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Daily Maverick
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
‘Diplomatic doors were opened again,' says Cosatu president after ‘nerve-racking' meeting with Trump
When President Cyril Ramaphosa gave Zingiswa Losi an opportunity to speak, she delivered a firm rebuttal to Trump's lies about land expropriation in South Africa and violence against white farmers, making the point that South Africa did not have a race but a crime issue. Zingiswa Losi, the president of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) was roped in at the eleventh hour to be a part of the South African delegation that met US President Donald Trump in Washington last week. After a flight that took nearly 20 hours, she was informed by the Presidency that only seven SA officials could attend the meeting in the White House, which meant she and Adrian Gore, the Discovery CEO and deputy president of Business Unity South Africa, would be excluded. 'I fought and I said, 'Never, I am not accepting it. Money has been spent for me to come and be a part of a meeting; I did not come here to sit at a hotel; I did not come for a Washington jol.' I said, 'Whether I go in as part of the security or what, make a plan,'' Losi told Daily Maverick. After some negotiating, Losi was able to attend the meeting. She said she cringed when Trump called for a video to be played and made unfounded claims of a genocide of white farmers in South Africa. 'It was nerve-racking. But also, for me, there was that irritation of the lies being repeated, and I was wondering if we would ever get an opportunity to state our side of the story, the real story of South Africa. I was eager for us to get to that point.' When President Cyril Ramaphosa gave Losi an opportunity to speak, she delivered a firm rebuttal to Trump's lies about land expropriation in South Africa and violence against white farmers, making the point that South Africa did not have a race but a crime issue. 'For me, it was two things [that needed to be done]: to speak about trade and to demystify this white genocide. I said to myself, 'If I can illustrate that there is no white genocide and paint a picture of what was happening in South Africa… 'I felt we were not having that conversation, and I needed to remind ourselves of why we are here.' Although Trump often interjected and was dismissive of what was being said, Losi said that Ramaphosa 'helped us in his demeanour of managing the situation very well. He was very calm about it.' After the media briefing concluded, Losi said the delegation went on to a closed meeting, which proceeded smoothly. Objectives achieved 'We achieved the objectives of the meeting. When we went to the lunch meeting, the issue of genocide, the issue of [South Africa's case against Israel at the International Court of Justice] never arose. The only issue at the table was the resetting of the relationship between the two nations.' In April 2025, the Trump administration introduced a 10% baseline tariff on all imports, with South African goods facing a rate of 30%. The decision was expected to have a negative impact on South African exports to the US, such as vehicles, precious metals, machinery and citrus fruit. 'It was us going back on the trade issues, and also President Trump even conceded that you can't ignore South Africa; he conceded that we must continue now engaging, even on the issue of Agoa [African Growth and Opportunity Act], on the issue of tariffs.' Losi said relations between South Africa and the US had soured, pointing to various incidents, including the expulsion of South African ambassador Ebrahim Rasool. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared Rasool 'persona non grata' in a post on X. He called Rasool a 'race-baiting politician who hates Trump and hates America' because of remarks Rasool made in a webinar. Losi said the issue had not been managed through diplomatic channels. She pointed to challenges experienced by her sector in trying to meet with policy officials. 'That team had difficulty even in meeting policy people in Washington. They tried, they managed, but it could not be in the offices, it had to be in restaurants — that's how hostile it was.' Previously, Trump and senior officials in his administration stated they would not attend the G20 summit in Johannesburg from 22-23 November. However, during the talks, Ramaphosa urged him to reconsider his decision. 'I want to hand over the presidency of the G20 to President Trump in November, and I said he needs to be there. I don't want to hand over the presidency of the G20 to an empty chair. He is going to give serious consideration to it. In fact, I expect him to be coming to South Africa,' said Ramaphosa. Losi said that during the closed meeting, Trump said he would attend the meeting. 'So, the diplomatic doors were opened again.' DM
The Star
22-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
All you need to know about Zingiswa Losi: The woman who schooled Donald Trump on South Africa
Zingiswa Losi, the president of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), delivered a pointed response to US president Donald Trump's controversial remarks on South African land reform and violence against white farmers during a high-level meeting at the White House on Tuesday. Losi, the country's first female president of COSATU, joined president Cyril Ramaphosa as part of a delegation aiming to strengthen diplomatic and economic ties between the two nations. Trump used the opportunity to repeat long-standing, debunked claims of 'systematic killings' of white farmers, raising alarm over land expropriation policies in South Africa. She countered his narrative with a clear message: crime in South Africa is a universal scourge, not a racially targeted phenomenon. "The problem in South Africa is not necessarily about race, but it's about crime," Losi told Trump. "Black men and women in our rural communities are just as many victims of brutal crimes as anyone else." Born in 1975 in KwaZakhele, Eastern Cape, Losi began her activism in the anti-apartheid struggle, inspired by her politically active family. She served in the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) from 1996 to 1999 before joining Ford Motor Company in Port Elizabeth, where she became a shop steward for the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA). Her rise within the labour movement was steady. She served as COSATU's second deputy president from 2009 and became its first female president in 2018, securing re-election in 2022.
