Taking COSATU Today Forward, 28 November 2025 #Cosatu40 #Cosatu40thAnniversary
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY #COSATU scheduled to hold #CosatuGolfDay at Johannesburg Country Club, Woodmead on December 4 #Cosatu40 #VioletSeboniBrigade #Cosatu40thAnniversary #Cosatu scheduled to hold its 40th Anniversary at Dobsonville, Soweto on December 6 #Cosatu@40 #Cosatu40thAnniversary #SACTU70 #ClassStruggle “Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism” #Back2Basics #JoinCOSATUNow #ClassConsciousness |
Taking COSATU Today Forward
‘Whoever sides with the revolutionary people in deed as well as in word is a revolutionary in the full sense’-Maoo
Our side of the story
28 November 2025
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
Organize at every workplace and demand respect for labour rights Now!
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- COSATU will present its submission on the Division of Revenue Amendment Bill (Medium-Term Budget Policy State Statement) to Parliament Friday, 28 November 2025
- Swinging for Dignity: COSATU and President Ramaphosa Tee Off for a Cause
- Applications for media accreditation to cover COSATU 40th Anniversary rally officially opened
- South Africa
- President Cyril Ramaphosa notes US statement on South Africa’s G20 participation
- Press alert: Media invitation to SACP Annual Augmented Central Committee post-meeting press briefing
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- South Africa declares gender-based violence and femicide a national disaster
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
COSATU will present its submission on the Division of Revenue Amendment Bill (Medium-Term Budget Policy State Statement) to Parliament Friday, 28 November 2025
Matthew Parks, COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator, 27 November 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) will present its submission on the Division of Revenue Amendment Bill (Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement) to Parliament’s Standing Committee: Appropriations from 13: 00 Friday, 28 November 2025 (virtual platform).
Issued by COSATU
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Swinging for Dignity: COSATU and President Ramaphosa Tee Off for a Cause
Zanele Sabela, COSATU National Spokesperson, 24 November 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is thrilled to announce its second annual Charity Golf Challenge, an inspiring event where labour, business and government unite on the green for a great cause. Members of the media are warmly invited to attend and cover this unique blend of sport, leadership and social impact.
This flagship initiative is more than a Corporate Social Investment project — it is a powerful demonstration of COSATU’s unwavering commitment to social justice and restoring dignity in communities beyond the workplace.
In a true celebration of Ubuntu, President Cyril Ramaphosa will join COSATU leaders, government departments and business partners on the golf course to help raise funds for its activities, school shoes and sanitary packs for underprivileged learners. Every swing will contribute to changing a child’s school experience and supporting their confidence and wellbeing.
Join us for a remarkable day of purpose-driven play:
COSATU Charity Golf Challenge
- Date: Thursday, 04 December 2025
- Presidential Tee off: 10:40
- Participants Tee off: 11:00 (Shotgun Start)
- Venue: Country Club Johannesburg (CCJ Woodmead)
The challenge will be followed by an elegant Gala Dinner at 18.30, where the day’s achievements will be celebrated and partners honoured.
Members of the media wishing to attend are invited to send their details to non...@cosatu.org.za
Issued by COSATU
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Applications for media accreditation to cover COSATU 40th Anniversary rally officially opened
Zanele Sabela, COSATU National Spokesperson,10 November 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) invites all members of the media to apply for accreditation to attend and cover the Federation’s historic 40th Anniversary rally. This momentous event is scheduled to take place on 6 December at Dobsonville Stadium in Soweto.
COSATU was launched on 1 December 1985, at the height of the struggle against apartheid. Its formation brought together 33 competing unions and federations that were opposed to apartheid but committed to a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic South Africa.
Alliance partners, local and international guests have been invited to celebrate 40 years of this vibrant movement advancing, defending and protecting the interests and rights of workers and the working class in South Africa and beyond.
Applications for accreditation may be submitted to mam...@cosatu.org.za or non...@cosatu.org.za with the following details:
Name:
Surname:
ID number:
Media House/Address:
Contact number/email:
Alternatively, an application form can be completed via this link:
COSATU 40th Anniversary Media Accreditation Application Form – Fill out form
Issued by COSATU
Zanele Sabela (National Spokesperson)
Mobile: 079 287 5788 / 077 600 6639
Email: zan...@cosatu.org.za
President Cyril Ramaphosa notes US statement on South Africa’s G20 participation
27 Nov 2025
President Cyril Ramaphosa has noted the regrettable statement by President Donald Trump on South Africa’s participation in the 2026 G20 meetings.
The G20 South Africa 2025 Leaders Summit attended by several Heads of State and Goverment, was hailed by all those who attended the summit as one of the most successful summits.
The summit produced a declaration that affirmed the indisputable strength and value of multilateralism in response to the most pressing challenges facing the world.
As the United States was not present at the summit, instruments of the G20 Presidency were duly handed over to a US Embassy official at the Headquarters of South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Cooperation.
As one of the founding members of the G20, South Africa has always valued the spirit of consensus, collaboration and partnership that defines the G20 as the premier forum for international economic cooperation.
In keeping with this approach, the United States was expected to participate in all the meetings of the G20 during South Africa’s Presidency but unfortunately, it elected not to attend the G20 Leaders Summit in Johannesburg out of its own volition.
We are however pleased that US entities such as businesses and civil society organisations participated in large numbers in G20 related activities such as the B20 and the G20 Social. South Africa values their participation.
South Africa is a member of the G20 in its own name and right. Its G20 membership is at the behest of all other members. South Africa is a sovereign constitutional democratic country and does not appreciate insults from another country about its membership and worth in participating in global platforms. South Africa respects the sovereignty of all countries and will never insult or demean another country or its standing and worthiness in the community of nations.
