Cde Jessie Duarte is no fool of special type and patriarchal gender power relations is real: an ANCYL's response to Cde Jim
The African National Congress Youth League we have noted with great concern NUMSA General Secretary Cde Irvin Jim's response to the article by the ANC Deputy Secretary General Cde Jessie Duarte. We have felt it important that if Cde Irvin Jim's response is not engaged some of the substantive issues in the debate could be missed and buried under a smoke of gossip and insults.
As we enter this debate we are aware of the great risk of being labelled especially by Cde Ivirn Jim as part of the conspiracy to oust the General Secretary of COSATU but given our conviction on the substantive issues it's a risk we must take. From the onset we think it is pot thinking and opportunist to reconstruct all sorts of gossip about Cde Jessie Duarte and not meant to enrich or engage the substantive issues raised by Cde Duarte but silence her out the debate on matters relating to gender power relations "nogal".
We take a particular exception to reference of Deputy General Secretary of ANC as fool of special type, we view this as not a characterisation but worst undermining and disrespect of women leader of the ANC, it boggles our minds and once again goes to insult the whole membership of the ANC that it can elect as its DGS such a fool to be its DGS.
Cde Jessie Duarte in her article raises critical issues relating to the manifest of patriarchal gender power relations in the workplace and in the broader struggle for women emancipation. In our view Cde Jim's response dismally fails to engage these substantive issues instead he degenerates into questioning the moral bona-fides of Cde Jessie and of course the usual cry of a conspiracy, we refuse again to degenerate to that level.
Cde Jim says "Jessie Duarte's position, as the Deputy Secretary General, is the second most powerful, organisationally, in the ANC. From our analyses of her article in the City press, she has, logically, a responsibility to contribute to the destruction of Vavi, the most vocal critique of the policies of the African National Policies"
As the ANCYL we take a strong exception to the insinuation by Cde Jim that the ANC has a "logical responsibility" to destroy Cde Zwelinzima Vavi because he is said to be its "most vocal critic" and that Cde Jessie Duarte's article was part of this "logical" campaign to destroy Cde Vavi. The ANC has a strong culture of democratic engagement, constructive and self-criticism; therefore it is an insult to the character of the ANC to insinuate that the ANC logical seeks to destroy its critics even worse when those critics are components of our own revolutionary alliance and worse General Secretary of ANC dependable and strategic ally in COSATU.
It was actually within this spirit of democratic engagement that Cde Jessie raised her views on the substantive issues arising out of the conduct of Cde Vavi. It appears if we follow Cde Jim logic since he has anointed himself as a private militia to sniper anyone who appears to even remotely criticise Cde Zwelinzima Vavi.
Cde Jim further says "Why? What is Jessie in a hurry to cover up by reducing this sordid affair into "an abusive power relationship"? Could this in fact be the retreat of evil forces whose scheme to destroy Vavi has backfired? " We have all now become all too familiar with this wolf cry of Cde Ivirn Jim, where Cde Vavi can't be criticised or even engaged without Cde Jim labelling you as part of the conspiracy to overthrow Cde Vavi.
We believe that as a trade union leader Cde Jim should be at the forefront of the struggle against exploitation of workers in general and the exploitation of women workers in particular as part of the broader struggle for social justice. We therefore view it as narrow of Cde Jim to selectively elevate the so called political conspiracy against Cde Vavi without engaging the apparent manifests of patriarchal gender power relations exposed by the allegations of sexual impropriety against Cde Vavi.
Cde Jim also says "We reject with the contempt it deserves the portrayal of woman, whatever their position, as mindless morons incapable of moral judgement when confronted with power, and thus deserving to be adjudged innocent in all sexual allegations, including rape."
We are perplexed at how Cde Jim who is a self-confessed Marxist can fathom such an un-Marxist logic; even budding Marxists know that in a class society all morality crumbles in face of economic power. In a class society all moral judgement is subject to the dominant class based power relations, for instance a person who decides to sleep with their employer/manager/ supervisor does so knowing fully that morally it may be wrong (Moral Judgement) but because it may positively or negatively affect their job security (Economic Power) their continue because economic power subdues any form of morality in a class based society. Indeed it appears in attempt to totally deal with the persona of Cde Duarte even basic Marxist logic is put aside in defence of Cde Vavi.
It is our view that both the alleged political conspiracy and the alleged abuse of office expose the underlying patriarchal nature of society. Women's bodies are used by male politicians as instruments to fight their narrow political battles and also by unscrupulous employers who use the advantage of their positions in the workplace to solicit sexual favours.
We therefore call on the entire progressive movement and COSATU in particular to advance the clarion call made by COSATU' s 2012 National Gender Conference when it said in its declaration: "The freedom we espouse is not complete and it is also under threat as long as gender relations remain unequal. The emancipation of the women means the emancipation of the men too as well as the whole society".
Statement issued by the ANC Youth League, August 7 2013
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