Johannesburg - University students and workers who post messages that are deemed hate speech and could incite violence risk being criminally prosecuted.
On Monday, North West University (NWU) became the second higher education institution after the University of Pretoria (UP) to warn workers and students that action could be taken against them based on what they post or are tagged in on social media.
“Various social media platforms have recently been flooded with defamatory statements and statements which incite harm and violence against NWU as well as individuals,” said NWU acting executive director of institutional advancement Louis Jacobs in a letter to students.
“Not only are many of these statements unlawful, but they also undermine the fundamental values which we as a university profess.
“Staff and students are reminded that disciplinary action may be instituted against them if they publish such statements, or allow their names to be associated with activities like tagging and retweeting of posts on social media which incite violence, cause harm or constitute hate speech.”
Jacobs went on to issue a stern warning, saying defamatory statements on social media might lead to criminal and civil action.
Remember, you are personally responsible for the use or misuse of your name on social media platforms. For instance, if your handle or name is attached to content that may incite violence, cause harm or constitute hate speech, you are equally responsible for the publication of such content after you have become aware of it without disassociating yourself from it or deleting it. It is your obligation to check your account periodically for such activity,” he said.
The university warned that while it supported freedom of expression and right to protest, people should remember that the rights were not absolute and that they came with responsibilities.
Last week, UP warned students that they could be expelled if they like, retweet or are tagged in content deemed hate speech. The university said students and staff should be aware that not only posts or retweets but also likes, tagging and retweets of posts on social media which incite violence, among others, “constitute grounds for criminal and civil action”.
Social media lawyer Emma Sadleir appeared to agree with the two universities’ stance, saying people were responsible for their social media usage and content that they might be tagged in.
“If you have been tagged in something but have not been online and seen the content, you are then an innocent disseminator. Even on social media, content has to be within the confines of the law, and people must remember our rights are not unlimited. We have a lot of freedoms, but you cannot disseminate hate speech.”
Sadleir said it was important for Facebook users to have privacy settings where they can review posts they are tagged in. She cited a 2013 case in the high court in Pretoria in which a new wife wrote a scandalous Facebook post about her husband’s ex-wife.
The couple were fined R40 000 by the court, despite the man not commenting or liking the statement. The ex-wife had remarried and her new husband’s 16-year-old son was living with them. She also had custody of her and her former husband’s two small children.
Her ex-husband’s new wife put up defamatory posts on Facebook after she saw pictures of the 16-year-old bathing the younger children. In the Facebook posts, the ex-wife claimed the new wife was malicious and painted her as a bad mother.