SA’s opposition condemned over hate-inciting song

South Africa’s leading opposition party on Monday 31 July 2023 accused its closest rival of inciting ethnic violence during a mass rally — shutting the door on a broad coalition ahead of next year’s elections.

Julius Malema, head of the radical leftist Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), led chants of “Kill the Boer, the farmer” — a controversial anti-apartheid struggle song — as he addressed a crowd of supporters on Saturday.

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The Boer are the descendants of Dutch settlers. “This is a man who is determined to ignite… civil war,” John Steenhuisen, the leader of South Africa’s biggest opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA), said of Malema on Monday.

INCITING MASS MURDER?

He described the firebrand politician as a “bloodthirsty tyrant” bent on inciting “mass murder”. The DA would file a complaint against him with the UN Human Rights Council and was considering further legal action, Steenhuisen added.

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The EFF did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The squabble comes as South African parties position themselves for the national elections in 2024.

Polls suggest the ruling African National Congress (ANC), in power since the end of white rule in 1994, could see its vote drop below 50 per cent, battered by discontent at corruption, power cuts and entrenched unemployment.

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This month, Malema said the EFF, South Africa’s third largest party, was open to joining a coalition with the DA, which is captaining a grouping including six smaller parties.

But Steenhuisen told AFP last week the EFF was excluded because it did not share the coalition’s “values and principles”. The prospect of a rapprochement seems to have been put to rest Monday, with Steenhuisen saying the EFF was the “political enemy number one”.

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SOUTH AFRICA’S EFF 10TH-ANNIVERSARY SHOW

It follows a show of force from the EFF on Saturday, packing a Johannesburg stadium with 90,000 supporters clad in the party’s red colour to mark its 10th anniversary.

Malema received rock-star treatment from jubilant fans. Donning his traditional red beret, the 42-year-old was raised on an elevated platform amid a blast of red and gold confetti.

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The liberal DA, which has traditionally appealed to a largely white electorate, is polling to win about 16 per cent of the vote. The militant EFF, which advocates for reforms to increase land ownership among Black South Africans, is polling at around 13 per cent.

Singing “Kill the Boer” has landed Malema in trouble before. Last year a court ruled the song did not constitute hate speech, but an appeal is pending.

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© Agence France-Presse