(GUARDIAN UK) How the ANC's Faustian pact sold out South Africa's poorest
In the early 1990s, we in the leadership of the ANC made a serious error. Our people still paying the price
South Africa's young people today are known as the Born Free generation. They enjoy the dignity of being born into a democratic society with the right to vote and choose who will govern. But modern South Africa is not a perfect society. Full equality – social and economic – does not exist, and control of the country's wealth remains in the hands of a few, so new challenges and frustrations arise. Veterans of the anti-apartheid struggle like myself are frequently asked whether, in the light of such disappointment, the sacrifice was worth it. While my answer is yes, I must confess to grave misgivings: I believe we should be doing far better.
There have been impressive achievements since the attainment of freedom in 1994: in building houses, crèches, schools, roads and infrastructure; the provision of water and electricity to millions; free education and healthcare; increases in pensions and social grants; financial and banking stability; and slow but steady economic growth (until the 2008 crisis at any rate). These gains, however, have been offset by a breakdown in service delivery, resulting in violent protests by poor and marginalised communities; gross inadequacies and inequities in the education and health sectors; a ferocious rise in unemployment; endemic police brutality and torture; unseemly power struggles within the ruling party that have grown far worse since the ousting of Mbeki in 2008; an alarming tendency to secrecy and authoritarianism in government; the meddling with the judiciary; and threats to the media and freedom of expression. Even Nelson Mandela's privacy and dignity are violated for the sake of a cheap photo opportunity by the ANC's top echelon.
Most shameful and shocking of all, the events of Bloody Thursday – 16 August 2012 – when police massacred 34 striking miners at Marikana mine, owned by the London-based Lonmin company. The Sharpeville massacre in 1960 prompted me to join the ANC. I found Marikana even more distressing: a democratic South Africa was meant to bring an end to such barbarity. And yet the president and his ministers, locked into a culture of cover-up. Incredibly, the South African Communist party, my party of over 50 years, did not condemn the police either.
South Africa's liberation struggle reached a high point but not its zenith when we overcame apartheid rule. Back then, our hopes were high for our country given its modern industrial economy, strategic mineral resources (not only gold and diamonds), and a working class and organised trade union movement with a rich tradition of struggle. But that optimism overlooked the tenacity of the international capitalist system. From 1991 to 1996 the battle for the ANC's soul got under way, and was eventually lost to corporate power: we were entrapped by the neoliberal economy – or, as some today cry out, we "sold our people down the river".
What I call our Faustian moment came when we took an IMF loan on the eve of our first democratic election. That loan, with strings attached that precluded a radical economic agenda, was considered a necessary evil, as were concessions to keep negotiations on track and take delivery of the promised land for our people.
Doubt had come to reign supreme: we believed, wrongly, there was no other option; that we had to be cautious, since by 1991 our once powerful ally, the Soviet union, bankrupted by the arms race, had collapsed. Inexcusably, we had lost faith in the ability of our own revolutionary masses to overcome all obstacles. Whatever the threats to isolate a radicalising South Africa, the world could not have done without our vast reserves of minerals. To lose our nerve was not necessary or inevitable. The ANC leadership needed to remain determined, united and free of corruption – and, above all, to hold on to its revolutionary will. Instead, we chickened out. The ANC leadership needed to remain true to its commitment of serving the people. This would have given it the hegemony it required not only over the entrenched capitalist class but over emergent elitists, many of whom would seek wealth through black economic empowerment, corrupt practices and selling political influence.
To break apartheid rule through negotiation, rather than a bloody civil war, seemed then an option too good to be ignored. However, at that time, the balance of power was with the ANC, and conditions were favourable for more radical change at the negotiating table than we ultimately accepted. It is by no means certain that the old order, apart from isolated rightist extremists, had the will or capability to resort to the bloody repression envisaged by Mandela's leadership. If we had held our nerve, we could have pressed forward without making the concessions we did.
It was a dire error on my part to focus on my own responsibilities and leave the economic issues to the ANC's experts. However, at the time, most of us never quite knew what was happening with the top-level economic discussions. As s Sampie Terreblanche has revealed in his critique, Lost in Transformation, by late 1993 big business strategies – hatched in 1991 at the mining mogul Harry Oppenheimer's Johannesburg residence – were crystallising in secret late-night discussions at the Development Bank of South Africa. Present were South Africa's mineral and energy leaders, the bosses of US and British companies with a presence in South Africa – and young ANC economists schooled in western economics. They were reporting to Mandela, and were either outwitted or frightened into submission by hints of the dire consequences for South Africa should an ANC government prevail with what were considered ruinous economic policies.
