ANC Youth League says no retreat

Julius Malema, South African ANC Youth League leader

ANC Youth League says no retreat
Funke Atohengbe, Pretoria

The Youth League of South Africa’s ruling party, the African National Congress says it will not restrain its supporters from singing the liberation song, nubula Ibn nu (‘kill the farmer, kill the Boer’) which was adjudged to contain elements of hate speech.

The President of the League, Julius Malema, made the declaration at a press briefing at the ANC Headquarters in Johannesburg on Wednesday.

Malema criticized a court judgment that denounced the song. 

The Youth League said that outlawing the song amounted to an attempt to rewrite South African history.

Challenging the ruling

Malema said the league would challenge Judge Collin Lamont’s ruling at the constitutional court.

ANC Spokesperson, Jackson Mthembu had earlier said the party was appalled by the ruling and viewed it as an attempt to rewrite the history of South Africa which, he said, was not desirable and sustainable.

Mthembu said the ANC would study the judgment carefully and understand the full implications before releasing a comprehensive response.

The judgment

Malema was on Monday adjudged guilty of hate speech for singing the apartheid-era song calling for the killing of white farmers in a civil court case and was ordered to pay some of the costs in the case which did not carry a criminal penalty.

Shakira/Ekata