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Title: Working Class Livelihoods Author: Bongani Maponyane Date: November 27, 2014 Language: en Topics: South Africa, workers struggle, community Source: Retrieved on 5th August 2021 from http://anarkismo.net/article/27658
Rising inflation means increases in food and petrol prices. Inflation is
a global problem, driven partly by conglomerates maximising their
profits at the expense of ordinary people. The state plays its role,
continually raising prices for services.
The pressure of capitalism has impacted on our lives. It has caused
clashes within the working classes, resulting in discrimination and
prejudice. Ruling class elites – the political and economic elite –
benefit from these struggles between people who compete for scraps from
their tables.
Khutsong, known as a community active in struggle, is marked by many
hardships. Many are linked to inadequate public and taxi transportation
systems.
Rising water and electricity tariffs were imposed on the community
without any consultation. As a result, the taxi industry has hiked
prices. Many people began using other means of transport, like hopping
into friends’, or other people’s cars.
The local taxi association has tried to prevent commuters from doing so.
Taxi drivers are stopping car owners found carrying passengers picked up
along the road. Drivers say that they are unable to keep up with
instalments, vehicle services and monthly debt. According to a driver
who asked to remain anonymous, if commuters start using private cars
“[t]his will cause big financial problems for us. So we are not
fighting. We just want things back to normal.”
But this leads to much misunderstanding and conflict; it has been going
on for months. And community members are, not surprisingly, unhappy
about this situation.
This has all been to the benefit of a few capitalists who own the taxis
and employ the drivers. The drivers are also workers, but are being
pushed into conflict with other working class people.
Due to the increases in costs, people are also increasingly buying food
in the township (Khutsong) rather than in the “town” (Carltonville). But
here other conflicts of interest within the community emerge.
Khutsong is a relatively diverse community which includes Pakistanis,
Ethiopians and Indians. Many of these people run small trading
businesses, usually “spaza” shops (small informal shops). These compete
with shops run by black South African locals, many of which have closed
down. This creates grounds for more conflict and misunderstanding.
For the average person trying to look after themselves and their family
– on a low wage if they are lucky enough to even be employed – all these
rising costs have a very negative impact. Nor can those who have retired
make ends meet, due to the little they have and receive at retirement.
People cannot live like this – people cannot sustain themselves due to
these situations. The ruling class in the state and capitalism are
living well. So where is the equality in all of this?
These economic and political crises that have a negative impact on the
majority of society are called many things by the bosses: the
“meltdown”, the “credit crunch”, the “recession” – all complicated terms
that people don’t understand.
We, the masses, need to educate ourselves politically to emancipate
ourselves from mental entrapments – including conflicts that divide us
that benefit the bosses and politicians. Not forgetting our
“lumpenproletariat” brothers and sisters suffering on the streets who we
must bring into the struggle for a better world.
The massive Anti North-West Campaign (the Khutsong struggle around
provincial demarcation) a few years ago showed the true nature of the
community – a community of solidarity, resistance and rebellion.
We need this heroic character to shine again in our fight against the
bosses in the state and in business. All of their wealth, whether
through exploitation at work or through taxation and tariffs, is
generated by the working class, both employed and unemployed.
With hierarchical systems in place that loot the working class and poor,
but which exempts big corporations from tax, and politicians from
accountability, there can never be justice – and therefore no peace.
Much of our lives is still dictated by the legacy of apartheid, but
perpetuated by greedy state officials and big business owners.
Will the community rise against this challenge, or rest like the name it
carries?[1]
[1] “Khutsong” means “place of peace” in Setswana