POLITICS

Anti-black racism in SA is alarming! - JFAF

Percy Gumbi says only a minute proportion of whites are performing a constructive role

The racial discord in South Africa has reached unparalleled levels of intolerance and this is a source of grave concern for the Justice for All Forum (the JFA Forum). The JFA Forum has observed the latest events with disappointment at some of the political leaders across all parties. As an organization that is pro the economic, social and class emancipation of all South Africans in this country with a bias towards Black people and which is also the pioneers of judicial transformation, we could not keep quiet since these racial incidents speak to the fundamental principles of the founding principles of the JFA Forum.

One does not have to look too far though as the answers for such a discord is staring right at us or is in front of our faces. The political, religious and business leaders of this country have decided to wish these problems away without actually tackling them head-on. The remnants of the previous regime's apartheid policies left bitter scars and bruises in the hearts, souls and lives of the majority of people of this country.

We do not lose sight of the fact that there are some White South Africans whose intentions are genuine and they want to see this country moving forward and flourish. This minute group wants to live in a country where there will be no racial discrimination.

They are keen at ensuring the financial emancipation of the previously excluded or disenfranchised economically, academically and otherwise. Unfortunately though, they are in the minority within the minority whilst the Black majority was terrorised and deprived of their forefathers' means of production without any proper compensation or some form of healing process. The recent study on economic disparities in South Africa revealed that the White South Africans' purses have improved ten-fold since 1994, whilst in the same period the Black folks who are a majority have become poorer by the same margin.

The racial slurs have become the order of the day and leaders are too afraid to speak up. As is always the case, the White owned media brushes these aside and will always try to find the Black face that is responsible without first looking at the merits and demerits first. In the past week or two, a lot has happened which includes songs that are deemed as hate speech, the death of the AWB leader Mr Eugene Terreblanche and the subsequent threat to revenge his death etc. The brutal killing of the advocate for racial and White supremacy, Mr Eugene Terreblanche (ET) cannot be condoned under any circumstances.

It however surprises that it has been given such unprecedented media coverage and in the process the blame was put on Mr Julius Malema's song (duped racial utterances). An AWB leader who served as the late Terreblanche's Secretary-General stated in the media that the killing was politically motivated and as such they were going to avenge the killing of ET without any basis of fact that it was indeed the case. It has since emerged that there is no political motivation after all, it was an alleged "crime of passion". We have also learnt that Mr Terreblanche's domestic worker Ms Ntsako was found murdered near a police station, a week before the murder of her former boss.. The question that worries the JFA Forum is why was he never imprisoned or investigated?

Again why for instance did Mr Visagie, not get hauled in a court of law for inciting violence and threatening violence against Black people? A member of the AWB who apparently hails from Namibia went further and behaved like a hooligan in threatening to bomb 50 Black people for every one White person that is killed.

Again there was no sanction nor censor of this member, instead we are led to believe that the only people who incite violence and use hate speech are Black people. Of course the media won't find anything wrong, after all he's White; and one gets the impression that the Law in this country was made for Black people. To surmise that Malema is responsible for the racial hatred/discord is silly (actually a stupid thought to put it bluntly) because one man is not capable of holding the entire country into ransom.

Where, for instance, was Julius Malema when ET and his hooligans crashed into Kempton Park CODESA negotiations in 1993? Where was Julius Malema when Steve Biko was butchered by the racist police force in the 70's? Where was Malema when the apartheid government sponsored vigilantes which brutally hacked and killed innocent Black people in Boipatong? Where was Malema thousands of innocent young children were brutally killed by the police in 1976? When a young racist boy (i.e Master Nel) shot and killed innocent Black people in Schweize Reineke in the North West, there certainly was no Julius Malema, was there?

When the lunatic Barend Strydom shot several people to death, there was yet again no Julius Malema on the scene or in the limelight. Where was Malema when ET assaulted his Black poor farm worker and dragged him to death? Where was Malema when he shot one of the workers who is now mentally impaired?

