South African ruling party launches election campaign

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, January 12, 2004

South African ruling party launches election campaign

The South African ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC), officially launched its general election campaign with 45,000 people turning out in a mass rally in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday.

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The South African ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC), officially launched its general election campaign with 45,000 people turning out in a mass rally in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday.

As president of the ANC, South African President Thabo Mbeki delivered a speech, promising "better life for all" in the country with a total population of 45 million. The president was flanked by the ANC leaders, including party Chairman Mosiuoa Lekota, its Deputy President Jacob Zuma and Secretary General Kgalema Montlante.

Pietermaritzburg is 499 km south of Johannesburg and the capital of KwaZulu-Natal province where houses large black population. Their presence in KwaZulu-Natal, a province which the party has failed to secure in the last two elections in 1994 and 1999 marks what is set to be an intense electioneering campaign aimed at capturing the province from the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP).

With ANC' flags of black, green and yellow colors breezing above in the Harry Gwala Stadium, the 62-year-old president made commitment to the mass gathering, pledging: "the election shall be carried out free and in peace," and "more jobs and eradication of poverty."

He assured the people "the struggle against poverty would be the centerpiece of our strategy further to consolidate and deepen the national democratic revolution."

"We also called on our people to join in a popular movement for reconstruction and development, rallying around the traditional African practices, characterized by both mutually beneficial collective work and individual self-reliance," he said.

He said: "We must strengthen the people's contract to push back the frontiers of poverty and expand access to jobs and a better life for all." They have also chosen the province as the launch-pad for their national election campaign.

Besides the launch of election campaign, the ANC members also brought in with a large birthday cake on the occasion of the 92nd anniversary of the founding of the African National Congress, now with 400,000 party members in the country.

On Saturday evening, Mbeki unveiled his ruling party's manifesto for 2004 national election by declaring to "radically reduce the levels of unemployment and poverty."

Addressing more than 700 high-ranking officials from the African National Congress and the government in Ethekwini City Hall in coastal city of Durban, Mbeki promised to "reduce unemployment by half through new jobs, skill development, assistance to small business, opportunities for self-employment and sustainable community livelihoods and reduce poverty by half through economic development, comprehensive social security, land reform and improved household and community assets."

Political observers here noted that unemployment and poverty still remain two biggest problems for the black government, which came into power in 1994 through hard struggle against centuries of colonialism and apartheid.

Jeff Radebe, minister of Public Enterprises, head of ANC Policy and chairperson of ANC Manifesto Drafting Committee, declined to tell the numbers of unemployment and poverty.

However, a recent National Productivity Institute report shows that the number of South Africans living in poverty is estimated at anywhere between 45 percent and 55 percent or about 20 million to 28 million people and is not confined to any one race group.

With a total population of 45 million, South Africa is one of the countries which have highest unemployment rate in the world, namely 40 percent of the total population.

Source: Xinhua

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