Who has the right to carry the “Spear of the Nation” slogan in South Africa?

Former South African President Jacob Zuma's support for the new "Spear of the Nation" party led to the suspension of his membership in the ruling Congress Party (social networking sites)

The High Court in Durban, South Africa, postponed the ruling on a lawsuit filed by the ruling African National Congress against the newly established Umkhonto we Sizwe party, ruling that it does not have the right to use the name that belongs to the armed wing of the Congress Party during the struggle against apartheid rule in the country.

In front of the court building, dozens of veteran fighters were lined up in their military uniforms, supporters of the new party. Nearby, green flags fluttered, and a drawing of a fighter holding an African spear, meaning “Umkhonto we Sizwe,” which specifically means “spear of the nation,” while former President Jacob Zuma split it. His path was outstretched, swaggering and waving to his supporters.

Along the area surrounding the court building, ANC supporters also gathered in green and yellow shirts and wearing party flags, while its Secretary-General, Fikile Mbalula, joined the legal body to attend the session.

Fikile accused his rival, Zuma, of "trying to seize a king that does not belong to him," and said in a speech to reporters: "Even if we lose the case, our real battle will be in the ballot boxes to regain what is rightfully ours."

The court was convened to consider the use of the name "Umkhonto we Sizwe", which is closely linked to one of the largest and most successful liberation movements in modern history against the bloody apartheid regime that ruled South Africa.

The name “Spear of the Nation” was given to the military wing of the African National Congress during the apartheid period (Getty)

Intellectual property

The court's decision to postpone the pronouncement of the ruling came after a session that lasted approximately 5 hours, during which it heard the arguments of the prosecution and defense. But the postponement does not mean that the political tension between the ruling African National Congress party and one of its most prominent historical members, former President Zuma, will ease.

The scene in front of the Supreme Court headquarters reflects the extent of the intense political polarization two months away from the parliamentary elections. The African National Congress tried to avoid Zuma's defection, but the latter seemed determined to completely distance himself from his political legacy and history within the ranks of the party, which had previously brought him to the presidency in South Africa.

After the session ended, the former South African president addressed his supporters, saying: “There is no legal basis for the case. They (the African National Congress) believe they can win everything. We are the spear of the nation.” Zuma's speech before the court was not without attacking the history and present of the Congress Party.

In its plea, the ANC adopted that no party has the right to use the name “Umkhonto we Sizwe” and its flag, as they are national heritage. ANC legal advisor Gavin Marriott said the name and flag of the military wing were the intellectual property of the ANC.

Hours before the ruling, the National Congress Party had lost a case to the Umkhonto we Sizwe party, when the court responsible for examining election cases in South Africa allowed the new party to run in the parliamentary elections scheduled for the end of next May. The ruling was issued in a case in which the African Congress Party accused its rival, the Spear of the Nation, of not meeting the official registration standards.

Old divisions

Umkhonto we Sizwe is the newest party in the country; It was founded at the end of 2023, and received direct support from former President Jacob Zuma, with suspicions that Zuma himself was behind the founding of the party. Zuma chose the name of the armed wing of the African National Congress, which announced its dissolution after the fall of the Pretoria regime.

Following Zuma’s announcement of standing behind the “Spear of the Nation,” the National Congress accused the former president of disobedience and suspended his membership. The Secretary-General of the African National Congress explained the decision by saying that “Zuma’s support for another political party without officially leaving the National Congress Party contradicts the party’s internal system.”

The crisis between the Congress Party and Jacob Zuma dates back to 2018, when the party pushed Zuma to step down as president due to corruption accusations. After weeks of stubbornness, the man resigned in a fiery speech and spoke at the time about “internal divisions that pushed him to resign.”

Jacob Zuma was accused of receiving bribes amounting to about $3.4 billion in a deal to purchase fighter jets, patrol boats, and military equipment manufactured by five European companies, including the Thales Group, in the 1990s, when he was then Vice President, Thambio Mbeki.

In the summer of 2021, Zuma was sentenced to 15 months in prison, in a trial he described as “politically motivated,” as a result of which bloody unrest and riots broke out, as a result of which nearly 300 people were killed. In September of the same year, Zuma was released on medical grounds.

The nation was defeated in both versions

The "Umkhonto we Sizwe" party, or "Spear of the Nation", was founded in 1961 by the late Nelson Mandela, to resist the apartheid regime. The founding statement described the members of Umkhonto we Sizwe as freedom fighters, defending the right of Africans to rule their land, and equal rights for all regardless of race or colour.

The statement was announced on December 16, 1961. In a remarkable irony, the announcement of the founding of the new party coincided with the 62nd anniversary of the launch of “Umkhonto we Sizwe” and the armed action against the European minority government during apartheid.

The NCP was quick to accuse Zuma of denigrating the “honorable history of armed struggle against apartheid” through the “opportunistic use of military symbolism”, in a political battle.

Gradually, over the past six years, Jacob Zuma has transformed from a troublemaker and troublemaker into an opponent of the African National Congress. The dispute between him and his party reached its climax with Zuma declaring his full support for the nascent party on the cusp of elections that may be decisive since the fall of the apartheid regime in 1994.

The National Congress Party enters the upcoming elections completely unsatisfied with its absolute advantage in the internal arena. Zuma is trying to take advantage of this political moment, and is striving to suggest that “Umkhonto we Sizwe” is the version of the same party that is most closely aligned and consistent with the history of the ANC.

It is not possible to say with certainty who Jacob Zuma's opponent is: the ANC, Cyril Ramaphosa, or both. There is a common history of struggle between Zuma and the party that overthrew apartheid, and between the two men, Zuma and Ramaphosa, there is the same history of defamation cases, trials, and political vendetta that Zuma seems to have not yet forgotten.

Source: Al Jazeera