In June this year President, Emerson Mnangagwa announced the next election dates. So all workers must consider the state’s balance sheet. The national debt to GDP ratio explodes year over year peaking to 102.33% in 2023, with our lives in hock to imperialist finance capital year over year into the future. Zimbabwe experienced another round of hyperinflation hitting a high of 175.8% in June retreating in July to 101.5% . This is how our ruling class imposes its debts on us, as long as we let them.
This is the second time, the other was last year around the same period, that in a short space of time the incomes of workers were wiped out by over 500 per cent with prices of basic goods and services ballooning at an absurd pace whilst incomes remain stagnant. Their debt imposed on the masses poses the question. For the working class to survive the capitalist system at home and imperialism must die. The working class needs to take control of wages and prices! Only the Revolutionary Workers Group(RWG) has a program to stop inflation. Our transitional program completes the national democratic revolution, it breaks the debt trap by workers self management and control of the big national and foreign businesses, industries, mines, and lands.
The immediate background to this is the neo liberal policies of the second regime which devalued incomes and savings by equating the values of the local currency and that of the US dollar in 2018 followed by a directive scrapping the use of other currencies other than the local one without express permission via the law. We need the laws to be written by and for the working masses, the poor and landless farmers. Our transitional program creates a bridge to the masses writing the laws that govern the economy, and that bridge is through class struggle, self-organisation and political independence from the capitalist class both foreign and domestic.
Through these raft of policies the state ensured that business and government made massive profits and surpluses respectively whilst the working masses continued to pay for the crisis through devalued wages right through the Covid-19 era. Internationally the last five years have generally been characterised by slow growth and a recession during the Covid-19 era with governments, from imperialist centres and semi colonies, resorting to attacks on incomes and working conditions to navigate the crisis of falling profitability.
STATE OF THE WORKING CLASS
The state of the working class is dire. De-industrialisation and informalisation of the economy has drastically reduced the numbers and quality of employed workers. Workers in formal employment now constitute a minority of the working population which is dominated by informal or self-employed workers with a large number of unemployed on the margins. This objective situation has weakened the working class coupled with subjective actions by leaders which have rendered the class redundant and docile in the face of attacks by capital. Very few trade unions are still standing up to attacks by both business and capital as they force on the working class the burden of paying for the crisis of capitalism in a subdued semi colony.
The situation has been made worse by the capture by the ruling party in alliance with its Chinese and Russian masters of a leading faction in the main trade union federation the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) at the 2021 congress resulting in the up to now dominant pro main opposition, Citizens Coalition For Change(CCC), faction being vanquished. Despite being aligned to the opposition the former leaders engaged in actions which despite being insufficiently prepared provided opportunity for deepening and broadening fight backs.
Today even token action has become taboo with the last nail in the coffin being the suspension of a militant trade unionist on spurious charges in desperate attempts to weed the federation of any alternative voices. The recent call by workers for action against useless local currency(ZWL) wages and in support of a petition to stop the president from signing the Labour Amendment Bill was actively sabotaged by the federation. Workers should organise themselves on the ground to conquer unions and a federation which are independent of various wings of imperialism through total workers control and militant action.
FORTHCOMING ELECTIONS
On 23 August presidential, legislative and council elections will be held. This will be the second time Zimbabweans go to a poll since the advent of the post-coup second republic. In the 2018 elections we called on workers to boycott the plebiscite as a contest between bourgeoise parties in which workers had no viable representative. Our assessment is that the election is heavily tilted in favour of the ruling party which has manipulated the pre-election environment as well capturing the election management body, Zimbabwe Election Commission (ZEC), despite its core base of the peasantry and beneficiaries of mining claims and residential stands in the cities and peri urban areas. South Africa Federation of Trade Unions(SAFTU), in its statement on the elections, acknowledged that the elections will not be free and fair and are essentially a contest between parties that represent the reigning and rising wings of imperialism. The opposition CCC enjoys massive support across the population especially from workers, informal workers, unemployed youths and urban poor. A large number of the peasantry also support it. The continued economic crisis and absence of a viable working class alternative have all worked in favour of the opposition despite its pro-capital and impractical Manifesto.
