Washington, DC in 1968.
2012 will be a test for the United States. There will be a political test in terms of how millions of people will vote for the future. There will also be an economic test between the 99% and the 1% on the issues of income inequality and economic justice. The Black church has responded to the moral challenge to join with others to change and transform America for the uplift and empowerment of all people.
Occupy the Dream on January 16, 2012 at 10:am will gather church members and other committed people in a nonviolent protest at Federal Reserve Banks to challenge the prevailing economic inequalities that have become so commonplace for most Americans. It’s revival time. See the list of addresses for the Federal Reserve Banks at www.occupydream.org.
It is time to occupy Dr. King’s dream. We are grateful to Presiding AME Bishop John Bryant, Progressive National Baptist Convention President Reverend Dr. Carroll A. Baltimore, Bishop Millicent Hunter and numerous other Black church leaders for standing up and helping to lead Occupy the Dream.
Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. is National Director of Occupy the Dream, President of Education Online Services Corporation and CEO of the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network (HSAN)
Global Research Articles by Benjamin F. Chavis Jr.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, HUMAN RIGHTS
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Protesters in Egypt call on military to leave power
28 October 2011 - 14H03
Egyptians attend a rally calling for a rapid transition from military to civilian rule in Egypt following the February ouster of president Hosni Mubarak in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Several thousand protesters in Cairo called on the ruling military to promptly transfer power to a civilian government and exclude old regime figures from politics.
Egyptians attend a rally calling for a rapid transition from military to civilian rule in Egypt following the February ouster of president Hosni Mubarak in Cairo's Tahrir Square. Several thousand protesters in Cairo called on the ruling military to promptly transfer power to a civilian government and exclude old regime figures from politics.
AFP - Several thousand protesters in Cairo called on the ruling military on Friday to promptly transfer power to a civilian government and exclude old regime figures from politics.
The protesters in Tahrir Square, the epicentre of Egypt's uprising that ousted president Hosni Mubarak in February, chanted "down with the military" and called on the ruling generals to "return to the barracks."
The military assumed power after Mubarak's ouster on February 11, promising a transition to civilian rule within six months. It is headed by Mubarak's former defence minister Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi.
Protesters at first hailed the military for not cracking down on the uprising after Mubarak called soldiers to the streets on January 28, following attacks on police stations.
But its popularity has eroded amid accusations of rights abuses and suspicion that it is prolonging the transition, which it now says will be happen after presidential elections sometime next year.
Egypt will vote for a new parliament starting on November 28, but parties and activists who spearheaded the anti-Mubarak revolt fear his supporters will enter parliament, either as independents or members of newly formed parties.
Activists have called for a law excluding corrupt politicians and they recently started an Internet campaign to expose past members of Mubarak's now dissolved party.
Mubarak himself is facing trial for allegedly ordering the killings of anti-regime protesters during the revolt. Several of his senior aides have already been imprisoned for corruption.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, EGYPT, LIBYA
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Economic freedom demo rocks SA
Friday, 28 October 2011 00:00
JOHANNESBURG - Thousands of young black South Africans marched to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange yesterday after delivering a petition to the Chamber of Mines demanding big changes to an economy still controlled by the white minority.
Led by African National Congress Youth League leader Julius Malema, the marchers want President Jacob Zuma's government to do more to tackle the chronic unemployment blighting the continent's biggest economy.
Their proposed solutions include nationalisation of the mines in the world's biggest platinum producer, and the seizure of white-owned farms.
Police were out in numbers and cordoned off streets as the protesters moved to the stock exchange in upmarket Sandton financial district.
Chamber of Mines CEO Bheki Sibiya accepted a memorandum of grievances from the marchers.
ANCYL deputy president Ranold Lamola read out the grievances contained in the memorandum before handing it over to Sibiya.
Sibiya promised to reply to the grievances within five days.
In the petition, the Youth League demanded that the state take 60 percent control of the mines and that all mineral processing plants be situated close to the mines.
"The CEO is the face of white capital but he is a brother," Malema said, addressing marchers from the back of a truck.
"He is one of our own, but works for the wrong people."
Sibiya responded: "Comrades, I will engage with all members of the Chamber of Mines and they will receive the letter."
In a statement, the Chamber of Mines said it did not agree with the Youth League proposals, in particular nationalisation.
