Delivered
by Cde Sonkhe Dube – International Secretary
Saturday 10
December 2016
University of
Johannesburg, Soweto campus
On behalf of the Swazi youth under the leadership of
the Swaziland Youth Congress, the youth league of the Peoples United Democratic
Movement we forward revolutionary greetings to the Young Communists League of
South Africa, its structures and fraternal alliances. We are honoured to be
part of the national council not only because we believe in socialism being the
future but because of the practical solidarity that the YCLSA and the SACP have
constantly offered to the Swazi struggle against an oppressive monarch. We believe
it is in the hands of young people to deliver and practically implement socialism
in our lifetime. We believe that socialism should not just be a slogan to
fascinate the masses of our people or a communist jargon to decorate our
documents but should be an ideology that should be practically implemented in
our societies to address inequalities.
The Swazi struggle will at all material times honour
and support the YCLSA and the SACP for the sacrifices that they have constantly
made for the Swazis, As we speak a communist from Limpopo by the name of cde
Amos Mbedzi is serving a prison sentence of 85 years in a Swazi prison. Another
South African communist by the name of cde Jack Govender lost his life in
Swaziland in support of the Swazi revolution. The sacrifices of these comrades
were not in vain and indeed Swaziland will be liberated in our lifetime.
We would also again remind council that the Swazi
youth is still oppressed by an absolute monarch who appoints the whole cabinet,
judiciary, members of senate and part of the members in the national assembly
without either a traditional or democratic mandate. We are the only country in
Southern Africa where political parties are banned and do not contest power. We
would also like to express our disgust at the regional organ of Southern Africa
- SADC - for appointing Mswati who is a dictator of note as the chairman of the
organ. As part of a region in which countries are ruled by political parties we
wonder how the chair will lead since in his own country merely shouting “Viva
PUDEMO” can lead to arrest and a prison sentence of 25 years. As a chair we are
waiting to see how he will address problems within political parties in the
region after his dismal failure to mediate in Zimbabwe when he led the TROIKA
organ forcing the region to seek the intervention of the then South African
president Thabo Mbeki to mediate.
We would also like to assure Council that the struggle
for the liberation of Swaziland continues because we also want to implement
socialism in our lifetime. We hope the National Council will adopt practical
resolutions on the Swazi question so that the transformation to socialism does
not leave out Swaziland for we have seen how such states become vulnerable to
imperialists who want to destroy neighbouring socialist states.
We wish the YCLSA a successful national council and
hope for an adoption of resolutions that will change the lives of poor South
Africans and influence southern Africa and Africa alike.
AMANDLA!!!
VIVA
YCLSA VIVA!!!
VIVA
SACP VIVA!!!
