YCL+rejects+falsification+of+P+W+Bothas+role+in+history,+YCLSA

//PRESS STATEMENT, 02 November 2006//
=YCL REJECTS FALSIFICATION OF P.W.BOTHA'S ROLE IN SA HISTORY=

The YCL notes the death of the racist P.W. Botha who maintained the Apartheid regime, which dehumanized a majority of the black South Africans. It was Botha’s regime that also destabilized the Southern Africa. As the YCL we are also concerned that P.W. Botha has never shown any remorse or extended a hand of reconciliation to the black people who suffered under his racist, capitalist and sexist policies. We commend all those who came to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and continue to build South Africa on the new foundation based on non-racialism and non-sexism. However, reconciliation is not sustainable in the context of material inequalities that Botha, his predecessors in alliance with white business perpetuated. National reconciliation without the resolution of class inequalities is not possible.

We also want to publicly dispel the lies being spread by F.W. De Klerk that Botha played a role in the demise of Apartheid. F.W. De Klerk must not try to re-write our history to distort our national memory. It was the masses, not the racist leaders who brought the Apartheid regime to an end. The late Apartheid reforms such as the Wiehman labour reforms, tricameral parliament and Black Local Authorities were a response to the mass struggles against the system. These reforms were meant to save Apartheid capitalism which was in crisis due to mass struggles.

It is our view that the continuous overemphasis on the role of leaders, including the Apartheid racist leaders as having played a major role in bring about social change in South Africa perpetuate the ‘great person’ theory of history, which emphasizes the role of leaders at the expense of masses. It is this mode of history writing that Botha’s Bantu education propagated in schools.

We want to salute the role of Afrikaner heroes and heroines of our struggles such as Bram Fischer and Bettie du Toit who fought side by side with the black people against oppression and exploitation of the working class. In honour of these heroes and heroines for a society based on human solidarity, we call on the South African government to name the Cape Town International Airport after Bram Fischer. We also call on government to name the FNB Stadium after the Bettie du Toit for her role in the fight against the exploitation from which white monopoly business such as Anglo-American and its FNB generated enormous profits. It is Anglo-American and other businesses that did not only benefit from the racism and sexism but also denied people such as Bettie du Toit to realize their potentials in sports and recreation because they had to spend their time in the fight against exploitation and oppression.

As the YCL we will continue to build on the traditions of these Afrikaner freedom fighters by working closely with all the youth from all walks of life, including the Afrikaner working class youth, in order to build on the human solidarity foundation laid by Bram Fischer and eradicate Botha’s racist and sexist legacy that continues to afflict different spheres of our lives. Our recent meeting with the AfriForum and Freedom Front-plus Youth is a giant step towards this direction.

Issued by the Young Communist League

For more information contact:


 * David Masondo**
 * YCL National Chairperson**
 * Cell: 082 570 5446**


 * Or**


 * Castro Ngobese**
 * YCL National Spokesperson**
 * Cell: 082 567 3557**

573 words