Cape Town - The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) will have its hands full with January 8 statement-related complaints, with the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) planning to lay charges of hate speech and the ANC considering pursuing rights violations.
The FF+ are set to lay a charge of hate speech against President Jacob Zuma and the ANC for his Jan van Riebeeck comments, while the ANC wants to approach the commission to complain about the City of Cape Town’s treatment of the party in the run-up to Saturday’s event at Cape Town Stadium.
Addressing ANC supporters at a mini-rally in Khayelitsha last week, Zuma said the country’s “problems started in 1652 here in the Western Cape”.
He said the arrival of the Dutch was followed by wars and battles against South Africans. Zuma repeated the comments at the party’s gala dinner on Friday.
While the SAHRC hasn’t received formal submissions from the parties, they are considering their options and are in the process of making submissions. ANC spokesman Zizi Kodwa on Tuesday said the party was considering a number of options, which include approaching to commission.
He said the DA-led city forced them not only to change the font and size of posters, it also prevented ANC supporters from trading and selling goods at Cape Town stadium.
“We think their actions violated our rights in the constitution and that the actions were undemocratic. Imagine what would happen to smaller organisations if they would be treated in the manner that the ANC was treated?” asked Kodwa.
He said their treatment by the city “falls within the ideology that it wants to create a federal state”.
FF+ parliamentary spokesman Anton Alberts said: “It is unpresidential to make such comments in a country which is diverse, and where the head of state governs over everybody. It is, therefore, the FF Plus’ opinion that this was hate speech because white people are being made the scapegoats for everything which has gone wrong since 1652.
“The comments could in addition be historically disputed as it would be especially disturbing if it was to appear that this was the official view of the ANC. The Human Rights Commission must confront the ANC about this in order to establish whether the government has declared their hostility toward all white people.”
Responding to the FF+, Kodwa said it should rather complain about history and not the ANC.
“He mustn’t complain about the ANC’s statements. He must rather complain about history. President Zuma didn’t generate any new facts.”
Political Bureau