The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes today’s Western Cape Equality Court finding Julius Malema guilty of hate speech, and we commend the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) for pursuing this matter.
This is a victory for the rule of law, for the Constitution, and for all South Africans who cherish the values of a free, fair, and non-racial society.
For too long, the world has watched as Julius Malema has incited violence, hatred and division, attempting to unstitch the very fabric of South African society. His hate speech was most recently aired live from the White House in a meeting between President Donald Trump, President Cyril Ramaphosa and a South African delegation.
This type of divisive language is not just damaging on a local level, it has international repercussions as well. South Africa’s reputation on the global stage is at risk when such hatred is condoned or ignored.
For this reason, the DA welcomes today’s ruling as a victory against Malema’s campaign to incite racial division and hatred in our society. It demonstrates that, when there is a determination to hold political leaders to account for such conduct, our institutions are capable of taking action to protect the rights of all South Africans.
The DA will be exploring further action that can be taken to enforce serious consequences against the hate speech of Julius Malema on the back of this groundbreaking judgement.
South Africa’s Constitution protects freedom of expression, but it draws a clear line where speech incites hatred, discrimination, or violence. Julius Malema has repeatedly crossed that line. A political leader who incites mass murder, is not normal, nor permissible. The DA has fought against this for years. Part of the reason we joined the Government of National Unity (GNU) was to keep destructive and hateful political parties like the EFF out of our nations government. This judgement serves as further vindication of our long-standing position that the EFF will unleash a wave of hatred and race-based violence if it is allowed to access power.
The court’s judgment affirms that no one, regardless of position or political office, is above the law. Political leaders have a responsibility to foster nation building and social cohesion, not to destroy and divide. Hate speech has no place in our society, especially at a time when our nation requires urgent collective effort to address poverty, unemployment, and inequality.
The DA remains committed to a South Africa where every citizen is treated with fairness, dignity and respect, and where the Constitution is the highest authority. We hope that this ruling will serve as a warning, and a guide to all Leaders in South Africa to conduct themselves in ways that strengthen, rather than break, our society and all we have worked so hard to build.