“The commission … strongly condemns the video recording circulated on social media of a man being put into a coffin by two other men who threaten to set him alight, in Middelburg, Mpumalanga,” it said.

The two alleged perpetrators, Theo Martins Jackson and Willem Oosthuizen, appeared in the Middelburg Magistrate’s Court this week for assaulting and then pushing Victor Mlotshwa into a coffin, while he was walking near the JM de Beer farm – an incident that had been videoed and was on social media.

South Africa’s constitutional democracy is built on three fundamental values: human dignity,equality, and freedom, the SAHRC said.

“The incident – which, if established to be true – constitutes an egregious violation of the right to freedom, security and the right not to be tortured or treated in a cruel, inhuman, or degrading way,” the rights body said.

It urged members of the public to respect the legal processes under way.

“The SAHRC is closely monitoring this matter with a view to further action,” it said.

Source: The Citizen