"This will severely damage the economic performance of the country and thus leave the population as a whole in a much worst state than before," the statement said.
About 25 percent of South Africans are without work, and a study by the Institute of Race Relations has said half of 25-to-34-year-olds had little chance of ever finding employment.
"We are here because the youth is marginalised by unemployment," said 29-year-old Youth League official Given Valashiya.
"Unemployment is high, so it is important to nationalise the means of production in South Africa as well as expropriate the land. We want to remind our president about these issues."
Some businesses around the Chamber of Mines in downtown Johannesburg and the stock exchange told employees to stay home and tightened security in case the protest turned violent.
The growing gap between South Africa's haves and have-nots has created political space for Malema, whose fearless challenges to everybody from Zuma to "white capitalists" has endeared him to the millions of impoverished blacks.
From the stock exchange, the protest will head to Pretoria, where another petition will be handed to Zuma today. - Reuters.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, JULIUS MALEMA, LAND RIGHTS, UNEMPLOYMENT
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South Africa braced for ANCYL long march
26/10/2011 00:00:00
by Sapa
SECURITY will be stepped up on Thursday ahead of what is expected to be one of the biggest anti-poverty protests since democracy came to South Africa in 1994.
The ruling party's youth wing says it has mobilised 5,000 young people to march from South Africa's economic capital, Johannesburg, to the presidential headquarters in Pretoria.
"On Thursday and Friday the ANC (African National Congress) Youth League will lead mass protests of the underemployed and unemployed youth, the landless, the homeless, informal settlement dwellers and those aspiring to quality education and decent lives," ANC Youth League president Julius Malema wrote in an open letter.
According to the government's national planning commission, South Africa has witnessed a rise in unemployment since the political transition in 1994. The national unemployment rate is 25.7% and according to a survey conducted by the South African Institute of Race Relations, youth unemployment is double that, at 51%.
The marchers will walk from Beyers Naude Square to the Chamber of Mines in Johannesburg, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in Sandton, and then to Pretoria.
A spokesman for South African President Jacob Zuma said he had granted permission for the march, provided the ANCYL took full responsibility for the actions of participants.
"The presidency will be available to accept the memorandum from the leaders of the march on Friday," spokesperson Harold Maloka said.
The Youth League said there would be 1,000 marshals, 500 police officers as well as private security company members to ensure the march was peaceful.
The mass action could test the support base of ANCYL president Julius Malema, analysts said on Wednesday.
Malema has denied the "economic freedom youth mass action" march was meant to undermine the African National Congress, but not everyone agrees.
"What we have in this situation is someone like [Tokyo] Sexwale testing his support for next year," said political analyst Steven Friedman.
"If it [support for Malema] all goes wrong, he can very easily distance himself from it, and he won't get identified. But if it goes right, it will help him."
Sexwale has testified in Malema's defence at an ANC disciplinary hearing where Malema and other ANC Youth League leaders face charges of bringing the ruling party into disrepute.
Aubrey Matshiqi, political analyst at the Centre for Policy Studies, said he would not go as far as to say that this was a make-or-break week for Malema.
However, he said he did not doubt that the ANCYL march was motivated by a multiplicity of political motivations.
Malema had taken his battle against the ruling party's leadership outside of the ANC, which could have implications on his strategy, said Matshiqi.
Political issues were being turned into national issues.
"The fact that the SACP [SA Communist Party] have called on people to boycott the marches has also turned it into a contest between the ANCYL and the SACP, and Blade Nzimande and Julius Malema," said Matshiqi.
"The size of the march will determine who has the most support, Nzimande or Malema."
Last week, Nzimande urged members of the ANCYL not to participate saying that the protest was being used to undermine the authority of the ANC and government.
"Do not allow yourselves to be used by people with agendas that are not in your interest," he said.
Malema has insisted that the ANC did not see the march as an attack on its top brass.
"The leadership doesn't see it like that and they say that nothing is wrong with the march, as long as it is successful and peaceful," he told reporters in Johannesburg this week.
The ANC said on Wednesday it supported the rights of the ANCYL to march for economic freedom.
Secretary general Gwede Mantashe told reporters in Johannesburg the march was not against the ANC government and it was not linking it to the party's 2012 elective conference.
Ebrahim Fakir, another political analyst, said he felt that Malema's political motivations were a side issue.
