Johnathan Paoli
The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) has condemned the Democratic Alliance (DA) for what it called its “racist and divisive” portrayal of the burning of the South African national flag in its elections advert.
ANCYL spokesperson Zama Khanyase issued a statement on Monday and said that DA leader John Steenhuisen has a history of making inflammatory and racially charged statements, demonstrating what they claim was his “utter disregard for the principles of democracy and equality.”
“The DA’s flag burning is a stark reminder of their racist and divisive agenda. It is a blatant attempt to stoke racial tensions and sow discord among our people. This behavior is unacceptable and must be met with swift and decisive legal action,” Khanyase said.
Khanyase said Steenhuisen illustrated his incompetence as a leader by his failure to address the deep-seated issues of inequality and injustice in our society.
The ANCYL called on all South Africans to reject the DA and its leader.
“We cannot afford to allow racist and incompetent individuals to lead our country backwards. We must stand united against hate and division and work together to build a future based on democracy, equality and justice for all,” Khanyase said.
The outcry against the DA comes after an electioneering advert flighted by the party and circulating on social media showed Steenhuisen waiving and burning the flag.
Former Public Protector Thuli Madonsela also called out the advert, and said that while she understood what the opposition party was attempting to achieve, it was inappropriate to use the flag and different metaphors should have been utilised.
“The burning of our flag is ill advised. It seems to show disrespect and disloyalty to the flag, which to many of us is more than a flag, but a symbol of triumph against apartheid. In some countries it is even a crime to burn the flag,” Madonsela said.
At the launch of the advert on Sunday, Steenhuisen explained the purpose being to send an urgent warning to the constitutional democracy and a symbolic representation of the future of the country without a DA-led government.
“It is a warning of what this country’s future will be like under a Doomsday Coalition between the ANC, the EFF, and perhaps also MK and mercenary small parties like the Patriotic Alliance,” he said.
In what some may call anticipation of the possible controversy, the DA leader qualified the party’s intentions and said that the advert was what the DA feared would happen in the country, but that it was not fear-mongering since it was not untrue.
“As depicted on-screen, we can stop our flag from burning entirely, and reweave its threads to represent the consolidated dream of a united and prosperous country that we all share,” Steenhuisen said.
Analysts such as Goodenough Mashego have claimed that the disastrous reception of the advert illustrated the lack of nuance the party was currently experiencing due to the increasing number of Black leaders who have left the DA.
“The DA is suffering from the loss of Black talent because, at the time when all that Black talent was leaving the DA, we all thought it was not going to affect the DA. Now, you can see it affects the way the DA is thinking because it took away the nuance in its messaging. The DA doesn’t understand that optics matter,” Mashego said.
While others, such as Sipho Seepe said that the flag has already lost most of its significance in light of the failures of the government in realizing the dreams and values of transformation in the country.
“The flag was supposed to represent the ideal of a free and prosperous society in which all people live in harmony and with equal opportunity. That ideal has been destroyed. South Africa is a wasteland of broken promises. It holds the dubious global dishonor of being the poster child of inequality,” Seepe said.
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