The list of racial discrimination and killings of Black people is long and it is impractical to cite all of them suffice to say that there has been more harm inflicted on Black people than there has been any reported case of Whites being on the receiving end. The media has done such a good job in vilifying Malema as an unruly, uncouth, uneducated racist Black person of this country. The Black people have been told by their leaders to reconcile with the Whites of this country since 1994 yet one never hears White leaders preaching reconciliation, not even a half hearted rebuke for their racial indiscretions.

Black people have bent over backwards to accommodate their White counterparts and supremacists of note without them pooling their weight in meeting the Black populace half way. What we hear instead is lame excuses upon excuses to the effect that they can't be blamed for their forefathers' racial indiscretions. These excuses couldn't be further from the truth though because many atrocities have taken place post 1994.

The very same White people have benefited immensely from the democratic government, even more so than under the apartheid government. That they have not voted year in year out to ensure that the racial discrimination is eradicated, doesn't stop the flow of benefits in their way. Sadly, they instead use these benefits to maintain the status quo and further oppress Black people. The majority are no fools though, they have done their part and it is the other parties' turn to come to some kind of realisation of their immoral behaviour, irrespective of whether it was a forefather or not.

The South African media has done their level best to ensure that racism is communicated better when Malema opens his mouth yet they can't do the same when it is a White leader who uses hate speech. One needs to look at what the Secretary of the AWB, Mnr. Visagie did on e.tv as an example. Where was the vocal POWA considering that Visagie actually threatened a (poor) Black/African woman. There was no front page coverage on the SA newspapers of such a story, was there?

Instead, the very following day, Malema showed that White British racist journalist the door, and all the so called independent newspapers, which are foreign owned might one add, have Malema's face on the front pages. On or about a month ago, the British racist journalists (White being their common thread) were calling our South African President with all sorts of names. Not once did we hear our local media condemn this and even those who did, did so half heartedly. What did our so called independent media houses say or do? Nothing!

The politically and racially biased Editors Forum (SANEF) were conspicuously quiet and as good as dead only to opportunistically rediscover their voice now that Malema has shown the overseas "racist" journalist the door.

The very same independent media forgot to cover the recent racist attack on the poor farm workers by their White Baas who flogged them with an iron rod. To our dismay, no front page coverage was seen! At times when farmers get killed, one can't help but think that they are getting their comeuppance for the all the abuses they inflict on their workers. But well done goes to the SA media for your independence has done more harm than good for this racial discord and this country as a whole is gravely affected by the biased reporting of news.

Oh! Let us not forget how Mrs. Helen Zille couldn't wait to embarrass herself and the democratically elected government of our country, in going all the way to meet the powers that be in order to try and scupper (stop) the World Bank deal. This she did under the pretext that funding for Eskom had to be stopped because the ANC front company has a stake. This, again, notwithstanding the fact that the construction of the much needed power stations was going to alleviate the pressure which leads to power outages.

The reason for this poorly calculated stunt is simple - RACISM because more jobs will be created for the majority of this country (i.e. Black people).It seems that Mr Zille can't stand the fact that skilled Black people will/might be offered opportunities to harness their knowledge and that poor Black people without electricity will eventually benefit through electrification of their homes in rural homestead.

For these racial attacks to come to an end, a properly constituted CODESA needs to be held/instituted. Black people should come out of their little corners and stop to call a shovel a digging tool but by its real name. The JFA Forum also welcomes the formation of the Social Movement Against Racial Tendencies (SMART) and hopes for future collaboration in articulating and addressing these immoral tendencies.

The JFA Forum's role is to see to the 100% overhaul of the judicial system which is still manifestly controlled by the minorities and the apartheid judges in particular. We hope that when the JSC conducts the interviews which are currently taking place to fill various positions throughout the country, they will take this sad reality into account.

Issued by: Percy Gumbi on behalf of Justice for All Forum (JFAF)

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