'We Are the Forgotten Victims': Unemployed Assembly Demands Radical Policy Shifts at Historic Left Conference
The event, which kicked off on Friday, 29 May 2026, marks the first time in South Africa's democratic history that grassroots organizations representing the country’s millions of jobless citizens have been formally granted a direct platform alongside the heavyweights of socialist and Pan-Africanist politics.
A Power-Packed Radical Front
The conference, convened by the South African Communist Party (SACP) under the theme “Building a Left Movement for Working Class & Popular Power,” saw an unprecedented gathering of political rivals sitting at a unified table.
Key leadership structures in attendance included:
SACP: Led by General Secretary Solly Mapaila.
Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF): Led by Commander-in-Chief Julius Malema.
uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP): Represented by high-level national officials.
Pan-Africanist Formations: The leadership of AZAPO and the PAC.
Labor & Civil Society: Top delegations from COSATU and SANCO, alongside international socialist dignitaries.
Crucially, the ruling African National Congress (ANC) boycotted the conference, leaving the floor entirely to radical, left-wing forces looking to reshape the country's economic trajectory.
'Speeches Alone Won't Feed Us' — Unemployed Demand Action
Addressing the packed plenary chamber, the spokesperson for the Unemployed Peoples Assembly did not hold back, validating the raw anger of the working class and framing the current economic system as an exclusionary machine.
"The unemployed masses of our country remain the forgotten victims of an economic system that continues to concentrate wealth in the hands of a few while the majority struggle for survival and dignity," the Assembly declared.
The delegation explicitly warned political leaders that ordinary citizens are completely exhausted by empty rhetoric, corporate dominance, and corruption. "History will judge this generation not by speeches alone, but by its ability to build principled unity in action," the statement read, adding that the invitation to the assembly is a long-overdue realization that the National Democratic Revolution cannot be defended while ignoring the jobless.
Blueprint for the Rebuild: What’s Next?
The conference comes at a critical political juncture, following the fallout of the 2024 general elections and growing public frustration over skyrocketing cost-of-living indicators.
The three core deliverables being hammered out before the conference concludes on Sunday, 31 May 2026, include:
The Declaration of the Left: A unified ideological framework identifying South African capitalism as the root cause of systemic poverty.
The Council of the Left: A revolutionary coordinating council to drive joint campaigns and cross-party political education.
A 12-Month Programme of Action: Concrete, measurable target pillars focusing on youth unemployment, the exploitation of gig/informal workers, land re-distribution, and community-led monitoring of corrupt local municipalities.
