Freedom Day

YCL National Secretary Buti Manamela will be addressing three different rallies in the Western Cape today in commemoration of Chris Hani. The first, at 11h00, will be at the Wallacedene Community Hall, Kraaifontein, the second at 14h00 at the Imizamoyethu Community Hall, Houtbay, and the third at 18h00 at the Chris Hani Residence Hall, Belleville. The rallies will also be addressed by other leaders of the Progressive Youth Alliance and by the Provincial leadership of the ANC, COSATU, and the SACP Raymond Suttner is a well-known SACP member, writer, struggle veteran and ex-prisoner in the cause of freedom. He has decided to pre-empt the judgement of the Jacob Zuma rape trial, expected next week, by publishing his own in the Business Day, and attacking the SACP in the process, of which he is as far as we know, still a member. There are obviously many individual views about this matter in the Party. In the case of a conviction, the SACP collectively will accept it. That is the inevitable corollary of the Party’s stated position of “innocent until proven guilty”. In the case of an acquittal, the Party’s caution will have been vindicated. But what will individuals like Suttner do? Are they going to go up against the legal system as a whole? See linked letter. COSATU’s Freedom Day statement is linked below, plus Bongani Masuku’s statement in the name of Swaziland Solidarity Network. Also linked are two notices for events on Tuesday, May 2nd. In the morning (at typically short notice) there will be a “Housing sector workshop” which will “take account of previous consultation processes”. If you blink, you miss these “consultations”. The other event, in the evening at Constitution Hill, is a book launch of a book called “Number Four”, about Constitution Hill and its prison origins. Links: Raymond Suttner takes his grievance to the Business Day (338 words) COSATU statement for Freedom Day (848 words) Swazi regime and fellow opportunists attack on COSATU diversionary (2799 words) Johannesburg Housing Sector Workshop 2 May 2006, Invite (Notice) Launch of book, Number Four, 2 May 2006 18h30 Con Hill