"This [the marches] being a test of support is probably true but what is the substance of the issues the ANC Youth League are talking about?" he said.
“This may well be a test... in view of the succession battle but the real test is the test of the appetite of society and especially the wealthy, influential and the socially powerful sectors of society and what their appetite is for serious thinking and rethinking about an inclusive economy and a more transformed economy," said Fakir.
He said the ANCYL were standing for the right thing, but he did not think the nationalisation of mines and land expropriation without compensation would necessarily work.
Fakir said the youth league had missed the mark because there was no such thing as "economic freedom".
"You can't wake up tomorrow and decide you want a flat in Camps Bay [affluent area in Cape Town]... that is economic freedom and no one has that," said Fakir.
"We talking about economic empowerment... The issues are real and substantial and we need to look at it as that," he said.
"Yes, 2012 is the only game in town politically but if we just reduce everything to 2012 we are going to lose the real debate."
Support for the mass action has been divided.
The National Youth Development Agency, the Congress of SA Trade Unions, the SA Municipal Workers' Union, the SA Students' Congress, Congress of the People Youth Movement and National Union of Metalworkers of SA were supporting the ANCYL's march.
Not supporting the action, was lobby group AfriForum, the Young Communist League, the SA Communist Party and the Communication Workers Union.
Malema: Keep walking, comrades
NICKOLAUS BAUER AND SAPA JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA - Oct 27 2011 17:04
The ANC Youth League march for economic freedom has made slow progress towards the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in Sandton.
After departing the Chamber of Mines at 12.30pm the approximately 3 000-strong crowd had only reached Rosebank by 4pm.
The march has been a sombre one, barring some tempers flaring as supporters fought over bottled water lined up along the road by the league.
Malema calmed the crowd on several occassions, encouraging them to remain patient.
"We will get there, comrades, we are marching to the home of white monopoly capital and we will get there," he said.
Demonstrators have remained steadfast as many declared their toil and sweat spent on the march signified their push for economic freedom.
"We know it's not going to be given to us on a silver platter -- this is what its all about. If we want change, it's going to be a long struggle," a marcher identifying himself only as Tshepang told the Mail & Guardian.
Several marchers engaged with journalists along the way, with Tshipa Sithole telling the M&G the march epitomises how he feels.
"You see we must make things equal -- this is about sharing 50/50. I don't want everything, I just want to be able to live a life like everyone else. We must work together to make South Africa a better place," he said.
Emergency services were yet to report any incidences of serious injury barring several cases of heat stroke as marchers made their way from the Johannesburg city centre to Sandton.
Malema seemed remarkably reserved in his handling of tense situations during the march. As the procession stopped to rest on Empire Road earlier in the day, he scolded a group of schoolchildren who attempted joined the march.
"Comrades and police: Tell those children to go home, they don't belong here. They must go home and study," he said.
Tired
The marchers' spirits started flagging just after 2pm as they entered Oxford Road in Killarney.
They stopped to wait for a water tanker as several people were dehydrated and at least five people had fainted.
The marchers were no longer singing and dancing, but shuffling along in the heat.
Some of the placards carried by marchers read: "The real freedom is economic not parliamentary. Free my people."
Another with slain Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi's picture read: "We salute anti-imperialist martyr Gaddafi".
Others read: "90% of the economy is still in the hands of the minority" and "Malema we must stand by you through thick and thin".
Juice and water was handed out as marchers reached the Rosebank Zone, and supporters resumed singing and dancing.
Gauteng police spokesperson Lt-Col Lungelo Dlamini said the march had been peaceful so far.
"There have been no disruptions since the march started. Everything is peaceful."
Police and a private security company hired by the youth league were monitoring the situation.
Hundreds of spectators littered the route to catch a peek of Malema and other youth league leaders.
"This is so cool! I never saw something like this before, thse guys are marching for their freedom it's so awesome," said 17-year-old Lindsay Thorpe, as she snapped images of the procession with her cell phone.
Even comedian Joey Rasdien came out to see what all the fuss was about, but was turned away from the march when he tried to join.
"Ja man I wanted to jump in but they wouldn't let me come in with my bike. It's a laugh this thing, these guys take so many hours to walk from Johannesburg, but it's good," he told reporters, as he cradled his scooter helmet.
Prepared
Meanwhile, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in Gwen Lane in Sandton was prepared with railing gates wrapped in black plastic sealing off its underground parking entrances.
