By Alan Cameron
Two journalists who walked out of the meeting between Jacob Zuma and the Forum of Black Journalists (FBJ) were reportedly called "black on the outside and white on the inside" by journalists who remained.
IOL has received a letter in which Keino Kammies, a radio talk show host and Yusuf Abramjee, Group Head of News and Talk Programming at Primedia Broadcasting, say they attended the "Blacks only" meeting of the FBJ on Friday, 22 February, where they raised objections to the fact that the meeting with Jacob Zuma, the president of the ANC, "excluded white journalists".
They went on to say that "this was discriminatory and went against the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa".
Kammies and Abramjee claim that when they walked out in solidarity with "our white colleagues who were ordered out and those who were excluded" they were referred to as "coconuts".
They claim a report by Chris Bathembu in the Citizen newspaper on Monday confirms this as he was in the meeting. It was also apparently reported in the Rapport newspaper on Sunday.
Journalist Jon Qwelane has been named as one of the people who used this term.
They conclude the letter saying that "We are of the view that the term "coconut" is not only insulting - but discriminatory" and indicate a formal complaint has been laid with the South African Human Resource Council.