African Revolutionary Writers, Part 5
Moses Kotane
The African National Congress
of South Africa is sometimes called “Africa’s Oldest Liberation Movement”. In this
limited series we are not attempting a comprehensive sampling of the abundant
South African revolutionary writing. But in this part we will look at four
South African revolutionary writers, together.
Starting with Moses Kotane, we
go on to Govan Mbeki, Oliver Tambo and “Comrade Mzala” (Jabulani Nxumalo). The
first is a letter, the next is a book chapter, the third a radio broadcast
script, or transcript, and the fourth is an article for the ANC publication
“Sechaba”.
It is a mistake to think that
Kotane’s famous “Cradock Letter” (attached; download linked below) was the
origin of the Africanisation of the Communist Party of South Africa. The
well-known Black Republic Thesis, imposed on the South African Party by the
Comintern, was far earlier in time (1927-1928). From soon after its founding in
1921 the CPSA had been a majority-black Party, though this was not always
reflected in the top leadership, and especially not in the beginning.
But Kotane’s plain and direct
1934 letter does perhaps mark a real turning point, because of the impact that
it had; because of the consequences. Kotane became General Secretary of the
Party in 1939, and then of the SACP, and remained in that office until his
death in 1978. He was also Treasure-General of the ANC for several years.
Kotane worked hard to make
the Alliance between the Party and the ANC a solid and permanent one, and his
name is historically associated with the Party’s approach to the National
Question, which has been so influential in South African history up to the
present time.
Here is Kotane’s even shorter
summary of his short letter from Cradock:
“My first
suggestion is that the Party become more Africanised or Afrikanised, that the
CPSA must pay special attention to S Africa, study the conditions in this
country and concretise the demands of the toiling masses from first hand
information, that we must speak the language of the Native masses and must know
their demands. That while it must not lose its international allegiance, the
Party must be Bolshevised, become South African not only theoretically, but in
reality, it should be a Party working in the interests and for the toiling
people in S Africa and not a party of a group of Europeans who are merely
interested in European affairs.”
The book from which this text
was taken (“South African Communists Speak”, 1981) gives the following note
below the “Cradock Letter”:
“The
Independent African National Congress (Cape) had been formed in 1931 by Elliot
Tonjeni and other left-wing members who had been driven out of the Cape ANC by
the dictatorial action of the chairman ‘Professor' Thaele. Tonjeni had been
banished to the Eastern Cape by Justice Minister Pirow, and the Independent ANC
drew most of its support from country branches in the region.”
Taken all together, the four
pieces of writing in this part should provide a good outline of South African
revolutionary history, and a good sampling of the South African revolutionary
writing style.
·
The above is to
introduce the original reading-texts: Moses Kotane, ‘Cradock Letter’ to
Johannesburg District Committee, 1934.