Police in bakkies waited at the end of Gwen Lane, which was blocked at one end.
Once marchers had handed over a memorandum to the JSE, the plan was for them to be bussed to Pretoria where a night vigil was to be held prior to a march on the Union Buildings on Friday.
The JSE closes at 5pm, but a woman on the premises told reporters they would wait to receive the memorandum from the league.
The last mass action by ANCYL members happened outside Luthuli House in central Johannesburg at the start of Malema's disciplinary hearing last month.
Youth league members threw rocks, bottles and bricks at journalists and police, and burnt ANC flags and t-shirts with pictures of President Jacob Zuma printed on them.
The march was taking place a day after testimony in Malema's disciplinary hearing was concluded. He and several co-leaders face charges of bringing the ruling party into disrepute.
Earlier, the SABC reported that members of the Congress of SA Students (Cosas) had forced pupils from Alexandra and Soweto schools to join the march.
-- Additional reporting by Sapa
Labels: AFRIFORUM, ANC YOUTH LEAGUE, DEMONSTRATION, JULIUS MALEMA, LIBYA, TOKYO SEXWALE
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An Occupy movement in South Africa could really get the ball rolling on land reform and mine nationalisation. I hope the ANC Youth League is listening to this.
http://www.facebook.com/occupysahttp://www.occupysa.org/
South Africa braced for ANCYL long march26/10/2011 00:00:00
by Sapa
SECURITY will be stepped up on Thursday ahead of what is expected to be one of the biggest anti-poverty protests since democracy came to South Africa in 1994.
The ruling party's youth wing says it has mobilised 5,000 young people to march from South Africa's economic capital, Johannesburg, to the presidential headquarters in Pretoria.
"On Thursday and Friday the ANC (African National Congress) Youth League will lead mass protests of the underemployed and unemployed youth, the landless, the homeless, informal settlement dwellers and those aspiring to quality education and decent lives," ANC Youth League president Julius Malema wrote in an open letter.
According to the government's national planning commission, South Africa has witnessed a rise in unemployment since the political transition in 1994. The national unemployment rate is 25.7% and according to a survey conducted by the South African Institute of Race Relations, youth unemployment is double that, at 51% .
The marchers will walk from Beyers Naude Square to the Chamber of Mines in Johannesburg, the Johannesburg Stock Exchange in Sandton, and then to Pretoria.
A spokesman for South African President Jacob Zuma said he had granted permission for the march, provided the ANCYL took full responsibility for the actions of participants.
"The presidency will be available to accept the memorandum from the leaders of the march on Friday," spokesperson Harold Maloka said.
The Youth League said there would be 1,000 marshals, 500 police officers as well as private security company members to ensure the march was peaceful.
The mass action could test the support base of ANCYL president Julius Malema, analysts said on Wednesday.
Malema has denied the "economic freedom youth mass action" march was meant to undermine the African National Congress, but not everyone agrees.
"What we have in this situation is someone like [Tokyo] Sexwale testing his support for next year," said political analyst Steven Friedman.
"If it [support for Malema] all goes wrong, he can very easily distance himself from it, and he won't get identified. But if it goes right, it will help him."
Sexwale has testified in Malema's defence at an ANC disciplinary hearing where Malema and other ANC Youth League leaders face charges of bringing the ruling party into disrepute.
Aubrey Matshiqi, political analyst at the Centre for Policy Studies, said he would not go as far as to say that this was a make-or-break week for Malema.
However, he said he did not doubt that the ANCYL march was motivated by a multiplicity of political motivations.
Malema had taken his battle against the ruling party's leadership outside of the ANC, which could have implications on his strategy, said Matshiqi.
Political issues were being turned into national issues.
"The fact that the SACP [SA Communist Party] have called on people to boycott the marches has also turned it into a contest between the ANCYL and the SACP, and Blade Nzimande and Julius Malema," said Matshiqi.
"The size of the march will determine who has the most support, Nzimande or Malema."
Last week, Nzimande urged members of the ANCYL not to participate saying that the protest was being used to undermine the authority of the ANC and government.
"Do not allow yourselves to be used by people with agendas that are not in your interest," he said.
Malema has insisted that the ANC did not see the march as an attack on its top brass.
"The leadership doesn't see it like that and they say that nothing is wrong with the march, as long as it is successful and peaceful," he told reporters in Johannesburg this week.
