What's happened to your party that it now supports the oppressor?
Who is the oppressor you say we support?
Russia.
Did we say we support Russia?
Have you condemned Russia's invasion of a sovereign, independent, democratic Ukraine?
We condemn Nato's expansion, because Nato is the principal aggressor.
Isn't it Russia that is bombing hospitals, schools, kindergartens, homes and public buildings in a sovereign, independent country?
It depends where you start. If you start as a biased person you will not appreciate that the SACP condemned a coup in Ukraine in 2014.
Except that it wasn't a coup, was it?
It was a coup, and it was backed by Nato. After that coup the regime that took over banned the communist party of Ukraine. For 18 months that regime has been shelling the eastern region in Ukraine. That's a fact.
It's one of Putin's facts that has been thoroughly discredited, hasn't it?
The fact of the matter is there are people who turn a blind eye to human rights violations and atrocities committed against the people and then they ask us to help them with their fight. We are not going to do that.
Is that why your party refuses to condemn the atrocities being committed by Russia as we speak?
We've said that while we recognise that Nato is the principal aggressor we don't want war. We call on all whom it may concern, and this includes Russia, to seek a peaceful resolution of the conflict.
Can there be a peaceful resolution if Russia intends continuing until there is regime change?
We are saying no to war. All sides must stop. That includes Russia.
Do you support SA's abstention from voting on the UN resolution calling on Russia to withdraw?
SA is a sovereign state. You're talking to us as the SACP. And I'm telling you that we don't support the war, the war must stop.
Do you support SA's refusal to call on Russia to withdraw or not?
Our position is that we don't want war. All the sides in that conflict, including Nato,which is the principal aggressor, must stop what they're doing. Because war doesn't start when a gun goes off. War starts when you make minute preparations for war and as an instrument of war you expand into another person's region.
When did you stop believing in the principles of sovereignty and independence?
When did we say we don't believe in that?
Have you condemned Russia's invasion of sovereign, independent Ukraine?
We said we condemned war, we don't want war, and we don't want somebody to force us to take sides.
Haven't you taken sides by not condemning Russia's invasion of a sovereign, independent, democratic country?
We can't allow you to come and tell us that a country that bans a communist party is democratic. We cannot support such a country. It happened to us under apartheid, you need to appreciate this.
Where would we have been if the world had been silent when human rights and democracy were being violated by the apartheid regime?
The US of Nato listed the communist party here as a terrorist organisation.
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