Cosatu’s International Relations spokesperson, Bongani Masuku was found guilty of hate speech by the Equality Court sitting at the High Court in Johannesburg.

Delivering the judgement on 29 June, Judge Seun Moshidi said the impugned statements that Masuku made were hurtful, harmful, incited harm and propagated hatred towards the Jewish community.

Masuku made the offending statements in 2009 at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), where he was invited to an event hosted by the Palestinian Solidarity Movement. During his speech, Masuku made threatening remarks that were directed at the Jewish community.

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In one of his statements, he threatened that Cosatu members at Wits would make the lives of Jews hell at that campus. This statement was made in reference to Cosatu’s intentions regarding those who support Israel.

    The judge said the statement by Masuku was worrisome. “The reference to the word ‘hell’ by Masuku, demonstrates an unequivocal threat whereby these persons on the other side, namely, Jewish people, would be subjected to treatment by Cosatu on the Wits campus in a manner similar to anyone who goes to hell,” Moshidi pointed out.

During his speech at the time, Masuku went on to threaten the Jews. “Cosatu is with you; we will do everything to make sure that whether it is at Wits or Orange Grove, anyone who does not support equality and dignity, who does not support rights of other people, must face consequences even if it will mean that we will do something that may necessarily cause what is regarded as harm,” Masuku said at the time.

Moshidi noted that the disrespect and disregard for human rights can occur anywhere in the world. What set Masuku’s statement apart was the identification of geographical locations. “Masuku elected in this case to limit his remarks to two geographical locations, namely Wits and Orange Grove,” Judge Moshidi said, highlighting that Masuku chose Wits because he knew there were Jewish students present there. The judge also pointed out that Orange Grove is traditionally a Jewish area, which would make any reasonable reader interpret that the statement is directed at Jews.

    Another disturbing statement that Masuku made at the event, “The following things are going to apply – any South African family, repeat, any South African family that sends their son or daughter to be part of the Israeli Defence Force must not blame us when something happens to them with immediate effect.”

“In my view, the statement by Masuku, containing the threat with reference to Jews is not only hurtful but also harmful in that the target group is threatened with harm, and at the same time promotes and propagates hatred,” Moshidi said.

The judge ordered Masuku and Cosatu to tender an unconditional apology to the Jewish community within 30 days of the order or another period as parties may agree, adding that the apology must at least receive the same publicity as the offending statements.

Masuku and Cosatu were also slapped with an order to pay legal costs.

The case was brought to the Equality Court by the Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) on behalf of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) after Masuku and Cosatu failed to comply with a finding by the Rights Commission, which found him guilty of hate speech and ordered that an apology be given to the Jewish Board, but Masuku and Cosatu refused to do so.

Cosatu’s organising secretary, Theodora Steele, said they were disappointed with the outcome and said they are still going to study the judgement before commenting further on the matter. She, however, pointed out that Cosatu will continue with their campaign for Palestine and will intensify their campaign and ensure that the general public is aware of the plight of Palestine.

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The Human Rights Commission and the Jewish Board welcomed the judgement. “The Commission welcomes this decision against hate speech in the Equality Court, and welcomes the court’s reiteration that freedom of expression needs to be exercised within a context that is sensitive and cognisant of hate speech,” the Human Rights Commission said in a statement.

Source: Sandton Cronicle