The ANC said on Wednesday it supported the rights of the ANCYL to march for economic freedom.
Secretary general Gwede Mantashe told reporters in Johannesburg the march was not against the ANC government and it was not linking it to the party's 2012 elective conference.
Ebrahim Fakir, another political analyst, said he felt that Malema's political motivations were a side issue.
"This [the marches] being a test of support is probably true but what is the substance of the issues the ANC Youth League are talking about?" he said.
“This may well be a test... in view of the succession battle but the real test is the test of the appetite of society and especially the wealthy, influential and the socially powerful sectors of society and what their appetite is for serious thinking and rethinking about an inclusive economy and a more transformed economy," said Fakir.
He said the ANCYL were standing for the right thing, but he did not think the nationalisation of mines and land expropriation without compensation would necessarily work.
Fakir said the youth league had missed the mark because there was no such thing as "economic freedom".
"You can't wake up tomorrow and decide you want a flat in Camps Bay [affluent area in Cape Town]... that is economic freedom and no one has that," said Fakir.
"We talking about economic empowerment... The issues are real and substantial and we need to look at it as that," he said.
"Yes, 2012 is the only game in town politically but if we just reduce everything to 2012 we are going to lose the real debate."
Support for the mass action has been divided.
The National Youth Development Agency, the Congress of SA Trade Unions, the SA Municipal Workers' Union, the SA Students' Congress, Congress of the People Youth Movement and National Union of Metalworkers of SA were supporting the ANCYL's march.
Not supporting the action, was lobby group AfriForum, the Young Communist League, the SA Communist Party and the Communication Workers Union.
Labels: ANC YOUTH LEAGUE, DEMONSTRATION, JULIUS MALEMA, LIBYA
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Occupy Wall Street protests go global
PHILIP PULLELLA ROME, ITALY - Oct 15 2011 15:05
Demonstrators worldwide shouted their rage on Saturday against bankers and politicians they accused of ruining economies and condemning millions to hardship through greed and bad governance.
Galvanised by the Occupy Wall Street movement, the protests began in New Zealand, rippled round the world to Europe and were expected to return to their starting point in New York.
Most rallies were small and barely held up traffic. The biggest anticipated was in Rome where organisers said they believed 100 000 would take part.
"At the global level, we can't carry on any more with public debt that wasn't created by us but by thieving governments, corrupt banks and speculators who don't give a damn about us," said Nicla Cripp (49) who wore a T-shirt saying "enough" as she arrived at the Rome protest.
"They caused this international crisis and are still profiting from it, they should pay for it."
The Rome protesters, including the unemployed, students and pensioners, planned to march through the centre, past the Colosseum and finish in Piazza San Giovanni.
Some 2 000 police were on hand to keep the Rome demonstrators, who call themselves "the indignant ones", peaceful and to avoid a repeat of the violence last year when students protesting over education policy clashed with police.
'Yes we camp'
As some 750 buses bearing protesters converged on the capital, students at Rome University warmed up with their own mini-demo on Saturday morning.
The carried signs reading "Your Money is Our Money", and "Yes We Camp," an echo of the slogan "Yes We Can" used by United States President Barack Obama.
In imitation of the occupation of Zuccotti Park near Wall Street in Manhattan, some protesters have been camped out across the street from the headquarters of the Bank of Italy for several days.
The worldwide protests were a response in part to calls by the New York demonstrators for more people to join them. Their example has prompted calls for similar occupations in dozens of US cities from Saturday.
Demonstrators in Italy were united in their criticism of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and angry at his victory in a vote of confidence in parliament on Friday.
The government has passed a €60-billion austerity package that has raised taxes and will make public healthcare more expensive.
On Friday students stormed Goldman Sachs's offices in Milan and daubed red graffiti. Others hurled eggs at the headquarters of UniCredit, Italy's biggest bank.
New Zealand and Australia got the ball rolling on Saturday. Several hundred people marched up the main street in Auckland, New Zealand's biggest city, joining a rally at which 3 000 chanted and banged drums, denouncing corporate greed.
About 200 gathered in the capital Wellington and 50 in a park in the earthquake-hit southern city of Christchurch.
In Sydney, about 2 000 people, including representatives of Aboriginal groups, communists and trade unionists, protested outside the central Reserve Bank of Australia.
