A. PROTESTING AGAINST WORKER EXPLOITATION AND LABOUR BROKERING
South Africa in general but the Black working class in particular still suffers from the former super-exploitative apartheid regime and its economic scaffolding. Conditions for Black workers in South Africa are still simply unacceptable and the practice of labor brokering entrenches this. To quote our Federation, COSATU: “Labor brokers are nothing more than human traffickers, making huge profits by hiring out workers to their client companies as if we are no more than commodities like office furniture or stationery”.
 
We are calling on the South African Minister of Communications, Ms. Dina Pule, to:
 
- Initiate an immediate and absolute ban of labor-brokers in the industry;
- Do away with the concept of “casual workers” in the South African Post Office and convert those workers’ status to that of “Permanent Employment”;
- Re-instate the 588 recently dismissed workers at the South African Post Office;
- Immediately release the recent Corruption Report from the South African Post Office;
- Fully and completely nationalize Telkom;
- Stop Vodacom’s exploitation of South African workers and undermining of the Labour Relations Act;
- Implement a Bargaining Forum for Call Centers, Broadcasting, Postal, Telecoms and ICT industry.
 
B. BOYCOTT OF APARTHEID ISRAEL
In 2005, Palestinians including workers, unions, students and others called for a boycott of Israel as a non-violent method to bring Israel in line with international law, respect basic human rights and create the necessary conditions for a just peace to be fairly negotiated with the indigenous Palestinians. The Palestinian boycott of Israel has been modeled on the successful boycott of Apartheid South Africa, when we demanded that peace-loving peoples of the world boycott Apartheid South Africa in the 1980s.
 
South Africa's ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC), at its 53rd Mangaung Conference, reaffirmed and welcomed, all ISC resolutions, which included one in support of the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel campaign. In addition the ANC also adopted resolution 35 (c) stating: "The ANC is unequivocal in its support for the Palestinian people in their struggle for self- determination, and unapologetic in its view that the Palestinians are the victims and the oppressed in the conflict with Israel."
 
We are calling on the South African Minister of Communications, Ms. Dina Pule, to:
 
- Initiate an immediate investigation into all respective parastatals and the communication sector in general to ascertain what Israeli links and relations there may be;
- Upon being provided with evidence of an Israeli company or entity doing business within the communication sector, to immediately end this relation and, in the first instance, to replace this service provider with a local service provider which will lead to an increase of jobs for the people of South Africa;
- To immediately end the use of Amdocs (an Israeli company) by Telkom and replace this service provider with a local service provider which will lead to an increase of jobs for the people of South Africa;
- To immediately end the use of G4S at post offices, Telkom stores and others sites. G4S is an international security deeply company complicit in the illegal Israeli Occupation of Palestine (see: www.bdssouthafrica.com/2011/01/stop-g4s.htmlbdssouthafrica.com/2011/01/stop-g4s.html).
 
C. COMMEMORATING THE NAKBA (15 May 1948 to 15 May 2013)
 The establishment of the State of Israel on the 15th of May in 1948 is directly linked to several massacres, deliberate expulsions, the destruction of over 400 Palestinian villages and the systematic dispossession of the indigenous Palestinian people. More than 700 000 Palestinians became refugees in neighboring countries due to Israel's violent establishment in Palestine and at the expense of the indigenous Palestinians. Palestinian refugees and their descendants are the largest population of refugees in the world, who have for the last 65 years been cruelly denied their "right to return" to their homes by the State of Israel.
 
Today, Palestinian refugees and their descendants are estimated to number over five million. Many of them live in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip in poverty-stricken refugee camps. Israel has refused to allow Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and has refused to pay them compensation, as required by UN Resolution 194 of 1948. Israel does allow, however, any Jewish person from any country automatic citizenship to the former homes of these homeless Palestinian refugees. While Israeli supporters "celebrate" Israel’s establishment, Palestinians, progressive Israelis, supporters of justice and peace-loving peoples of the world mark the day as Al-Nakba (meaning the "catastrophe"). Nakba (meaning the "catastrophe").
 
In typical colonial behavior, Israel passed a bill in 2011, the "Nakba Bill"Nakba Bill", making commemorating the Nakba illegitimate and a criminal offence. This makes it all the more important for peoples from South Africa and elsewhere to ensure that this day is commemorated.

Find out more about the Palestinian Nakba/Catastrophe here on Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nakba_Day or here on Al Jazeera www.aljazeera.com/programmes/specialseries/2013/05/20135612348774619.html