Date: 07/03/2008
Source: Friends of Jacob Zuma Trust
Title: ANC: Zuma: Address to Solidarity

General Secretary, Flip Buys,
Leadership of Solidarity,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure and honour to have been invited to address the closing dinner of your national Congress.

Being a former trade unionist, I feel at home in a gathering of workers such as this one. Solidarity has a good relationship with Cosatu trade unions. You also have a good track record in representing workers in the mining, metal, engineering, electrical and communications industries.

Most importantly, I am pleased to be addressing Afrikaner workers, who have a full commitment to this country and continent. You have no other home other than South Africa, and whatever issues you raise are aimed at making our country more successful, and to create a better future for your children.

I trust that the deliberations that have taken place over the course of this Congress will enable the union to better serve its members and contribute to the development of the South African economy and society.

We look forward to receiving a full report of the Congress outcomes and to engage on the many important issues that have no doubt been raised. I am aware that you seek further and more intensive engagement on issues, and we would certainly welcome that opportunity. Compatriots, occasions such as this congress provide an opportunity for us to celebrate the ushering of democracy in our country in 1994.

The advent of democracy produced a Constitution that enshrines various freedoms. This includes the freedom of workers to join trade unions of their choice. The rights of workers are protected in various pieces of legislation as you know, especially the Labour Relations Act. Being an activist union, you have taken full advantage of the legal environment, and are working hard to improve the lot of the Afrikaner worker and other members.

Barely two months ago, our organisation, the African National Congress, concluded our national conference in Polokwane.

We emerged from that conference united and more determined and ready to build a society in which all its people - black and white - can benefit from equal access to opportunities, decent jobs, safety and security, and an improving quality of life.

We produced a range of resolutions across a number of areas that are fundamental to advance the vision of a society that so many South Africans now share.

We know that we cannot build such a society alone. Only by working together as a nation - across boundaries of race, class, gender, history, culture and language - are we going to be able to realise the kind of future that we all seek.

Today's engagement provides a valuable opportunity to share our views and concerns, and together work to build the future we want for future generations.

I am encouraged to see that your work extends beyond shop floor issues, and that Solidarity actively works to alleviate poverty. Your Helping Hand Fund is a remarkable example of self-lessness and sacrifice, as it is financed by money deducted from ordinary workers, giving the union R500 000 a month.

You support 25 feeding schemes across the country, exclusively black. You distributed 2000 school cases and stationery packages to school children, more than 50% of whom were poor grade 1 learners. We congratulate you for such patriotic duty, which is an example of nation building in practice.

There are various issues that concern your members, one of which is the scarcity of skills in the country, which we also share. To grow our economy we need to expand our skills base. One solution is for us to focus on our schools and educational institutions to ensure that they produce quality graduates that are up to the demands of a rapidly-changing world.

We are willing to engage with Solidarity to know more about your project in which you will train about 5000 people this year, 450 of whom will be in scarce trades. We fully share your view that we should not ignore training our people just because it is cheaper to import skills.

We must examine where in our society rare skills can be found, that are currently not being utilised or which are being under-utilised. We see Solidarity playing a role in all of these areas.

Another issue of concern is no doubt affirmative action. We have legislation in our country that institutionalizes corrective action, because it is our view that the imbalances of the past should be addressed, for the sake of the sustainability of freedom and economic growth.

The majority of the population in any country would have to feature prominently in the economy to ensure long-term growth and sustainable development. I am sure that such issues are discussed vigorously on the shop floor amongst the employers and various labour unions, to ensure that the implementation of transformative legislation is understood by all the affected.

This is an important part of what we understand as affirmative action, bringing resources and opportunities to those who have never had it before. It also means taking steps to remove the remnants of minority privilege, so that all may compete on a level playing field.

As you will no doubt recognise, this is not an easy task. Some perceive the efforts to remove white or male privilege as an assault on the rights of white South Africans or on the rights of male South Africans. We need to answer such perceptions. And the only way we're going to do that is by sitting down and discussing such issues.

I know your concern that young white South Africans feel they cannot enter the labour market, and the fact that positions remain unfilled because the necessary affirmative action skills are not available.

You also state clearly that your position on affirmative action is not designed to protect the white elite which are guarding privileges, but to intercede on behalf of young people and ordinary workers who bear the brunt of affirmative action.

Let us find time to engage on these issues thoroughly and see how we can find common ground, for the common good of the country.

We all seek a society in which no person is privileged at the expense of another, and that no person is oppressed for the benefit of another.

That is why, among other things, the ANC welcomes increased interaction between the different formations of organised labour in this country.

The electricity crisis has affected all South African households, but in your case, it affects workers directly. I am disturbed to hear that some of your members are harassed by the public, even after hours, simply because they work for Eskom. They also have to work long overtime hours.

I trust that the union will, in its engagement with the employer, find an amicable solution very urgently. We cannot afford a situation where the low morale of workers affects the delivery of services.

Fellow South Africans, I know that you are concerned about the crime levels in our country. We have asked our branches all over the country to work with communities to assist law enforcement agencies to fight crime.

We congratulate members of Solidarity who already individually belong to various crime community forums and neighbourhood watches. That is the kind of community spirit that can assist us to reduce the hiding space for criminals. We are calling upon all communities to become actively involved and make our residential areas and business premises no go areas for criminals.

With regards to the economy in general, as a country we have made much progress in attending to the most basic needs of the poor - providing housing, water, electricity, sanitation, telecommunications and other infrastructure on a scale never before seen in this country.

We have improved access to schools and health care and have built a robust economy that has grown consistently, and has been creating jobs in greater numbers. But we still have a long way to go.

The levels of poverty amongst the majority of the population remain high. In addition, we share your concern about the rising poverty amongst white South Africans. We agree that the needs of the residents of 36 small white informal settlements in Pretoria needs to be taken care of.

We trust that the relevant government agencies are aware of this situation. In our further engagements with Solidarity we can see how we take this matter forward with our government.

As a nation, we face a number of challenges. But we must face them united. This has been demonstrated in many examples, such as the current electricity crisis. South Africans have united behind government and other players to find a solution.

We must promote a common nationhood, as there is a lot that binds us as South Africans. Our unfortunate history and our respective experiences in it and the remarkable manner in which we were able to negotiate a settlement on our own and usher in a new order are some of the uniquely South African traits around which we can rally.

The Afrikaans-speaking South Africans have a role to play in building the country. We belong together and must work together to build a prosperous, democratic, non-racial and non-sexist South Africa.

There is no need for fear, despondency or low morale. Instead, there should be higher energy levels and high spirits as we work to build a better and more prosperous country. We should be working harder together to take care of the interests of the poor and marginalized.

South Africa is politically, economically and socially stable. We have a model constitution, a vibrant political climate, a very politically alert population that knows its rights, a growing economy and many other attributes which should make us expect a better tomorrow.

Let us put fear and anxiety aside. South Africa belongs to all, and South Africa is your home.

Thank you.