ANC to push for reform of global institutions

The ANC-led government has contributed to building a better Africa and world and the achievement of continental and international solidarity. According to the ANC, this earned the ruling party a good standing internationally.

The ANC’s pursuit of good international relations is informed by its guiding document, the Freedom Charter, which emphasises that peace and friendship shall prevail. To achieve this, the ANC uses its international network to achieve this.

The discussion paper dealing with international relations acknowledges the progress the ANC has made in this matter.

Having acknowledged this achievement, the ANC’s fourth national policy conference reaffirmed that the party remains committed to the African Union (AU) and its programmes. This commitment is also extended to the Pan African Parliament (PAP), Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and the Pan African Women’s Organisation (PAWO).

These relations also benefit young people through organisations such as the Pan African Youth Movement and the All-Africa Union that needs to be resuscitated.

South Africa has a department of international relation and cooperation (DIRCO), which serves as a link between the country and the global community. Through this department, South Africa will be hosting the BRICS summit in Durban, in March 2013.

The party’s commission on international relations recommended that to build a better world, the ANC must educate its members and the country’s citizens about BRICS, an international organisation made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. It further agreed that the government should initiate the establishment of a BRICS Bank.

Another recommendation is to intensify the Cuban Five campaign which advocates for the release of the five Cubans detained in the United States (US), with South Africa’s parliament passing a resolution calling for their release. The ANC has also called on the international community, especially the US, to remove the economic embargo against Cuba.

The commission reiterated the ANC’s support for the Palestinian people whom the commission regarded as victims in the Israel conflict. The ANC supports a just solution and called on the Israeli government to release all political prisoners. In their quest for peace and security, the ANC called on the Palestinian people, in Gaza strip and West Bank, to put aside their differences.

The G20 and G8 are considered a good platform for the international work. The commission agreed that South Africa should ensure that G20 discussions are focused on stabilising the world economy.

This will be achieved through building global partnerships to eradicate global poverty and realise a more equitable global economic system.

There was a call for reform of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. The recommendation was that the G20 must be a used as a platform to discuss these reforms which would include the representation of the developing countries.

The ANC has also lashed out at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for its selective prosecution of mainly African leaders. Therefore, the ANC called on the ICC to recognise the work done by the
African Union, its regional executive committees (REC’s) and individual African countries to promote peace.

This also includes ICC‘s respect for settlements of conflict on the continent and peace treaties. The party has also called on the South African government to encourage the AU to reinvigorate discussions and seminars on the reformation of the United Nations (UN), particularly the Security Council, for Africa to have a consensus view.

The ruling party is also worried about xenophobia. The ANC will develop a position paper on migration, immigration and xenophobia as contained in the 52nd conference resolution.

To deal with this situation, the South African public must engage in dialogue with the ANC through community meetings, to explain the role of non-South Africans in the economic growth of our country.

The ANC called on the Congress of the South African Trade Union (Cosatu) to educate foreign nationals especially Africans on their labour rights on minimum wage.

Other recommendations include accelerating the establishment of the South African Development Partnership Agency (SADPA) to assist the ANC and government in pursuit for better life.