Swazi Communist Party holds successful congress

The Communist Party of Swaziland held its Third National Congress in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, on April 18-21.  The South African venue was made necessary because political parties are prohibited in the Kingdom of Swaziland.

The Communist Party is fighting to put an end to the corrupt and despotic monarchy of King Mswati III, and to replace it with a progressive and democratic form of government. In the view of the Communist Party, working class and poor citizens are placed under extreme hardship because of the corruption of the regime. “Mswati is bleeding the country dry to support his ridiculously lavish lifestyle and that of his family and establishment elite”.  The Party Congress resolved to work with the trade unions to put a stop to these ills, as well as demanding improvements in education and the rights of students, with free education for poor students. The Congress also resolved to raise the profile of demands for women’s equality and “the eradication of patriarchal practices…”, and committed to achieving gender equality in education.  The Congress called for international allies to stop their governments from providing aid to the Mswati government, as well as using diplomatic channels to make democratic reforms, including the unbanning of political parties.

 
Turkey: Communist Party cites new evidence of fraud in referendum

The Turkish Communist Party says that every day since the April 16 referendum (which had the intention of vastly increasing the power of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan) new evidence that the supposed success of the “yes” vote has come to light.  Accusing Erdogan of wanting to further align Turkey with the European Union and with NATO and U.S. imperialism, the Communist Party called for repudiation of the spurious “yes” vote on the referendum.  The party announces the formation of “Committees Against the Presidency” everywhere in the country, “at all workplaces, neighborhoods and schools”.

Japan: Communists call for peaceful resolution of Korea Issue

On April 13, Japanese Communist Party Chair Shii Kazuo delivered to the United Nations his party’ policy statement on the situation that has developed over North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.  “We are seeing a dangerous increase in tensions possibly leading to the use of force against North Korea in the aftermath of the U.S. missile strike against Syria.”  Shii Kazuo pointed to statements made by U.S. President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson as being particularly bellicose and dangerous, and in particular deplored the alignment of positions taken by Japanese Prime Minister Abe, who expressed support for the Syria intervention, as contributing to the tensions.  The communist leader noted “This is not permissible under the Constitution of Japan which stipulates that ‘the Japanese people forever renounce the threat or use of force as a means of settling international disputes”.  He reiterated the Communist Party’s call for a negotiated settlement.

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