The South African Communist Party (SACP) has concluded its three-day Conference of the Left in Boksburg with a resolution to establish a permanent Council of the Left, a coordinating body designed to unite progressive formations around shared programmes and working-class interests.
An SACP spokesperson confirmed that the council would serve as a platform to implement and monitor the political processes outlined during the conference. The spokesperson emphasized that the body is not a new organization with binding authority, but rather a coordinating mechanism composed of representatives from all participating formations, with each organization holding equal voting weight.
“The Council of the Left is the coordinating body. It is not an organization in itself,” the spokesperson stated. “It is on the basis of consensus that particular positions can be taken forward for the benefit of these organizations.”
The SACP General Secretary addressed conference participants, calling for unity among forces fighting for the working class. The address listed those whose interests the movement seeks to advance: farm workers, mine workers, informal traders, pensioners, nurses, teachers, cleaners, security workers, shack dwellers, and the rural poor.
“They are entitled to expect that the left and progressive forces can unite in action, name the system that oppresses them, contest state power, transform society, and fight for a future based on dignity, equality, peace, land, work, public ownership,” the General Secretary said.
The conference also called on the working class to assume its historic leadership role—to unite the oppressed, organize the unorganized, and lead struggles in communities and workplaces as a decisive force for socialist transformation in South Africa.
Addressing questions about organizational independence, the SACP spokesperson clarified that participating groups retain full autonomy. Decisions within the council would be reached through consensus rather than democratic centralism, and no resolution would be binding on member organizations. This structure, the spokesperson noted, allows different formations to take varying levels of responsibility depending on the issue and their capacity.
On the matter of upcoming local elections, the spokesperson confirmed that political parties within the council would continue to compete independently. A parallel was drawn with right-wing parties, noting that competition between parties on the right is not interpreted as antagonistic, and the same principle should apply on the left.
“The point is to create a program that transcends ourselves as individual sectors and individual organizations,” the spokesperson explained.
The spokesperson also addressed debates over which formations qualify as genuinely “left.” It was argued that South Africa’s definition of the left must be context-specific, noting that traditional leadership structures, historically part of oppressed communities, cannot be automatically excluded from progressive coalitions. The spokesperson emphasized that the SACP’s approach prioritizes whether an organization’s constituency is primarily working-class, rather than applying rigid ideological tests.
When questioned about the inclusion of certain parties given their policy positions, the spokesperson cautioned against separatist stances rooted in historical contradictions. “If we’re to take that path, the Communist Party will hold a conference of the left by itself. That cannot be happening. It is unproductive and we don’t want to enter into that sort of discourse,” the spokesperson said.
Reflecting on the historical fragmentation of South Africa’s left—including Africanist, Pan-Africanist, Marxist, and Trotskyist tendencies—the spokesperson said the SACP is now prioritizing reconciliation of these fractures to build a united vision. The spokesperson acknowledged the party’s unique historical position as the country’s oldest political party and its longstanding role as a multi-racial organization, but stressed that current efforts focus on forward-looking coordination rather than past divisions.
On electoral prospects, the spokesperson declined to speculate on polling or vote projections, including comparisons to previous leftist party performances in national elections. Instead, confidence was expressed that the SACP’s sustained organizing would enable it to “make the necessary mark” in advancing working-class interests within formal political structures.
“Our intention is to legitimize a socialist cause in the formal political circles, no longer in the periphery,” the spokesperson said, adding that coalition-building would remain an option to advance this agenda.
The establishment of the Council of the Left marks a significant step in efforts to coordinate progressive forces in South Africa, though its impact will depend on the ability of diverse, autonomous organizations to find consensus on priorities while maintaining their independent political identities.
