A message of solidarity to Abahlali baseMjondolo

Two hundred activists from the following social movements and trade unions from across South Africa, and from Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, Nigeria, and Canada, representing nearly organisations attending the ILRIG Globalisation School were shocked to hear of, and condemned, the brutal murders of the comrades from Abahlali baseMjondolo that occurred on Sunday the 27th of September at the Kennedy Road Settlement. We would like to extend our condolences to the comrades, friends and family of the people who were so brutally killed. It is a very sad day when our people are murdered for simply discussing politics. We are outraged that such weapons are still so widely available and used to terrorize democratic movements. The murders are a clear sign that the elite feel threatened by people who self organise and who courageously air their views. Indeed, the attack on the comrades was an attack on the right of freedom of expression and organisation. We condemn the inaction and harassment of the police towards Abahlali. The murders of the comrades are a chilling reminder of earlier periods of our history - seen in the Western Cape with the Witdoeke in the 1980s, in KZN and the East Rand in the 1990s, and in the arrests and attacks on individual activists since the early 2000s. Capitalism is dotted with instances where violence has been used to attack and divide the working class. We do not regard these attacks as an “ethnic” or “tribal” war and condemn the ways in which ethnicity has once again been used as an excuse for political murders. We condemn these methods of trying to divide the working class and the poor. We are inspired by, draw courage from, and support the organising of Abahlali baseMjondolo. We grieve together and stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Durban.