The chances of the opposition in this election can, to an extent, be favoured by the relative access to rural areas, digital innovation and cracks within the ruling party and regime which can manifest in the conduct of ZEC, the courts and security apparatus. Its greatest challenge will be the entrenched apathy among its support base and its organisational capacity as a result of shambolic primaries and sidelining of key leaders and groups. To its credit CCC did survive an onslaught to capture and/or crush it by the ruling party using an array of strategies soon after the death of its founding leader in 2018. It has emerged as a strong petit bourgeoisie party rising on the desperate support of the working class and poor masses eager for “change”. Despite the economic crisis and huge support, its ascendancy to political power depends to the extent to which ZEC, the courts and security forces are “pressured” to respect the will of the “people” by the working masses, ruling party factions, observers and most importantly the different wings of imperialism.
LEFT DIVISIONS ON PARTICIPATION OF WORKERS
Three distinct positions have emerged on the attitude organised labour, the working masses, youths/students, progressive movements, radical intellectuals and socialists should take on the impending elections. Two are on extreme ends with one occupying the middle space. The first one is that ‘…let us fully and unconditionally support the viable opposition, CCC, as the best foot forward to defeat the regime and usher in democracy first. Everything else, including key workers’ demands, would follow from this.’ No conditions just hope for the better thus giving the opposition a blank cheque. This position is being propelled by the pro opposition bureaucrats with some workers in tow. The second, and middle of the road, position is, that ‘…despite the character of the main opposition and facing a formidable and ruthless dictatorship workers cannot stand aside and have to offer conditional support to the viable opposition, CCC, by tabling workers demands to it.’ The main reason for this is the entrenching of an authoritarian dictatorship of the military supported regime that has closed all democratic space through crushing protests and strikes as well as persecuting and jailing activists and workers. A section of the working class and socialist organisations champion this call. They argue that not doing so will alienate the left from the workers still under the grip of liberal illusions.
The last position characterises elections as a bourgeoisie democratic ritual more so if it is a contest between capitalist parties. In the absence of a workers or centrist party workers would be called on to boycott the elections and concentrate on building their forces to fight neoliberalism and dictatorship in alliance with progressive sectors of society. It argues that, firstly, it is naive for workers to think that merely participating in an election being run by an authoritarian and neoliberal coup dynasty (waiting for turns to rule) can usher in a new government. Secondly, it is disingenuous to suggest that a new petit bourgeoisie neoliberal (anti-worker) government brings about democracy and good conditions for workers.
It is true that workers still have faith in CCC because of its roots in the working class but we cannot run away from the fact that once in power CCC will not serve workers but capital so it is our duty to point out clearly that a CCC victory will not fundamentally change the situation of workers. The condition of workers can only be transformed through struggle. It is not in dispute that we are in a semi-colonial authoritarian state presided over by a comprador bourgeoisie class managing the economy on behalf of both Western and Eastern imperialism and local capitalists whilst looting massively. It is doing everything to close the democratic space and take away workers rights simply because that is demanded by imperialism facing acute crisis coupled to late primitive accumulation.
“Crony capitalism” is small fish compared to traditional, historic capitalism and imperialism despite its apparent concrete and immediate form. It is expressed as anachronistic “primitive accumulation” which involves overt looting and corruption, actions that have been disguised by the big mafia through legal and ideological smokescreens. The basic proposition is that the working class should not rely on elections to change its situation. Instead it must take it upon itself to organise and lead the fight for basic social and economic rights and interests.
TASKS OF REVOLUTIONARIES FACING MONOPOLY CAPITALIST STATES
The level of democracy corresponds to the economic stability of a given country. It is naive to think that any new leaders would be neutral on labour and democracy issues especially now when the capitalist system threatens human existence and nature. An example is Zambia where the “liberal” Hichilema is already closing democratic space by blocking the opposition from holding rallies as the economic situation begins to deteriorate with the price of basic goods like mealie meal skyrocketing. The form of a bourgeoisie regime or state does matter to the working class in proportion to its level of organisation and preparedness to fight.