'Real democracy'
"I think people want real democracy," said Nick Carson, a spokesperson for OccupyMelbourne.org, as about 1 000 gathered in the Australian city.
"They don't want corporate influence over their politicians. They want their politicians to be accountable."
Hundreds marched in Tokyo, including anti-nuclear protesters. In Manila, capital of the Philippines, a few dozen marched on the US embassy waving banners reading: "Down with US imperialism" and "Philippines not for sale".
More than 100 people gathered at the Taipei stock exchange, chanting "we are Taiwan's 99%", and saying economic growth had only benefited companies while middle class salaries barely covered soaring housing, education and healthcare costs.
They found support from a top businessman, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (TSMC) Chairman Morris Chang.
"I've been against the gap between rich and poor," Chang said in the northern city of Hsinchu. "The wealth of the top one percent has increased very fast in the past 20 or 30 years.'Occupy Wall Street' is a reaction to that."
Demonstrators aimed to converge on the City of London under the banner "Occupy the Stock Exchange".
"We have people from all walks of life joining us every day," said Spyro, one of those behind a Facebook page in London which has drawn some 12 000 followers.
The 28-year-old, who said he had a well-paid job and did not want to give his full name, said the target of the protests as "the financial system".
Angry at taxpayer bailouts of banks since 2008 and at big bonuses still paid to some who work in them while unemployment blights the lives of many young Britons, he said, "People all over the world, we are saying 'enough is enough'."
Greek protesters called an anti-austerity rally for Saturday in Athens' Syntagma Square.
"What is happening in Greece now is the nightmare awaiting other countries in the future. Solidarity is the people's weapon," the Real Democracy group said in a statement calling on people to join the protest.
In Paris protests were expected to coincide with the G20 finance chiefs' meeting there. In Madrid, seven marches were planned to unite in Cibeles square and then march to the central Puerta de Sol.
In Germany, where sympathy for southern Europe's debt troubles is patchy, the financial centre of Frankfurt and the European Central Bank (ECB) in particular were expected to be a focus of marches called by the Real Democracy Now movement. -- Reuters
SA caught up
Reports of an Occupy JSE protest planned for Saturday were circulated widely on social media networks in South Africa.
With the official time set at 8am, protesters said they would be gathering at the Gwen Lane address in Sandton.
By 7am on Saturday morning there had already been a gathering of civil society members outside the building and around the Sandton city centre.
There were reports that people around Gauteng's townships were also being mobilised to participate in the mass action.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, GLOBALISATION
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COMMENT - It is also clear that REUTERS and it's trillionaire owners view Julius Malema and his call for nationalisation, a direct threat to their continued ownershiop of South Africa's gold and diamond mines.
Violent pro-Malema demos rock SA
Wednesday, 31 August 2011 02:00
JOHANNESBURG - AS South Africa's governing African National Congress convened a hearing on allegations of indiscipline against ANC Youth League leader Julius Malema, police outside were battling with rowdy and violent protesters demanding Malema to be "left alone".
The firebrand Malema is facing charges of bringing the party into disrepute through a statement advocating regime change in Botswana, among other allegations. The angry and violent youths went further to
burn posters of president and party leader Jacob Zuma, and T-shirts bearing his image and flags outside Luthuli House, the ANC head office in Johannesburg.
The violent protest has spawned a war of words between the ANC and members of the Youth League.
ANC Youth League spokesman Floyd Shivambu attempted to distance ANCYL activists from the violent protests, saying such perpetrators were "chancers".
"The ANCYL strongly condemns and dissociates itself from the burning of ANC T-shirts with the face of President Zuma. We reiterate our statement and call on those who are here to support the leadership to exercise maximum discipline and do so in a peaceful manner, regard and respect to the ANC process.
"We reaffirm the ANCYL respects the internal process of the ANC and will at all times submit itself to the organisational discipline, directives and guidelines of the ANC leadership collective, its policies and constitution.
"The ANCYL will never be associated with unruly, disruptive elements and agents provocateurs who want to portray genuine support and solidarity gathering in a bad light; we are calling for restraint from supporters and the security service," said Shivambu.
ANC spokesman, Jackson Mthembu, said the burning of President Zuma's T-shirts, party flags and posters was "totally unacceptable", "wanton acts of criminality" and "hooliganism" and the ugly scenes were perpetrated by an unruly mob of people claiming to be "ANC Youth League members".