All means to eradicate poverty, which was Mandela's and the ANC's sworn promise to the "poorest of the poor", were lost in the process. Nationalisation of the mines and heights of the economy as envisaged by the Freedom charter was abandoned. The ANC accepted responsibility for a vast apartheid-era debt, which should have been cancelled. A wealth tax on the super-rich to fund developmental projects was set aside, and domestic and international corporations, enriched by apartheid, were excused from any financial reparations. Extremely tight budgetary obligations were instituted that would tie the hands of any future governments; obligations to implement a free-trade policy and abolish all forms of tariff protection in keeping with neo-liberal free trade fundamentals were accepted. Big corporations were allowed to shift their main listings abroad. In Terreblanche's opinion, these ANC concessions constituted "treacherous decisions that [will] haunt South Africa for generations to come".
An ANC-Communist party leadership eager to assume political office (myself no less than others) readily accepted this devil's pact, only to be damned in the process. It has bequeathed an economy so tied in to the neoliberal global formula and market fundamentalism that there is very little room to alleviate the plight of most of our people.
Little wonder that their patience is running out; that their anguished protests increase as they wrestle with deteriorating conditions of life; that those in power have no solutions. The scraps are left go to the emergent black elite; corruption has taken root as the greedy and ambitious fight like dogs over a bone.
In South Africa in 2008 the poorest 50% received only 7.8% of total income. While 83% of white South Africans were among the top 20% of income receivers in 2008, only 11% of our black population were. These statistics conceal unmitigated human suffering. Little wonder that the country has seen such an enormous rise in civil protest.
A descent into darkness must be curtailed. I do not believe the ANC alliance is beyond hope. There are countless good people in the ranks. But a revitalisation and renewal from top to bottom is urgently required. The ANC's soul needs to be restored; its traditional values and culture of service reinstated. The pact with the devil needs to be broken.
At present the impoverished majority do not see any hope other than the ruling party, although the ANC's ability to hold those allegiances is deteriorating. The effective parliamentary opposition reflects big business interests of various stripes, and while a strong parliamentary opposition is vital to keep the ANC on its toes, most voters want socialist policies, not measures inclined to serve big business interests, more privatisation and neoliberal economics.
This does not mean it is only up to the ANC, SACP and Cosatu to rescue the country from crises. There are countless patriots and comrades in existing and emerging organised formations who are vital to the process. Then there are the legal avenues and institutions such as the public protector's office and human rights commission that – including the ultimate appeal to the constitutional court – can test, expose and challenge injustice and the infringement of rights. The strategies and tactics of the grassroots – trade unions, civic and community organisations, women's and youth groups – signpost the way ahead with their non-violent and dignified but militant action.
The space and freedom to express one's views, won through decades of struggle, are available and need to be developed. We look to the Born Frees as the future torchbearers.
• This is an edited extract from the new introduction to his autobiography, Armed and Dangerous
Labels: ANC, NELSON MANDELA, NEOLIBERALISM, RED RONNIE KASRILS
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(BDLIVE SA) ANC left weak as SA ‘shifts to right’, says Kasrils
by Natasha Marrian, 04 November 2013, 07:15
SOUTH Africa is at a "fork in the road" and looks to be shifting more down a conservative path to the right than to the left, former intelligence minister Ronnie Kasrils said on Sunday, wading into the debate on the trajectory of the country as its 20th year of democracy approaches.
Left-wing political parties such as the Economic Freedom Fighters and the Workers and Socialist Party are set to contest the 2014 polls, at a time when the left within the African National Congress (ANC) is arguably at its weakest.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) is in crisis, with its top brass at loggerheads over the posture of the federation in relation to its allies, the ANC and the South African Communist Party (SACP). Mr Kasrils, a member of both the ANC and the SACP, has been increasingly critical of the government, particularly over the so-called secrecy bill and the Marikana massacre. He served in the cabinet of former president Thabo Mbeki and was among the ministers who stepped down after Mr Mbeki’s recall from his post by the ANC.
