Johnathan Paoli
Moments prior to the scheduled EFF Press Briefing on Wednesday, a group of white men allegedly Afrikaans speaking tried to storm the party’s headquarters in Joburg on Wednesday and were confronted by a group of black men some of whom tried to start a fight with the intruders.
It is speculated that the individuals have links with both the Freedom Front Plus as well as the Afrikaanse WeerstandsBeweging (AWB), but reports remain unconfirmed.
After a brief scuffle, the men were dispersed and quickly removed from the area.
Speaking from their headquarters in downtown Johannesburg, the EFF President, Julius Sello Malema, addressed the questions surrounding the controversial song “Kill the Boer/Kill the Farmer”.
Last year, the Equality Court dismissed a case by Afriforum which sought to sanction the EFF for singing “Kiss The Boer, Kiss The Farmer”.
In a landmark judgment, the court ruled that Afriforum failed to show that the lyrics of the song contravene the Equality Act or demonstrate a clear intention to harm or incitement.
Much to the disappointment of AfriForum, the court further ruled that the song must be protected under the rubric of free speech, and debate around the song must be left to the “political contestant within society.”
The court ruled that declaring the song as hate speech would curtail freedom of expression, and ordered that Afriforum pay the costs.
Furthermore, the court effectively recognised that there was no basis or causal link between the singing of Dubula Ibhunu, and the incitement of harm to a victim of a robbery on a farm, who was a witness of Afriforum. This is something the EFF has consistently emphasised, that liberation chants and struggle songs, are not instructions to any action and no supporter of the EFF recognised it as that.
“I won in court. The court said there is nothing wrong with singing Kill the Boer,” Malema said on Wednesday, reminding both journalists as well as other nay-sayers to read the judgment by the Equality Court.
“You’re asking me to forget my history. I will not do that. This song is part of my history. From its inception, [the song] has never been targeted at individuals, it was targeted at a system of oppression,” he went on to add.
On Monday, the Freedom Front Plus, announced its intention to criminally charge the President of intimidation and violence, after the Party and its members sang the disputed song at the 10th Year Anniversary held on Saturday at FNB Stadium, Soweto.
Malema said if Zille and FF+ leader Pieter Groenewald were serious about the ‘Kill the Boer” song, why did they not join AfriForum in the court matter against the EFF.
Malema also hit out at DA leader John Steenhuisen, saying he would not entertain him.
“No wrinkled bottom face, maGogo shall make me explain myself, it is not my song, it is a struggle song, and I will sing it when I like,” said Malema
The DA Federal Leader’s announcement that his party will file charges with the United Nations Human Rights Council against the EFF and the ANC led-government.
Steenhuisen said Malema incited racial violence when he led the chanting of ‘Kill the farmer, kill the Boer”.
He also dragged the ANC in and said it must be held accountable for “failure to take action against their one-time protégé even as brutal farm murders continue to escalate in the wake of Malema’s demagoguery.
“The charge will be laid in terms of Malema’s violation of a few key UN charters,” Steenhuisen said. This includes the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Article 3 of the Convention makes it a punishable offence to direct and publicly incite people to commit mass murder on the basis of their identity.
“Another is the Declaration on the Rights of Persons Belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities. This declaration compels the South African government to ensure that persons belonging to minority groups may exercise their rights – including, in this case, the right to life and to practice the profession of farming without any discrimination,” he added.
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