Jail for Malema under new hate speech bill?
Should those sprouting hate speech go to jail?
This is the question that has been an area of concern for experts and organisations examining the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Bill, which is currently before a parliamentary committee.
The bill creates two offences - the offence of hate crime and the offence of hate speech. The draft legislation threatens jail sentences for those who utter or spread hate speech.
Some have labelled the bill, which was introduced in Parliament in April 2018, as unconstitutional, saying it would curb freedom of expression while others argue there's already sufficient existing laws to deal with hate speech.
While the committee prepares to hear from the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development on Friday, EFF leader Julius Malema has been in the news for comments he made last month in relation to an incident outside Brackenfell High School in 2020, where a white man beat up an EFF supporter.
Malema said, "Anything that stands in the way of the revolution must be eliminated. The EFF must be known that it is not a playground for racists and that any racists that play next to the EFF and threatens and beat up the membership and the leadership of the EFF, that is the application to meet your maker with immediate effect."
The SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) is adamant that "it's clear even to a child" that Malema committed hate speech during his address to supporters last month.
Malema was given until Friday to retract his comments. He has already indicated he would not do so.
In this week's edition of Friday Briefing, we examine whether the SAHRC is right in its view.
Johannesburg-based advocate Ben Winks doesn't agree with the SAHRC and writes that he doesn't think the EFF leader's comments constitute hate speech. But, he explains, this doesn't mean Malema is off the hook.
Deputy Justice Minister John Jeffrey defends the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Bill, and responds to criticism of it.
Another Johannesburg-based advocate, Jabu Chanza, analyses why she thinks Malema wouldn't go to jail, if the bill was already law.
Finally News24 columnist and analyst, Ebrahim Harvey, writes that Malema has made offensive remarks towards whites and Indians for years and has always got away with it. He details why he welcomes the action taken by the SAHRC.
It's heavy reading before the weekend, but food for thought.
Best,
Vanessa Banton
Opinions editor.
Why Julius Malema's call to 'kill' might not be hate speech (but is still unlawful)
Johannesburg-based advocate Ben Winks explains why he doesn't think Julius Malema committed hate speech in his recent comments, but doesn't believe the EFF leader is entirely off the hook.
Why we need criminal sanctions for hate speech
Deputy Justice Minister John Jeffrey explains why there is a need for legislation dealing specifically with hate crimes and hate speech, when there is already legislation in place.
3 reasons why Malema would not be held criminally liable if hate speech bill was law
Advocate Jabu Chanza breaks down the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Bill, which is currently before a parliamentary committee, and explains why she thinks Julius Malema would not be held criminally liable for hate speech over comments he made last month if the bill became law.
Julius Malema's dangerous, misleading and 'primitive' fallacies about race
The South African Human Rights Commission is justified in taking such a tough stance on Julius Malema as it is not the first time he has made both racialist and racist remarks, and got away with it, argues Ebrahim Harvey.
