Defeat the Coup in the Central African Republic!

South African Defense Force in the Central African Republic

Defeat Imperialism!

AFRICOM out now!

Nor Return for Bozize!

Workers and Peasants to power!

On the 24th of March 2013 the Seleka rebel coalition took control of the capital of the Central African Republic (CAR) forcing president Bozize, who had unsucessfully appealed to the French and American imperialists for military support against rebels, was forced to flee the country. The rebel leader, Michel Djotodia, has since dissolved the constitution of 2004 and has declared himself president and minister of defence for the three year transitional period that will pave way for new constitution and elections. Djotodia indicates he will be redirecting contracts previously favourable to the Chinese to the Western Imperialist businesses. Ultimately this fighting, devastating one of the poorest nations, accelerating a serious humanitarian crisis including widespread abuses, looting and persecution is the face of the inter imperialist struggle between the emergent Chinese and their proxy the South African Defence Force (SADF) and Western imperialism. The African Union (AU) has suspended the CAR and will not recognise the rebels further imposing sanctions with the regional body Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) also stating that the rebel regime is illegitimate and proposing an 18 months roadmap that will see the creation of an interim council comprising the rebels, opposition and civic groups.

Despite the South African government’s figure of 13 dead, other sources report that among the dozens dead were children shot by the SADF soldiers who were there protecting the oil and mining business interests of top ANC leaders through the Shanduka group and Sasol alongside the Chinese interests. This triggered a revolt in South Africa (SA) that has forced the ANC government to withdraw the remaining soldiers. This is a political defeat for Zuma, China’s proxy comprador in Africa, after he had indicated that the soldiers would stay for as long as possible. The opposition alliance has refused to be part of the transitional government accusing the rebels of filling the posts with supporters of the regime thereby ensuring total domination of the transition. The rebels claim that their actions were provoked by the reluctance by Bozize to implement in full the ceasefire accord signed in January this year. It is clear that the rebels had the support of France, which had troops stationed in the capital during the rebel offensive and where a major French company Areva is mining Uranium in the Bakoum region alongside Elf and other monopolies, as reflected by the recent decree to review all trade and investment deals between Bozize and China. The US European Union and France have failed to issue a clear condemnation of the coup instead focusing on the so called legitimacy of the rebel regime.

The Central African Republic is a very poor country that relies heavily on foreign aid and assistance despite being endowed by minerals such as gold, diamonds and uranium as well as timber and oil which continue to be plundered by various imperialist thieves using weak and corrupt regimes in a country that has witnessed more coups than elections since its independence from France in 1960. Life expectancy in the country is around 40 yrs while the literacy level is very low adding to the brutal existence of the workers, poor farmers and the poor exploited masses.

Djotodia becomes the first Muslim leader in a country with a 15% Muslim population and various tribes divided by the militia leaders who constitute the Seleka alliance. The majority of the people rely on subsistence agriculture with about 74% of workers in the agriculture sector and the mines extracting precious minerals for the capitalist robbers. Years of Military rule have given rise to a very weak workers movement that aligns itself with the state at different periods and ensuring the total subjugation of the workers to the capitalist agenda.

The masses of the CAR are extremely poor and impoverished in spite of the mineral wealth of their country as a result of the brutal exploitation of the resources and workers by various imperialist states using the military and civilian leaders in the same way. Bozize like other military leaders came to power through the help of France but was soon discarded once he started to lean on the Chinese and the South Africans against his erstwhile allies. China is rapidly increasing its Outward Foreign Direct Investment in Africa in direct competion with the Western imperialists. China’s imperialist agenda uses the carrot strategy of “mutual development” presented as investment in infrastructure development. But China has the same agenda as the Western Imperialists to massively plunder the resources of the semi colonial states. On the other hand countries like France which have seen their influence and business positions weaken in recent years are now taking an aggressive role to stamp their authority against the growing influence of China and Russia in their former colonies and the fight has taken a very dangerous level as shown by the invasion of Mali to protect their access to resources and a weak and unpopular regime.

In a country ravaged by imperialism, coups and wars the position of the working class and the ordinary poor has been weakened to a large extent with the obvious result being the weak trade unions and the absence of meaningful revolutionary groups to organise the workers, youths, poor peasants, students and the general poor against imperialist plunder and dictatorship. This is the social base that must unite in order to defeat the various militias and foreign troops (imperialist proxies) operating in the country. We call for the creation of a revolutionary workers party which will organize this social base, which will lead an anti-capitalist and anti-imperialist united front of workers organizations to power by creating local struggle committees of poor peasants, workers, youth and the ordinary poor as the organizational basis for a workers and poor peasant’s government that will expropriate the imperialist plantations, mines and companies as well as institute real democracy. These are then our demands:

• Workers, poor peasants and youth organise to defeat imperialism and the military regime that seeks to serve imperialism! 
• Mobilise for local action committees to spearhead action to defeat the imperialists and their lackeys! 
• Forward to workers government that expropriates without compensation the imperialist farms, Mines and companies!   
• We call on workers in the imperialist countries of USA, France and China: take  the boot of imperialism off our necks! 
• Turn their colonial wars and proxy wars in Africa and Asia into class wars at home! 
• Defeat your  ruling class economic and military intervention! 
• For a Socialist revolution in CAR as part of a revolution in the central African states and Africa!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/apr/01/central-african-republic-leader-government

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/26/michel-djotodia-dissolves-constitution-c-african-republic-_n_2955356.html

Statement of the Revolutonary Workers Group of Zimbabwe.

Endorsed by the Liasion Committee of Communists April 7, 2013