Mr Kasrils was speaking at the launch of the National Union of Metalworkers of SA’s (Numsa’s) Research and Policy Institute at the University of the Witwatersrand. Numsa is a key player in the battle playing out at Cosatu, staunchly defending suspended general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi in the internal fallout over his admission of an affair with a junior employee.
Numsa is at odds with the ANC over its adoption of the National Development Plan, which the union has likened to the Democratic Alliance’s (DA’s) policies. Its leadership under general secretary Irvin Jim has largely stepped into Mr Vavi’s role of taking a critical stance towards the alliance partners, particularly on the ANC’s approach to the economy. Numsa supports nationalisation of the mines and monopoly industries as well as the Reserve Bank.
"The forces in our country that want to take us down the road to the right have recovered from the 1994 change," Mr Kasrils said. "A lot of our people and government and parties are part of that approach now, it’s not a conspiracy, the interests have become similar, you see, and are pushing us down the road."
The Marikana massacre marked a turning point for South Africa, he said.
Police gunned down 34 mineworkers at Lonmin’s Marikana operations in Rustenburg in August last year.
Mr Kasrils said he entered the struggle against apartheid because of the Sharpeville massacre — the 1960 protest in which 69 people were killed by apartheid police — but Marikana was "worse than Sharpeville" because it was "premeditated".
"Marikana is the turning point, we are at that fork in the road and we have got to wake up and blow our whistles and wave our red flags.
"I believe I have been an optimist all my life … but I believe that we are moving to the right, we are moving down that road."
He said it was only the working class of the country, who at this point was able to arrest this development and set the country down a more "progressive" path.
November 04 2013, 07:15
Labels: ANC, NEOLIBERALISM, RED RONNIE KASRILS
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(HERALD ZW) How ANC sold out SA’s poorest
November 8, 2013 Shingirai Huni Opinion & Analysis
Ronnie Kasrils
COMMENT - 'Red' Ronnie Kasrils is a real hero. You should check out his book Armed And Dangerous - My undercover struggle against apartheid at Amazon. - MrK
South Africa’s young people today are known as the Born Free generation. They enjoy the dignity of being born into a democratic society with the right to vote and choose who will govern. But modern South Africa is not a perfect society.
Full equality — social and economic — does not exist, and control of the country’s wealth remains in the hands of a few, so new challenges and frustrations arise.
Veterans of the anti-apartheid struggle like myself are frequently asked whether, in the light of such disappointment, the sacrifice was worth it. While my answer is yes, I must confess to grave misgivings: I believe we should be doing far better.
There have been impressive achievements since the attainment of freedom in 1994: in building houses, crèches, schools, roads and infrastructure; the provision of water and electricity to millions; free education and healthcare; increases in pensions and social grants; financial and banking stability; and slow but steady economic growth (until the 2008 crisis at any rate).
These gains, however, have been offset by a breakdown in service delivery, resulting in violent protests by poor and marginalised communities; gross inadequacies and inequities in the education and health sectors; a ferocious rise in unemployment; endemic police brutality and torture; unseemly power struggles within the ruling party that have grown far worse since the ousting of Mbeki in 2008; an alarming tendency to secrecy and authoritarianism in government; the meddling with the judiciary; and threats to the media and freedom of expression.
Even Nelson Mandela’s privacy and dignity are violated for the sake of a cheap photo opportunity by the ANC’s top echelon.
Most shameful and shocking of all, the events of Bloody Thursday — August 16 2012 — when police massacred 34 striking miners at Marikana mine, owned by the London-based Lonmin company.
The Sharpeville massacre in 1960 prompted me to join the ANC. I found Marikana even more distressing: a democratic South Africa was meant to bring an end to such barbarity. And yet the president and his ministers locked into a culture of cover-up. Incredibly, the South African Communist party, my party of over 50 years, did not condemn the police either.
South Africa’s liberation struggle reached a high point but not its zenith when we overcame apartheid rule. Back then, our hopes were high for our country, given its modern industrial economy, strategic mineral resources (not only gold and diamonds), and a working class and organised trade union movement with a rich tradition of struggle. But that optimism overlooked the tenacity of the international capitalist system.