"The question we ask ourselves is whether these people who have the audacity to burn the ANC flag, posters with the face of ANC President Jacob Zuma and other leaders of the movement, launch attack on police officers, hawkers and journalists qualify to regard themselves as members of the African National Congress or any of its leagues.
"The movement has been totally shocked and finds totally unacceptable the criminal acts of violence which included the throwing of rocks at motorists and members of the public. Not only is this kind of behaviour unacceptable and criminal, but it also flies in the face of all values and discipline of the ANC and all its leagues," said Mthembu.
He said those that took the responsibility to mobilise the crowds to gather outside Luthuli House, the leadership of the ANC Youth League,- should also take full responsibility for the violence, criminality and ill-discipline that accompanied the gathering.
"What kind of democracy is this we are seeing in the ANC today? It never happened before during the time of Nelson Mandela, not during the tenure of Thabo Mbeki," said Kholwani Ngcobo (25) of Soweto, who argued that the current leadership was afraid of losing positions in the forthcoming ANC elective congress in the Free State.
"Malema should never be persecuted for speaking out our minds. We need jobs, we want mines to be nationalised . . . we would immediately want to see the government embark on agrarian land reform to correct apartheid imbalances," he said.
Ngcobo was injured on his right hand and left leg as he and others battled police using stones and empty beer bottles.
Siyobonga Mkhizhe (23) another youth from Katlehong said Malema's case was not about the "regime change in Botswana", neither was it about "nationalisation of mines", but the thorny issue of the 2012 ANC battle for party top positions.
"Malema is not the South African government which makes policies or amend laws, so why are they scared of his mere utterances on mines nationalisation, regime change in Botswana as well as taking away land from white imperialists without paying compensation," said Mkhizhe.
Lebohang Radebe (19) of Alexandra who graduated from the University of Johannesburg last year, said in democracy people were allowed to raise any subject and discuss issues without expulsion or suspension from organisations.
"We burnt President Zuma's T-shirts, posters and ANC flags because we are beginning to see a monster in him. Zuma should be reminded that he came into power because of Malema and us the youths, and he forgets easily because of the wrong information from the communists," said Radebe.
At least one police officer was hit by a brick, a police spokesman said, and the domestic eNEWS channel said one of its television crews was attacked.
Two photographers were also attacked with rocks, SAPA news agency reported.
ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe told reporters that yesterday's violence was the worst since 1994 when several people were killed during a march on the building by supporters of the Zulu-based Inkatha Freedom Party.
The protesters earlier tried to break through the police barricades towards the building in downtown Johannesburg where the hearing was taking place.
They waved placards saying: "Hands off Julius Malema" and one reading: "We are prepared to take arms and kill for Malema".
Another placard read: "Zuma is a liability for Africa".
Analysts said the violence might have been orchestrated.
"If anyone thinks what is happening on the streets of Johannesburg is spontaneous combustion, well that is just rubbish," said Nic Borain, an independent political analyst.
"Malema is prepared to gamble everything on making his disciplining and removal from the party as costly as possible."
The hearing is as risky for Zuma, who hopes to be re-elected ANC leader at a party meeting in December 2012, as it is for Malema, who party insiders say ultimately wants the country's top job.
Analysts said the ANC waited too long to rein Malema in.
"Today is therefore a show of power by Zuma and the current ANC leadership against them, which they need to win and make up for letting this drag on for so long," said Nomura International emerging markets economist Peter Attard Montalto.
On the eve of the hearing, Malema said: "This does not delay our economic struggle. We see this as a setback for the revolution we are pursuing. We will continue to push for economic freedom in our lifetime."
The disciplinary panel was led by senior ANC member, Derek Hanekom, and includes mines minister Susan Shabangu, who has criticised Malema's calls for nationalisation.
In another sign of the party turning against him, former ANC guerrillas issued a statement condemning the violence.
"We who have fought against apartheid take a stand that we shall never allow our country to slip into the dark days of war," the Umkhonto Wesizwe veterans groups said.
Malema (30) and the top five members of the youth wing have been charged with sowing division in the party that has ruled South Africa for nearly two decades.
Zuma is on a state visit to Norway this week. - CAJ News-Reuters-guardian.co.uk.
Labels: DEMONSTRATION, JULIUS MALEMA
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