Black First Land First

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Black Land First
Party leader Andile Mngxitama
Secretary General Siphesihle Jele
Deputy Chairman Zanele Lwana
founding October 2015
Alignment Black Supremacy ,
Pan-Africanism ,
Sankarianism ,
Anti-Capitalism ,
Left Nationalism
Colours) Red , green , black
Website blf.org.za

Black First Land First (short BLF ; German for example: "Black First, Land First") is an association and former party in South Africa . It sees itself as revolutionary and socialist . Only “black” South Africans are admitted as members, which, according to the definition of the BLF, also includes Indians and Coloreds .

history

The party was founded on October 24, 2015 after three MPs from the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) had to leave the group, including Andile Mngxitama. You had accused the EFF of being too close to the ruling African National Congress (ANC). Mngxitama henceforth led the party.

The BLF received financial support from the Gupta family to fuel tension between the population groups. In 2017 she received instructions by email from the British PR company Bell Pottinger , which subsequently went bankrupt due to the unfolding scandal . Even after the resignation of President Jacob Zuma , the BLF commented positively about him and members of the Gupta family, which Zuma and some of his relatives supported and could influence the governance in return, the so-called state capture (German as: "Acquisition of State ").

Mngxitama and his party ran numerous smear campaigns against South African journalists. Mngxitama, for example, circulated fake pictures of the editor of the South African edition of the Huffington Post , Ferial Haffajee. Again and again there are racist statements, especially against whites, as well as harassment and attacks.

One of the actions of the BLF in December 2018 was the high-profile slaughter of a sheep on Clifton Beach in Cape Town . A security service had previously chased away other beach visitors on behalf of whites. In March 2019, the BLF asked black people in the Western Cape Province to occupy wineries in order to declare a claim to the land. BLF members had already occupied a winery there in 2018.

The BLF ran for the parliamentary elections in May 2019 . The Vryheidsfront Plus party tried to have the IEC electoral authority forbid the candidacy because the BLF did not allow white members, but withdrew the complaint. Mngxitama had previously threatened armed resistance if the BLF were not allowed to participate in the elections. She received 0.11% of the vote and therefore no seat in the National Assembly .

On November 4, 2019, the BLF was removed from the register of parties despite its objection, as it excluded groups of the population from membership, although the law on political parties prohibits membership “on the basis of race, skin color or ethnicity”.

Program and organization

The main objective of the BLF, set out in the preamble to the statutes, is the expropriation of white landowners in South Africa without compensation. The former party invokes the Black Consciousness Movement and the teachings of Burkinabe President Thomas Sankara, who was assassinated in 1987, and sees itself as pan-African . The BLF is committed to the interests of LGBTQI people.

The "liberation from white supremacy" is also named as a goal:

"... to struggle by any means necessary to realize the liberation of black people from white supremacy, racism, patriarchy and capitalism. - ... to fight for the liberation of blacks from white domination, racism, patriarchy and capitalism by all means . "

The “African” philosophy pursued by the BLF is referred to in the statutes as Sankofa , after a bird of the same name from Ghana . This means that you learn from the past for the future.

The governing electoral body is the National Imbizo Assembly (from imbizo , isiZulu for "Assembly"), on which the National Coordinating Committee (NCC) is elected every five years . These include Provincial Imbizo , Regional Imbizo and Branch Biennial General Imbizo , on which the respective coordinating committees are elected. A proportion of women of at least 50% is required for the NCC and the Central Committee formed from it . Members who run for office must take the "Thomas Sankara Oath". Whites are not allowed to become members of the BLF.

The BLF's press organ is Black Opinion . The symbol colors are red-green-black.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g BLF Constitution. blf.org.za, accessed on April 5, 2019
  2. ↑ Siphe Macanda, Kyle Cowan: Revealed: how BLF's Mngxitama asked Gupta for funding. timeslive.co.za, May 31, 2017, accessed April 5, 2019
  3. ^ Mark Sweney: Bell Pottinger goes into administration amid South Africa scandal. The Guardian, September 12, 2017, accessed April 5, 2019
  4. ^ Pieter du Toit: That time a white guy went to Andile Mngxitama's press conference. news24.com from December 12, 2018
  5. ↑ Statement: Court rules in journalists' favor over BLF disruptions. amabhungane.org, August 10, 2017, accessed April 5, 2019
  6. ↑ A sheep becomes a victim of racism. nzz.ch from January 13, 2019, accessed on April 5, 2019
  7. ↑ Sandisiwe Shoba: Wine farmers apply for to interdict against Black Country First overland occupation. Daily Maverick, March 19, 2019, accessed April 5, 2019
  8. ↑ Mngxitama warns of armed struggle if BLF are left out of elections. citizen.co.za of April 4, 2019, accessed April 5, 2019
  9. ^ Result of the parliamentary elections on www.elections.org.za, accessed on 23 August 2019.
  10. ↑ Just in: BLF officially deregistered as political party. news24.com dated November 5, 2019, accessed June 7, 2020
  11. ↑ Black Opinion website , accessed April 5, 2019