From 1991 to 1996 the battle for the ANC’s soul got under way, and was eventually lost to corporate power: we were entrapped by the neo-liberal economy — or, as some today cry out — we “sold our people down the river”. What I call our Faustian moment came when we took an IMF loan on the eve of our first democratic election. That loan, with strings attached that precluded a radical economic agenda, was considered a necessary evil, as were concessions to keep negotiations on track and take delivery of the promised land for our people.
Doubt had come to reign supreme: we believed, wrongly, there was no other option; that we had to be cautious, since by 1991 our once powerful ally, the Soviet union, bankrupted by the arms race, had collapsed. Inexcusably, we had lost faith in the ability of our own revolutionary masses to overcome all obstacles. Whatever the threats to isolate a radicalising South Africa, the world could not have done without our vast reserves of minerals.
To lose our nerve was not necessary or inevitable. The ANC leadership needed to remain determined, united and free of corruption — and, above all, to hold on to its revolutionary will. Instead, we chickened out. The ANC leadership needed to remain true to its commitment of serving the people.
This would have given it the hegemony it required not only over the entrenched capitalist class but over emergent elitists, many of whom would seek wealth through black economic empowerment, corrupt practices and selling political influence.
To break apartheid rule through negotiation, rather than a bloody civil war, seemed then an option too good to be ignored. However, at that time, the balance of power was with the ANC, and conditions were favourable for more radical change at the negotiating table than we ultimately accepted. It is by no means certain that the old order, apart from isolated rightist extremists, had the will or capability to resort to the bloody repression envisaged by Mandela’s leadership.
If we had held our nerve, we could have pressed forward without making the concessions we did.
It was a dire error on my part to focus on my own responsibilities and leave the economic issues to the ANC’s experts. However, at the time, most of us never quite knew what was happening with the top-level economic discussions. As Sampie Terreblanche has revealed in his critique, Lost in Transformation, by late 1993 big business strategies — hatched in 1991 at the mining mogul Harry Oppenheimer’s Johannesburg residence — were crystallising in secret late-night discussions at the Development Bank of South Africa.
Present were South Africa’s mineral and energy leaders, the bosses of US and British companies with a presence in South Africa — and young ANC economists schooled in Western economics. They were reporting to Mandela, and were either outwitted or frightened into submission by hints of the dire consequences for South Africa should an ANC government prevail with what were considered ruinous economic policies.
All means to eradicate poverty, which was Mandela’s and the ANC’s sworn promise to the “poorest of the poor”, were lost in the process.
This is an edited extract from the new introduction to the writer’s autobiography, Armed and Dangerous. This article is reproduced from The Guardian.
Labels: APARTHEID, RED RONNIE KASRILS
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COMMENT - For an article written by Sydney Masamvu, of the "International Crisis Group", together with ICG policy directory and former Senior Director for African Affairs under Bill Clinton, Donald Steinberg. (Huffington Post)
If The World Hesitates, Zimbabwe Could Be Lost. This also highlights how organisations like the DfID, USAID, and others can easily function as vehicles for agents, saboteurs, etc. And why US government intelligence on Zimbabwe has been so poor. I mean, how many Curveballs are there out there?
WikiLeaks outs US, SA double agent
10/09/2011 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter
A ZIMBABWEAN journalist-cum-political commentator used his position as an analyst for an NGO to gain access to senior South African government officials – then sold details of their discussions to American diplomats.Double agent Sydney Masamvu was taken into the confidence of South African officials in intelligence and foreign affairs as they sought to formulate their policies on Zimbabwe.
Unbeknown to them, the former Daily News reporter was all the time working with the American embassies in Harare and Pretoria, channelling details of their discussions, according to a shock US diplomatic cable released by WikiLeaks.
The cable, dated April 30, 2007, from the US embassy in Pretoria, shows how Masamvu has operated in South Africa as a possible double agent -- supplying intelligence to both the South African and the US governments.
The “confidential” cable, which lists Masamvu as a “close Embassy contact” whose name is followed by the instruction to “strictly protect”, details how he indulged in double dealing -- proffering intelligence to both the US and the SA government officials.
The cable is one of more than two dozen detailing Masamvu’s contacts with the Americans. Over two days between April 24-25, 2007, Masamvu discussed the Zimbabwean crisis on topics ranging from Zanu PF politics and MDC internal affairs to the national security services with South African Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Aziz Pahad, Intelligence Minster Ronnie Kasrils, Head of National Intelligence Coordinating Committee, Barry Gilder, and Foreign Affairs Director General Ayanda Ntsaluba before briefing his pay-masters at the US embassy in Pretoria.
