Documents: Part Two - The revival of the African national congress, 1937-1945

Document 19. Resolutions of the ANC Annual Conference, December 15-18, 1939.

1. This conference of the African National Congress respectfully requests the Union Government to repeal all differential legislation so that the African is ruled under the General laws of the country.

2. This conference strongly urges the Government of the Union of South Africa to give the trade unions of African workers the same recognition and rights under the Industrial Conciliation Act as prescribed for European, Indian and Coloured workers.

The proposed basis of recognition as submitted by the Government is totally unacceptable to organised African labour, as the conference is fully convinced that the only form of recognition which can be accepted is such as to give these organizations the legal right to negotiate directly with employers for wages and conditions of employment and to make agreements which may be concluded to have force of law.

3. NATIVE EDUCATION

This conference resolves that in order to provide sufficient funds for Native edu­cation the budget should be on a per capita basis and that the Government should be responsible for buildings and for adequate equipment for Native schools.

4. FEEDING OF SCHOOL CHILDREN That responsible authorities be required to provide milk and soup kitchens for African children as they do for Indian, Coloured and European school children.

5. RE PROVINCIAL CABINETS ....

6. Congress strongly protests against the action of certain municipalities in making wholesale evictions of Africans from proclaimed European residential areas without providing alternative accommodation.

7. WAR.

That unless and until the Government grants the African full democratic and citizenship rights, the African Natkyial Congress is not prepared to advise the Africans to participate in the present war, in any capacity.

8. NON-EUROPEAN UNITED FRONT'

That this conference of the African National Congress now assembled, in Dur­ban, accepts the principle of the Non-European United Front movement.

9. LODGERS' PERMITS

This conference resolves that lodgers' fees and lodgers' Permits must be abol­ished because:--
(a) They disorganise and disrupt family life and family discipline;
(b) They impose further direct taxation on the Head of the family as boys and girls of 18 years of age, who are under these regulations prohibited to live with their parents, are still minors and juveniles; Conference therefore instructs its branches and other affiliated bodies to work for the abolition of such regulations.

10. RAILWAY AND HARBOUR WORKERS

That this conference gives every support to the S.A.R.& H. Workers' Union, (Non-European), in their demand for increased wages and an improvement of working conditions for the thousands of Non-European Railway and Harbour workers in South Africa.

This conference, whilst appreciating the endeavours of the Union Govern­ment in setting up a regulated minimum wage standard for the unskilled workers in a large number of industries, deplores the fact, the Union Government itself being the largest employer of unskilled Non-European labour in South Africa has turned down the demands put forward by the S.A.R. & H. Workers' Union. This conference urges the Union Government to give due consideration to the thou­sands of workers concerned.

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