The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) led by Julius Malema has paid tribute to the late South Africa liberation struggle hero Thembisile Chris Hani.
Chris Hani, one of the most decorated liberation icon of South Africa died on 10 April in 1993 after he was assassinated.
He rose to prominence during the dark history of Apartheid in South Africa which saw black people being treated in an ugly way.
Below is the full statement issued by Economic Freedom Fighters remembering Chris Hani:
“The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) remembers the late struggle icon, Chief of Staff of Umkhonto we Sizwe, and the last genuine communist to lead the Communist Party in South Africa, Thembisile Chris Hani, who was assassinated on this day in 1993.
“It has been 29-years since Chris Hani was brutally murdered in a conspiracy by racists Clive Derby-Lewis and Janusz Walus, at his home in Boksburg in front of his loved ones.
“The chilling scenes of his bloodied body in his driveway, was the greatest confirmation that the Apartheid regime had no interest in a peaceful transition to democracy.
“Hani was a combatant who led the military wing of the struggle against Apartheid, which led a sabotage of the regime within the country and in the continent.
“As Chief of Staff of Umkhonto we Sizwe, Han established and built meaningful links with nations such as Mozambique, Tanzania, Angola, and received military, communication and leadership training from the Soviet Union as an ally.
“Moreover, Hani was a skilled operative, who invested in cadre development intellectually, with an acute understanding of the need for a socialist revolution that would be centred around the provision of free education, healthcare and the return of the land to African people.
“Furthermore, Han was an-anti-Imperialist who fiercely opposed neo-liberalism and capitalist economic policies as South Africa approached a democratic transition in 1994.
“It was Hani who pointed out the hypocrisy of the Apartheid regime in opposing nationalisation, when it had nationalised entities and provided subsidies for land use by Afrikaners, essentially establishing a welfare-state for the Afrikaner.
“Hani was a proponent of state-led development in transport, postal services, electricity generation and job-creation, stating explicitly that the role of foreign direct investment and the private sector will be guided by the state.
“Today his own liberation movement has not only betrayed these principles, but has begun sacrificing South Africa at the alter of the capitalist markets in all spheres of life, abdicating its responsibility as a state.
“It was Chris Hani who warned that the sudden moral reform of the likes of Apartheid butcher F.W De Klerk and his conspirators was not genuine, as they had not accounted for their crimes against African people.
“Today, as racists run rampant, abuse and kill black people, and refuse to share the wealth of this country, Hani has been proven correct.
“Hani represents the last generation of combatant allies of our people. He was never willing to compromise and stood with the likes of Mama Winnie Mandela in cautioning against excessive compromise in negotiations with the regime of terror.
“A Pan-Africanist and internationalist who spent a majority of his young life in the trenches of liberation camps across the continent, Chris Han was killed because of his ideas, ideas which today live on and are carried by the EFF.
“As such, Hani’s memory must be preserved and taught to African youth, as an example of selflessness and genuine love for his people.
“May the memory of Hani live on, and may we appreciate the role of African solidarity towards independence and economic liberation.
“Lala Ngoxolo Mkhonto!”
The statement was issued by Economic Freedom Fighters spokespersons Sinawo Thambo, Leigh-Ann Mathys and Sixolis Gcilishe.