According to the cable, “a visibly exhausted Masamvu provided a read-out of these marathon meetings on April 26” to the Americans, suggesting that he was indeed on assignment.
Masamvu, who also met with the then ANC Secretary General Kgalema Motlante – now Vice President -- missed an opportunity to meet with President Thabo Mbeki through Pahad’s facilitation only due to “scheduling complications”.
In one incident which confirms his double dealing, Masamvu accepted a request from Pahad to supply “a five-page paper by May 04 detailing his core recommendations for Zimbabwe policy”, only for Masamvu to supply the information to the US government with a further personal request on “what to emphasise in his paper”.
According to the cable, the US government received the information with glee, alerting its Harare embassy to prepare information and questions which Masamvu would then prepare “in his own words”.
So deeply-steeped into this double dealing was Masamvu that he not only easily met with whom he pleased, but he got senior SA government officials to take him seriously as an authority on Zimbabwe.
In his meetings with the South African officials, he was asked questions on “pressure points” on Mugabe and the MDC leadership. According to the cable, Pahad confirmed his disdain for the MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai and his preference for secretary general Tendai Biti.
In one embarrassing incident for South African intelligence, both Kasrils and Gilder took down “copious notes asking a series of questions” as Masamvu analysed for them the “various alliances” within the military -- leaving Masamvu surprised “since his information was common knowledge in Zimbabwe”.
Masamvu, not famed for any excellence among his colleagues in the media and NGO community, is not done any service either by the US embassy’s Charge d'Affaires, Donald Teitelbaum, whose cable states that “it is unusual for South African government officials to spend so much time with an NGO analyst like Masamvu”.
Masamvu, a graduate of Harare Polytechnic’s Division of Mass Communication, started his career at the Financial Gazette where he did his internship, rising to become the political editor.
He was later to join The Daily News as an assistant editor, doing so after his former editor at the Financial Gazette, Francis Mdlongwa, joined the paper and took his team with him.
Earlier in his career, Masamvu had surprisingly won a US journalism award in 2001.
In 2003, Masamvu won a Chevening Scholarship to study for a Masters degree in International Journalism at Cardiff University in Wales, and shortly after got a job as an analyst for the International Crisis Group based in South Africa even before submitting his dissertation.
He currently works as a senior political analyst for the Institute for Democracy in Africa (IDASA).
******************
MrK:
Keith Harmon Snow writes on the International Crisis Group:
For years now several high visibility Western intelligence organizations, in particular the groups ENOUGH, STAND, Genocide Intervention Network, and the RAISE HOPE FOR CONGO—created and funded by the International Crisis Group and Center for American Progress—have lobbied college students and Western governments to action.
Legislation backed by these intelligence fronts includes the “LRA Disarmament Act” (Lord’s Resistance Army), the so-called ‘Blood Minerals’ legislation, and the “Violence Against Women Act” (Resolution 1888). The Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) is blamed for all terrorism in the northern Uganda region, which is awash in oil, thus shielding the organized war crimes of Ugandan President Museveni and his western allies, just as the Forces for the Democratic Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) are blamed to shield the Kagame terror networks.
Labels: INTERNATIONAL CRISIS REPORT GROUP, PROPAGANDA, RED RONNIE KASRILS, WIKILEAKS
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COMMENT - One of the ANC's and MK's great freedom fighters, 'Red' Ronnie Kasrils.
Ronnie Kasrils
Minister for Intelligence Services
Republic of South Africa
2004 -
Ronnie Kasrils was appointed to President Thabo Mbeki’s cabinet as Minister for Intelligence Services after the third democratic elections in South Africa on 27 April 2004.
He brings to the portfolio a personal experience of intelligence and security– acquired through the many years he served in the African National Congress’ clandestine structures.
Prior to his appointment, Kasrils served as the Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry (1999- 2004) and Deputy Minister of Defence (1994 -1999).
Early life
Kasrils was born in Yeoville, Johannesburg, in November 1938. His grandparents were immigrants from Latvia and Lithuania who fled from the Czarist pogroms at the end of the 19th century. His father was a factory salesman. His mother worked as a shop assistant prior to her marriage.
