The turn to the masses: the African National Congress strategic review of 1978–79

In 1978–79 the ANC leadership undertook a formal review of its revolutionary strategy. The changes that resulted had an influence beyond the ANC; they came to affect the direction taken by a wide range of anti‐apartheid forces in the 1980s, including the United Democratic Front. This paper recovers the story of this review, hitherto a largely hidden chapter in ANC history. It critically examines the review and, briefly, argues the extent and limitations of its influence and importance. The strategic review advised the ANC to give more emphasis to political organisation by political means in its strategy. The intention behind this was to construct an organised revolutionary political base for the ANC inside South Africa. The review identified a political base as a prerequisite for a decisive and forcible ANC contention for state power at some stage in the future. It argued that the best way to build such a political base was for the ANC to become involved actively in the development of a broad popular political front of organisations operating legally and semi‐legally inside South Africa. Earlier ANC concentration on armed activity had manifestly failed to develop such a political base. It is argued that, after 1981, ANC strategic formulations and practice consistently viewed political organisation as subject to over‐riding military imperatives. The strategic review did not fundamentally challenge this military emphasis. It still saw the political mobilisation advocated by the review as serving what was to be basically an armed assault on the state. It is argued, further, that the ANC never succeeded in integrating the political base it created for itself in the 1980s with its armed struggle, and reasons are suggested for this. But, when ANC armed activity was clearly foundering in the late 1980s, this political base enabled the ANC comfortably to shift strategic primacy decisively to political imperatives and activity. That was the review's major achievement.