A new permanent coordinating body for South Africa’s progressive movements has been established following the conclusion of a three-day Conference of the Left hosted by the South African Communist Party (SACP) in Boksburg.
The newly formed Council of the Left will function as a strategic platform to advance shared policy priorities and working-class interests across participating organizations, according to an SACP spokesperson. The council is explicitly not a new political organization, but rather a coordinating mechanism made up of representatives from all formations that attended the conference, with each member holding equal voting weight.
“The Council of the Left is the coordinating body. It is not an organization in itself,” the spokesperson explained. “It is on the basis of consensus that particular positions can be taken forward for the benefit of these organizations.”
During the closing session, the SACP General Secretary delivered a keynote address urging unified action among progressive forces. The speech emphasized that farm workers, mine workers, informal traders, pensioners, nurses, teachers, cleaners, security workers, shack dwellers, and the rural poor all deserve a coordinated political response.
“They are entitled to expect that the left and progressive forces can unite in action, name the system that oppresses them, contest state power, transform society, and fight for a future based on dignity, equality, peace, land, work, public ownership,” the General Secretary stated.
Delegates also passed a resolution calling on the working class to assume its historic leadership role: to unite the oppressed, organize the unorganized, and lead community and workplace struggles as a decisive force for socialist transformation in South Africa.
On organizational structure, the spokesperson clarified that all participating groups retain full autonomy. The council operates through consensus-building rather than democratic centralism, meaning no decision is binding on individual members. This approach allows formations to contribute proportionally to campaigns based on their capacity and strategic priorities.
Regarding upcoming local elections, the spokesperson confirmed that political parties within the council will continue to field candidates independently. The spokesperson noted that competition among parties on the right is not viewed as contradictory to broader cooperation, and the same logic should apply to left-aligned formations.
“The point is to create a program that transcends ourselves as individual sectors and individual organizations,” the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson also addressed ongoing debates about which groups qualify as genuinely progressive. It was emphasized that South Africa’s political context requires a locally grounded definition of “the left.” Traditional leadership structures, which have historically been part of oppressed communities, cannot be automatically excluded from coalitions focused on working-class advancement. The key criterion, the spokesperson noted, is whether an organization’s primary constituency is the working class—not adherence to abstract ideological benchmarks.
When asked about including formations with contested policy records, the spokesperson warned against exclusionary approaches rooted in past disagreements. “If we’re to take that path, the Communist Party will hold a conference of the left by itself. That cannot be happening. It is unproductive and we don’t want to enter into that sort of discourse,” the spokesperson said.
Reflecting on the historical divisions within South Africa’s left—including Africanist, Pan-Africanist, Marxist, and Trotskyist tendencies—the spokesperson said the current initiative prioritizes healing these fractures to build a cohesive, forward-looking agenda. The SACP’s role as the country’s oldest political party and its legacy as a multi-racial organization were acknowledged, but the focus remains on present-day coordination rather than historical positioning.
On electoral strategy, the spokesperson declined to engage in speculation about polling data or vote projections, including comparisons to previous performances by leftist parties in national elections. Instead, confidence was expressed that sustained grassroots organizing would enable the SACP and its allies to meaningfully advance working-class interests within formal political institutions.
“Our intention is to legitimize a socialist cause in the formal political circles, no longer in the periphery,” the spokesperson said, adding that coalition-building remains a viable tactical option to advance shared objectives.
The creation of the Council of the Left represents a significant development in efforts to coordinate South Africa’s progressive movements. Its effectiveness will hinge on the ability of diverse, autonomous organizations to build consensus on strategic priorities while preserving their independent political identities and operational freedom.