As I am writing this it seems to be protest season. Just a week ago a controversial protest was held at Krugersdorp Magistrates’ Court and today the West Rand is burning as community members take matters into their own hands regarding foreign nationals dealing in drugs.
I want to make it clear at the outset that this is NOT a politically shaded column and it is NOT about race. But let’s go back to the protest at Krugersdorp Magistrates’ Court.
My colleagues, journalist Bianca Pindral and digital coordinator Michelle Swart are dispatched to court to cover the much-publisised case in which a tractor thief was shot dead by the head of a security company, and not by a farmer, as was first reported in the media. And lo and behold a certain segment of the community, belonging mostly to a certain political party, gets it all wrong and are shouting ‘racism’ from the rooftops. So they gather outside court to protest. Don’t get me wrong, I am all for our right to protest and will defend this right, but there is a but. All hell breaks loose on social media after a man is spotted in the protesting crowd with a placard that reads “Kill the Boer, Kill the farmer”. Really? Is this idiotic relic from the past still alive and kicking? Look, I am an activist for freedom of speech and will even go as far as saying let the man say what he wants. (Although I do feel that in the light of the frightening spate of farm murders, this sort of statement is reckless.)
But back to my grievance. Like I said, it is not so much about what he said on the placard as about double standards. This is clearly, at least according to the law, hate speech and an incitement to violence. I did not agree with what either Penny Sparrow or Vicky Momberg said, but both became infamous and were punished after respectively calling beach goers ‘monkeys’ and a police officer the k-word. Momberg even received a fine in the region of R150 000, if I recall correctly. Shouldn’t it be what’s good for the goose is good for the gander? Why was the man with the placard not arrested by the police? Why was no action taken when chaos erupted inside the court? I have attended many court hearings and know of one magistrate who had a member of the gallery arrested for contempt of court. Why? His cellphone rang while court was in session.
So why was this chaos tolerated? What if a bunch of gatvol farmers held a protest and there was a placard spotted with the word “Kill the Xhosa, kill the farm worker” written on it? I bet there would be arrests, court cases and the rest.
Oh yes. On a lighter note. Do not buy underwear at China Mall. These garments do not have double standards, they have no standards at all.