A matriculant at the King Edward VII High School, he excelled in athletics and history.
His initial career was as a script writer for a Johannesburg film studio and then for Lever Brothers, as Television and Film Director for their advertising division in Durban, until 1962.
Political history 1960 – 1994
The Sharpeville massacre prompted Kasrils to join the African National Congress (ANC) in 1960, serving as the secretary of the ANC-aligned Congress of Democrats in Natal until it was banned in 1962.
His involvement led to bannings from gatherings and various forms of employment, and having his movement restricted to Durban.
In 1963 he registered to study a Bachelor of Arts degree and joined the Cross Country Team at the University of Natal. His plans were cut short when the security police sought to arrest him under the draconian Terrorism Act.
He evaded arrest and began operating underground.
A member of Umkhonto weSizwe (MK), the ANC’s military wing, since its inception in 1961, he was involved in its first operation. In 1963 he became the Commander of the Natal Regional Command of MK.
Exiled years
On the run from police, wanted notices were posted declaring him “armed and dangerous”. Kasrils eventually joined the ANC in exile where, over the next 27 years, he served in various capacities and deployments in London, Luanda, Maputo, Swaziland, Botswana, Lusaka and Harare.
Alongside the late Joe Modise, then MK Commander, and Commissar Moses Mabhida, Kasrils completed a general military course and a military engineering specialist course, graduating from the Odessa Military College in the Soviet Union at the end of 1964.
He went on to complete a specialist course in intelligence and a general officers course at Brigadier level. In 1983, Kasrils was appointed Chief of MK Intelligence.
He served on the ANC’s Politico-Military Council (PMC) in Lusaka from 1985, of which Joe Nhlanhla was secretary, on the National Executive Committee (NEC) from 1987, and on the South African Communist Party’s Central Committee (SACP) from 1985.
Kasrils also worked closely with the late Mzwai Piliso, who was the ANC’s head of security and intelligence, during his deployment to Angola as a political instructor in 1977 and later as Regional Commissar.
Just before the unbanning of the ANC in February 1990, Kasrils played an active role in Operation Vula which aimed to infiltrate leadership back into South Africa. He consequently lost the indemnity given to returning NEC members by FW de Klerk’s government – and again was on the run from police, this time until June 1991.
In July 1991 he was elected to the ANC’s NEC and in December, that same year, to the SACP’s Central Committee. He served on these structures, until 2007.
From 1991 to 1994, Kasrils also headed the ANC’s Campaign Section at the organisation’s headquarters in Johannesburg, was an active participant in the negotiations between MK and the former South African Defence Force (SADF) and a member of the Transitional Executive Council ’s Sub-Council on Defence.
The new Democratic South Africa
Deputy Minister of Defence 1994 - 1999
In 1994, Kasrils was appointed Deputy Minister of Defence to the late Joe Modise, serving in the position until June 1999.
During this period he assisted Modise in the amalgamation of the previous adversarial military forces into a new South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and was engrossed in overseeing its transformation programme. This involved an unprecedented national defence review with extensive consultation, the creation of a civic educational programme and for the military, a defence re-equipment package to modernize the armed forces and replace obsolete weapons systems. Despite later criticism of the defence package it was based on the consultative review process which had the broad-based buy-in of all political parties and representatives of civic society.
Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry 1999 - 2004
From a military to water and forestry porfolio, Modise explained that his background had in fact helped prepare him since “the rivers and forest of the country and region were part of his natural habitat and sanctuary during the liberation struggle”. Kasrils described the metamorphosis as “from fire to water”. His most fervent wish, he said, was “to deliver safe water to the poor, the weak and the hungry”.
During his term as Minister for Water Affairs and Forestry, Kasrils prioritized:
The achievement of affordable and sustainable delivery of clean water and sanitation to all of South Africa, particularly the rural poor.
The protection and sustainable development of the country’s water and forestry resources, and
Transformation and representivity in his department, in keeping with the democratization and demographics of South Africa.
In his capacity as Minister, he played a prominent role in the establishment of the African Ministers Council on Water (AMCOW), participating in various international water conferences including the Johannesburg World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD).
Minister for Intelligence Services 2004
On his appointment to the intelligence portfolio in April 2004, Kasrils reiterated his commitment to working towards the safety, security and prosperity of South Africa.