IOL News
22-05-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
All you need to know about Zingiswa Losi: The woman who schooled Donald Trump on South Africa
Zingiswa Losi: The woman who challenged Donald Trump on South Africa. Image: Simphiwe Mbokazi/African News Agency/ANA Zingiswa Losi, the president of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), delivered a pointed response to US president Donald Trump's controversial remarks on South African land reform and violence against white farmers during a high-level meeting at the White House on Tuesday. Losi, the country's first female president of COSATU, joined president Cyril Ramaphosa as part of a delegation aiming to strengthen diplomatic and economic ties between the two nations. Trump used the opportunity to repeat long-standing, debunked claims of 'systematic killings' of white farmers, raising alarm over land expropriation policies in South Africa. She countered his narrative with a clear message: crime in South Africa is a universal scourge, not a racially targeted phenomenon. "The problem in South Africa is not necessarily about race, but it's about crime," Losi told Trump. "Black men and women in our rural communities are just as many victims of brutal crimes as anyone else." Born in 1975 in KwaZakhele, Eastern Cape, Losi began her activism in the anti-apartheid struggle, inspired by her politically active family. She served in the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) from 1996 to 1999 before joining Ford Motor Company in Port Elizabeth, where she became a shop steward for the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA). Her rise within the labour movement was steady. She served as COSATU's second deputy president from 2009 and became its first female president in 2018, securing re-election in 2022. Beyond her union leadership, Losi has played key roles in the African National Congress (ANC) and the South African Communist Party (SACP), championing workers' rights and economic transformation. She is also president of the Southern African Trade Union Coordinating Council (SATUCC), representing unions across the SADC region. On Tuesday, Losi used her platform to call for cooperation, not division. "We are here to say: how do we, both nations, work together to reset, to really talk about investment but also help to address the levels of crime?" she said. IOL Politics Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel.
Eyewitness News
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
SA's hard-won democracy shouldn't be 'playground for thieving' politicians: COSATU's Losi
JOHANNESBURG - The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) says gains made in the fight for democracy cannot be lost to career politicians with little interest in service delivery and entrepreneurs in business with government for a quick buck. The warning follows what the trade union federation says is an honest assessment of governance as the country marked Workers' Day on Thursday. While strides have been made to ensure fair labour practices, equity, improved wages and safer working environments, COSATU has called on the government to address threats to public institutions. ALSO READ: Representing almost two million public servants, COSATU says weakened public institutions leave workers exposed. COSATU leader Zingiswa Losi says one of the threats is corruption. 'We are very clear as COSATU, that we did not wage a struggle for us to see the democratic state become the playground yamasela (thieves).' The word amasela means thieves and has for years been used to describe and condemn those in power who have unduly benefited from state resources at the expense of South Africans. 'The control of the state is its machinery to eliminate, to eliminate unemployment and inequality, and not to elevate tenderpreneur.' Losi says clean governance is needed to ensure labour rights are protected and labour reforms are fast-tracked.