South Africa will continue to participate as a full, active and constructive member of the G20. We call on members of the G20 to reaffirm its continued operation in the spirit of multilateralism, based on consensus, with all members participating on an equal footing in all of its structures.
It is regrettable that despite the efforts and numerous attempts by President Ramaphosa and his administration to reset the diplomatic relationship with the US, President Trump continues to apply punitive measures against South Africa based on misinformation and distortions about our country.
For
media enquiries:
Vincent Magwenya
Spokesperson to the President
E-mail: me...@presidency.gov.za
Issued by The Presidency
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Press alert: Media invitation to SACP Annual Augmented Central Committee post-meeting press briefing
Mbulelo Mandlana, SACP Head of Media, Communications and Information, 25 November 2025
The South African Communist Party (SACP) will hold its Plenary Augmented Central Committee from Friday to Sunday, 28 – 30 November 2025.
The SACP invites the media to cover the post-meeting press briefing where General Secretary Solly Mapaila will lead the National Office Bearers to communicate the key outcomes of the Augmented Central Committee Plenary.
Post-meeting press briefing is scheduled to take place as follows:
Date: Sunday, 30 November 2025.
Time: 15h00
Venue: Birchwood Hotel Boksburg
The crucial three-day SACP Annual Augmented Central Committee Plenary will be attended by elected Central Committee members, Provincial Secretaries and Chairpersons, the Young Communist League National Secretary and Chairperson, as well as additional representatives from Party districts, provincial executive committees and the Young Communist League.
The Augmented Central Committee Plenary is a strategic planning session of the SACP. Its main objective is to review the year to date and develop the framework for the political and organisational programme of action for the following year.
The SACP Augmented Central Committee Plenary will receive various reports on the work of the Party since the Party’s previous Central Committee Plenary. SACP General Secretary Solly Mapaila will present the Political Report, including an analysis of the South African, African continental and global situation.
Both the political and organisational reports will assess the economic, social and political challenges facing the working class, responses and the state of Alliance relations, including detailed reports on bilateral meetings between the SACP and its Alliance partners. The SACP will also assess the Party’s state of readiness for the upcoming 2026 local government elections in which the Party will contest independently in its name as per Congress resolutions.
ISSUED BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN COMMUNIST PARTY,
FOUNDED IN 1921 AS THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF SOUTH AFRICA.
Media, Communications & Information Department | MCID
International-Solidarity
South Africa declares gender-based violence and femicide a national disaster
27 November, 2025
South Africa has formally declared gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) a national disaster, invoking the Disaster Management Act of 2002. The decision, announced in the wake of widespread protests coinciding with the November 2025 G20 Summit in Johannesburg, marks a significant policy shift after years of civil-society and trade union pressure and persistently weak enforcement of existing legislation.
For the first time, GBVF will be treated under the same legal and administrative framework as natural disasters, unlocking
additional budgetary resources, improved inter-governmental coordination and a structured approach to prevention, response and recovery.
GBVF statistics in the country are shocking. According to the Human Science Research Council (HSRC) 7.3 million women have faced physical violence while 2.1 million have survived sexual assault. Femicide stands at five times the global averages.
The declaration follows a decade-long campaign by trade unions and women’s rights organizations, which had repeatedly highlighted the failure of prior legislative measures including the 2018 National Strategic Plan on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide) to translate into effective implementation. Despite the enactment of stronger laws on domestic violence, sexual offences and workplace harassment, conviction rates remained extremely low and reporting was discouraged by systemic inaction by the police.
Public mobilization reached a peak during the G20 Summit with the “G20 Women’s Shutdown” action, in which women workers led a 15-minute silence in honour of women who have been killed or injured and, in many cases, absented themselves from work. A petition bearing more than one million signatures was presented to the government, amplifying long-standing demands from the Labour 20 (L20) engagement process. Trade unions had argued at the July 2025 L20 Summit that sustained GBVF imposes substantial economic costs through lost productivity, absenteeism, healthcare expenditure and the erosion of female labour-force participation.
The economic toll is particularly acute in sectors with high concentrations of women workers. Fatalities have occurred both in domestic settings and at the workplace. Notable cases include the 2017 murder of Thembisile Yende at Eskom’s premises and the killing of Pinky Mosiane underground at an Anglo -American Platinum mine in Rustenburg, both of which were taken up by IndustriALL affiliates, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) respectively. While the Yende case remains unresolved, in the Mosiane case the perpetrator received two life sentences according to court records.
By classifying GBVF as a national disaster, the state gains access to the integrated policy framework foreseen in Section 7 of the Disaster Management Act: prevention and risk reduction, mitigation, preparedness, rapid response and post-disaster recovery. This is expected to translate into ring-fenced funding, the establishment of a dedicated national coordination structure and mandatory reporting and performance metrics across provinces and departments.
The decision also strengthens the domestication of the International Labour Organization Convention 190 (Violence and Harassment
Convention, 2019), which South Africa ratified in 2021. Accompanying Recommendation 206 provides detailed guidance on risk assessment, prevention measures and remedies in the world of work, areas where implementation had previously lagged.
IndustriALL assistant general secretary, Christine Olivier, said:
“This is an important step towards effective action to curb GBVF especially when cases were getting cold and women being frustrated and discouraged from reporting violations because nothing would happen to the perpetrators. Further, this is also an important development towards implementing national laws and ILO Convention 190 and Recommendation 206.”
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Norman Mampane (Shopsteward Editor)
Congress of South African Trade Unions
110 Jorissen Cnr Simmonds Street, Braamfontein, 2017
P.O.Box 1019, Johannesburg, 2000, South Africa
Tel: +27 11 339-4911 Direct line: 010 219-1348