Family
Married to Eleanor nee’ Logan since 1964, they have a daughter, two sons and two grandchildren. Eleanor too has a long history of political involvement. A member of the ANC and MK, she was arrested by the security police in Durban in 1963 – but outwitted the authorities and managed to escape from custody to join Kasrils before the couple were instructed to leave the country.
While in London, Eleanor studied geology and worked in various educational institutions. In 1992 she worked as archivist to the late Oliver Tambo.
Favourite pastimes
They include swimming, watching sport, reading, writing and, as he puts it, “I have become a struggling golfer”.
Palestine
Kasrils has passionately espoused the cause of the Palestinian people for justice and national self-determination and believes this is the only way to secure peace and security for both Israeli and Palestinian peoples. He believes that as a South African of Jewish origin he has a moral obligation to speak out against Israel’s unacceptable policies and has founded a South African solidarity group called “Not in my Name”. He has written numerous articles and letters on the issue and in February 2004 met the late President Arafat in Ramallah. He has been to Palestine several times and with the Palestinian Ambassador to South Africa, Ali Halimeh, has founded the broad based “End the Occupation” committee.
United Nations Role
In April 2004, United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan invited him to serve on his Advisory Board on the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals for Water and Sanitation.
He was invited to deliver the Inaugural “Sir Richard Jolly Lecture” – who is the past Chair of the Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC) at the United Nations. The lecture was delivered on 30 April 2004, just two days after his appointment as the Minister for Intelligence Services.
Honours
Honours include a Cuban friendship award in recognition of solidarity support and a Nigerian chieftancy with the title “Emere Nyine Onana 1” (Chief of Good Deeds)
Publications
“Dear Bertrand Russel”, a selection of his correspondence with the general public, 1950 – 1968; published by George Allen and Unwin, London, 1969. Compiled and edited by Ronnie Kasrils and Barry Feinberg.
“Bertrand Russel’s Amercia”, his transatlantic travels and writings, Vol 1, 1896 – 1945. George Allen and Unwin, London, 1973. Co-authored with Barry Feinberg.
“Bertrand Russel’s America”, 1945 – 1970, Vol 2., London 1984, Co-authored with Barry Feinberg.
“Poets to the People” edited by Barry Feinberg, Published by George Allen and Unwin, 1974 and Heinemann African Writers Series, London, 1980. Includes a collection of poems under pseudonym ANC Khumalo.
“The Archives of Bertrand Russel” – a detailed catalogue of the Archives of Bertrand Russel. A limited edition published by Continuum, London, 1967 compiled by Barry Feinberg, Ronnie Kasrils and others.
“Armed and Dangerous – from undercover struggle to freedom” – an autobiography of Ronnie Kasrils. Published by Heinemann, United Kingdom, 1993; and Jonathan Ball, Johannesburg, 1998 and revised in 2004.
Articles
Numerous articles written between 1965 and 1990 on South Africa’s history and political struggle published in ANC and SACP periodicals ‘Sechaba’ and ‘ African Communist’ as well as in East and West African newspapers and journals under pen names ‘ANC Khumalo’, ‘Alexander Sibeko’ and ‘MK Mtungwa ’.
Among these were:
“The Battle of Isandlwana” in the African Communist on the centenary of the event in 1979.
“The Underground Voice” in the African Communist
“Twenty-five Years of Umkhonto weSizwe” in the African Communist
“The Red Army’s Victory over Nazi Germany” in the African Communist, 1985.
“On Insurrection” in Sechaba, 1986.
“Clandestine Methods of Struggle” a series guide, in umSebenzi, 1987 – 1989
“For the Sake of our Lives”, a guideline for creating people’s self-defence units, 1991
Following the unbanning of the political organizations and the creation of a new democracy in South Africa, Kasrils continued writing with his works appearing in South African newspapers and international journals. From 1994 his articles became focused on defence, development, water resource and forestry and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Noteworthy among these: “David and Goliath – Who is Who in the Middle East” ; pamphlet published by the ANC, 2007. “The Paradox of Cuito Cuanavale”, paper presented at a meeting in Havana, April 2008, on the twentieth anniversary of the Battle.
Labels: COMMUNISM, RED RONNIE KASRILS
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