In Egypt and Sudan workers played a key role in bringing down brutal dictators despite subsequent retreat as a result of insufficient organisational and ideological independence. The crisis of the working class in Zimbabwe is a crisis of working class leadership. A liberal state can change into a dictatorial one and vice versa due to objective conditions and not subjective choices. Why do workers have to wait for elections to fight a dictator who is in charge of the elections when it could have unleashed the mighty power of the working class? What we are seeing is the deliberate design by labour leaders to ignore basic working class principles only to stampede behind a liberal regime as part of a counter-revolutionary global popular front with imperialism.
What then should be the attitude of revolutionaries to an election in which there is no workers’ alternative yet the issue of protecting the democratic space is of great importance? The ruling regime has become so vicious and brazen that in the near future it would be almost impossible to organise if workers do not act in time. The recently passed Labour Amendment Act makes it impossible to engage in a lawful strike whilst punishing severely anyone involved in collective job action, the bedrock of working class resistance and advancement of its interests. Other laws have been enacted to criminalise receiving support and solidarity from outside as well as making it impossible for community organisations to operate. What is more threatening is the lurking military faction of the regime waiting for total control and imposition of deep attacks on workers on the basis of a militarised state like Rwanda and Thailand. That would spell doom for the workers and must be resisted.
URGENT TASKS
Workers should not wait for five years to fight dictatorship and poverty through a popular front with an anti worker petit bourgeoisie party that is controlled by Western imperialism through the Brenthurst Foundation, a rabid anti worker outfit. Any call for support of the main opposition is a deliberate ploy to deliver the working class to imperialism disarming them for imminent struggles ahead, no matter the outcome of the elections. A united, mobilised and independent platform of workers alongside other exploited and oppressed groups can fight the dictatorship better.
Workers must fight and defeat partisan bureaucrats tying them to different imperialist wings thereby demobilising them. Ultimately, the question of working class action is a question of leadership and workers control of unions. We cannot rely on China to resolve our problems brought to us by western exploitation. Workers need to organise councils in the factories, build the unions and councils and coordinate them across Southern Africa that fight and are managed democratically, up to and including the insurrection by a Government of Workers and poor Farmers!
We recognise the counter-revolutionary character of the situation that requires us to advance our program of building an Anti-imperialist United Front(AIUF) of Southern African workers and poor farmers to resist the imposition of a regional and global Imperialist Popular Front(IPF) behind rival imperialist blocs East and West. For us in the first instance this is a matter of fighting imperialist proxy wars and building the international party to overcome the crisis of revolutionary leadership by means of militant propaganda for Trotskyism and Leninism.
For a sliding scale of wages and prices and employment for all who can work; working conditions should improve for all workers!
For the introduction of state projects to employ all the unemployed; central and local government must stop the attacks on vendors!
Land must be distributed to all poor peasants together with a state bank to provide inputs to all small farmers!
Jobs for all with a reduction in working hours until all who want to work can find a job!
To provide jobs for all big and imperialist assets must be nationalised and put under workers control and self-management!
Workers form action committees to lead the resistance to the growing attacks on the wages and working conditions of the poor and the livelihood of the majority poor!
We call for free and quality health care, housing and education for all!
Workers break with CCC and ZANU (PF) and form a worker’s party that truly champions the interests of workers and poor masses!
Workers form rank and file bodies to lead action in all unions and break with the reformist trade union leadership!
For a workers state that defends workers and peasants against the local and foreign capitalists!
No to US/EU and China/Russia imperialism fronted by the two leading parties!
No to reformism, centrism and fake Trotskyism, build a fighting socialist party!
For a workers and peasants’ government on the basis of the armed people to implement decisions that benefit the workers and the poor!
For an African socialist revolution as part of the international revolution that alone can guarantee a better life for all!
For a new World Party of Socialist Revolution based on the Transitional Program of 1938 to lead the revolution to end capitalism and open the road to socialism!
First Published in Revolutionary Workers Group of Zimbabwe Blog https://rwgzimbabwe.wordpress.com/2023/08/21/zimbabwe-economic-crisis-state-of-the-working-class-forthcoming-elections-and-urgent-tasks/
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