Malema hate speech case: Expert witness says Malema’s comments constitute hate speech

26 February 2024

The South African Human Rights Commission’s (SAHRC) hate speech case against EFF leader Julius Malema started today in the Equality Court in the Western Cape. This case follows after AfriForum submitted complaints to the SAHRC in 2022 regarding Malema’s statements during an EFF provincial meeting in the Western Cape.

Dr Karien van den Berg, Senior Lecturer at the North West University’s (NWU) Department of English and an expert in the field of linguistics and applied linguistics, testified as an expert witness. Notably, she testified that Malema’s 2022 comments in question, which among others include, “You must never be afraid to kill, a revolution requires killing at some point, because killing is part of the revolutionary act”, do in fact constitute hate speech in her expert opinion. Dr Van den Berg further testified that her investigation of Malema’s comments concluded that the reasonable listener would interpret Malema’s comments as deliberate and direct incitement to violence.

“This hate speech case against Malema is off to a strong start with the expert witness testimony not mincing words about Malema’s deliberate incitement to violence. AfriForum will continue to monitor the case and keep our members and the public updated,” says Ernst van Zyl, AfriForum’s Head of Public Relations.

Statement issued by Ernst van Zyl, Head: Public Relations, AfriForum, 26 February 2024