Daily Maverick
01-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Maverick
‘Cut corruption, not clinics. Tax the rich, not the poor,' says Cosatu at Workers' Day rally
While Treasury drafts the Budget and tries to plug the gap in revenue, Cosatu and the South African Communist Party have called for taxes on the rich rather than budget cuts that reduce public services. As National Treasury works on its third draft of the 2025 Budget, leaders from the ANC's alliance partners – the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and the South African Communist Party (SACP) – have called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to prioritise taxing the wealthy and fighting corruption rather than imposing austerity measures that affect public services. Treasury is working on a new draft of the 2025 Budget, which Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana will re-table on 21 May 2025. This follows the withdrawal of the proposed 0.5 percentage point VAT increase after a court ruling and political opposition, which created a significant revenue shortfall. Speaking at the Kees Taljaard Stadium in Middelburg, Mpumalanga – the hub of South Africa's coal production – Cosatu president Zingiswa Losi addressed thousands of workers and paid tribute to the region's mine workers at a Workers' Day rally on Thursday, 1 May. 'Here in Mpumlanaga, surrounded by coal, surrounded by agriculture, surrounded by manufacturing and energy, workers are not guests here,' she said. 'We are the builders of the economy in this province. We are the producers of the economy in this province, we are the ones that keep this province and the entire country running.' Rejecting austerity 'We must not be naive, comrades. We know for a fact that victories of yesterday are under attack today,' said Losi, referring to the ongoing struggles with unemployment and stagnant wages. 'And therefore, as a federation, we demand transformation, not tokenism. We demand redistribution, not cosmetic reforms.' Addressing Ramaphosa, who sat behind her, Losi said: 'The control of the state is about its machinery to eliminate poverty, to eliminate unemployment and inequality, not to elevate tender premiers.' Central to her speech was the demand that austerity measures, which she described as detrimental to essential public services, be reversed. 'As the alliance has spoken, we reject austerity logic that reduces the number of nurses to patients,' she declared. 'Austerity reduces the number of teachers per learner. Austerity reduces the number of police officers per community. We can no longer afford it.' She called on Ramaphosa to ensure that cuts to vital services, including clinics, schools and law enforcement, were avoided, saying: 'Cut corruption, not clinics. Tax the rich, not the poor.' Losi also acknowledged that corruption within the government had contributed to the country's economic challenges. 'State Capture and corruption was not imported outside. It was homegrown,' she remarked, She further praised workers who, in her view, were rebuilding key sectors of the economy, such as Eskom, Transnet and the South African Revenue Service (SARS), 'because it is workers who are cleaning up the mess. It is never ministers and never billionaires, but workers.' SACP general secretary Solly Mapaila echoed the opposition to austerity measures, which he said 'are budget cuts, a symbol of neoliberal capital'. He called for the government to 'turn against capitalism and neoliberalism', and advocated for a tax system that targets capital income rather than placing the burden on the working class. 'What we are calling on the Treasury to do as they are preparing a revised Budget is to increase capital income tax… That will give us four times what they wanted to do with the VAT.' He also called for measures to ensure SARS can recover unpaid taxes from capitalists, emphasising the need to focus on recovering 'almost R800-billion'. VAT increase Chanting 'down with the VAT and GNU' and 'forward with the NHI [National Health Insurance]', Mapaila strongly opposed the proposed VAT increase, labelling it a 'reactionary' measure that would disproportionately burden the poor. Mapaila has been one of the strongest critics of the ANC entering a government of national unity (GNU) that includes the DA. Losi saluted Parliament for rejecting the 'regressive VAT hike' and said the Budget should be 'progressive and not punishing'. 'The Budget must be able to stimulate economic growth, it must create jobs and it must tax the wealth,' she said. 'We are saying fix municipalities, pay workers, fire corrupt municipal managers. End the rot and do it now.' Ramaphosa on the GNU Praising Cosatu for its role in the Tripartite Alliance, Ramaphosa told the rally: 'Even as we are in a government of national unity, we were able to make sure the wishes of our people are fulfilled; be it the Bela Act, be it the Expropriation Act – all that has happened because of you [Cosatu].' Ramaphosa reaffirmed the government's commitment to implementing the National Health Insurance (NHI), which was met with enthusiastic support at the rally. This was part of his broader acknowledgement of the alliance's success in advancing progressive legislation despite the challenges of governing within the GNU framework. In the President's written speech, Ramaphosa acknowledged that while some parties in the GNU have historically opposed transformation, all have agreed to a Basic Minimum Programme of Action that protects workers' rights and aims to drive inclusive growth, create jobs and reduce poverty. He did not read the comments during the rally. Referring to the recent Budget process, Ramaphosa noted the unprecedented agreement to table a revised Budget, following engagements with GNU partners and stakeholders. Another part of his prepared speech that he omitted read: 'We are committed as the GNU to adopt a Budget that promotes inclusive growth, protects the vulnerable and advances the development of all our people.' DM
