Forty Years of the Kabwe Conference: Counter-Revolution in the Frontline States

Forty Years of the Kabwe Conference: Counter-Revolution in the Frontline States

(Portions of the Political Report of the National Executive Committee to the National Consultative Conference, which was presented by the President of the African National Congress, Oliver Tambo, 17 June 1985, Kabwe, Zambia)

Counter-Revolution in the Frontline States

“As Conference will recall, Mozambique attained its independence on June 25, 1975. In this regard, we might consider sending a message from this Conference to the people of Mozambique on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of their independence. Angola became independent on November 11th of the same year.

“Between these dates and the time of the revolution in Portugal, a complicated situation obtained both in Mozambique and in Angola, with the forces of counter-revolution involved in a series of desperate assaults aimed at destroying FRELIMO and the MPLA and preserving Mozambique and Angola as objects of imperialist plunder.

“The most determined counter-revolutionary offensive took place in Angola, spearheaded by an open invasion of that country by the racist army of the Pretoria regime and supported by United States imperialism and puppet forces within Angola. At the same time, the progressive forces in Africa and the world were forced to wage an intense struggle for the recognition of the People’s Republic of Angola.

The Heroism of Angola

“Our National Executive Committee kept this situation under review continuously. We took the positions that we must defend the MPLA as the proven representative of the people of Angola, assert the legitimacy of the People’s Republic of Angola, as well as support the right of the people of this country to determine their own path of development and to establish their own system of international relations.

“In this way, supporting the positions of the MPLA, we came out against the notion of a government of national unity that would have legitimised the puppet UNITA and FNLA. We stood for the immediate expulsion of the Pretoria invasion force from Angola, and fought against all imperialist intervention.

The Struggle for Our Continent

“We were convinced that the counter-revolution had to be defeated. Failure to achieve this victory would have constituted a severe setback not only for the people of Angola, but also for the liberation struggle in our region and the process of the progressive renewal of our continent. Accordingly, we battled within the OAU in particular for acceptance of our positions, which coincided with those of many countries on our continent.

“The heroism of the people of Angola, the firm and timely support rendered to them by the socialist community of nations and the world anti-imperialist movement, coupled with the relative weakness of the forces of reaction, succeeded to save the People’s Republic and thus further to shift the international balance of forces in our favour.

“We should bear in mind that these events were taking place at a time when the Pretoria regime was engaged in its ‘détente’ offensive, using the Zimbabwe question in particular as a vehicle to gain acceptance for itself on the African continent. We opposed this manoeuvre, determined to ensure that, in the interests of our own struggle, the counter-revolution must not succeed.

“We confronted the enemy offensive as a united movement, backed by our people inside the country, who had demonstrated their understanding, acceptance and support for the revolutionary perspective posed by FRELIMO and the MPLA, by organising the ‘FRELIMO rallies’ for which some leaders and activists of the Black Consciousness Movement had been arrested, sentenced and jailed.

“Up to that time, these events represented the sharpest confrontation we had with the apartheid regime in the struggle for the support of our region and of Africa as a whole. In a thousand battles and skirmishes, the question was being answered – would our continent march on from the victories in Angola, Guinea-Bissau and Mozambique to new success or would we fall back in the face of the enemy counteroffensive, submit to neocolonialism and the perpetuation of white minority rule? It is no exaggeration to say that our movement played a role, however limited, in getting our continent to decide against any retreat, in favour of a continued advance against racism, colonialism and imperialism.

“To prepare for this heightened confrontation with the racist regime, our movement had met in Conference from the 17th to 20th March, 1975. When we welcomed the delegates to that meeting we said: ‘At no time have we at brief notice assembled such a representative meeting attended by delegates from such remote places’. That Conference adopted a Declaration that frankly stated our positions in the face of the enemy offensive. We pointed out that:

“The enemy has already undertaken actions to enable him to maintain the sole right and power to determine the content, direction and pace of change in southern Africa. The speed of advance of the African revolution is threatened by this counter-revolutionary manoeuvre. The very gains of that revolution, as represented by the reality of independent Africa, are themselves threatened with compromise.” That is how serious the situation was when we had to convene once again in Morogoro.

Unity Throughout Africa

“We had timed our own Conference to precede the 9th Extraordinary Session of the OAU Council of Ministers which was being assembled to discuss southern Africa. We had to work to ensure that the positions we adopted at our Conference gained the acceptance of our continent as a whole.

“The African ministers resolved that our continent has: ‘as its important prerequisite the maintenance and strengthening of unity and solidarity of Africa in confronting the new situation in southern Africa. The enemies of independent Africa realise that this unity is the most powerful weapon in the continent’s arsenal. It is that unity and solidarity which Vorster, with his collaborators and supporters, are attempting to undermine. Therefore Africa’s urgent need to close its ranks in facing South Africa’s new tactics becomes self-evident.’

“The ministers went on to reject Vorster’s ‘détente’, reaffirmed their support for our movement and for armed struggle. They rejected the bantustans and called for the complete isolation of apartheid South Africa and characterised her as ‘the final major obstacle to Africa’s march to liberation’.

“All this signified that Pretoria’s political offensive into Africa had been defeated. The continent and our movement adopted the same positions. Ten months later, Pretoria’s military offensive into Africa, in this case its invasion of Angola, was also defeated. The People’s Republic of Angola had emerged victorious.

“Both these results were of great importance to our struggle. They demonstrated that the Pretoria regime could not impose its will on the people of Africa. The myth of the invincibility of the South African army of aggression and oppression was destroyed and buried for ever. Young white South Africans began to question themselves as to whether they should allow themselves to die in defence of the apartheid system.

Independent Africa Our Rear Base

“These victories had also conclusively demonstrated that our movement and struggle enjoyed sufficient support among the peoples of Africa for our continent successfully to defend and advance the interests of our revolution regardless of the means and methods our enemy used to subvert us and regardless of the support it had from its imperialist allies.

“The events of 1974–1976, however, also confirmed the importance of independent Africa as our rear base and the need for us to ensure that at all times it remains a reliable rear base. The justice of our cause speaks for itself. At the same time, the ignominy of the apartheid system addresses itself directly to the hearts of the hundreds of millions of the African masses on our continent.

“And yet, we have to be with these masses continuously, maintain contact with their brother governments and, in struggle, retain Africa on our side as territory hostile to the apartheid regime. Any weakness on our part in this sphere inevitably raises serious complications for our struggle.” (To be continued)

– Oliver Tambo (17 June 1985) –

Source:
Oliver Tambo, “The Eyes of Our People are Focussed on this Conference”, Sechaba, October 1985, pp. 2 – 9.

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