Kenny Kenene ordered to say sorry for calling Julius Malema a cockroach
The high court in Johannesburg has ruled that suspended Patriotic Alliance (PA) deputy leader
On Tuesday, the court ordered that Kunene issue an unconditional written and oral public apology to Malema, adding that the apology must unequivocally retract the use of the word 'cockroach' to describe the Red Berets leader. It said the apologies must be published within one month of the date of the order and also ordered Kunene to pay the costs for Malema's legal team.
The high court upheld an earlier ruling by the
eNCA
. Judge Motsamai Makume ruled that Kunene's remarks constituted hate speech under the Equality Act.
Kunene's comments in the
eNCA
interview followed Malema's reference to the PA as a party led by 'mapantiti', which loosely translates to 'convicts', after the party decided to work with the ANC in several municipalities across the country. Both Kunene and PA leader Gayton McKenzie are convicted criminals.
Last month, Kunene
Mail & Guardian
that Malema would not get a cent from him as compensation for calling him a cockroach.
'There's not a cent he's going to get from me. I've never ever apologised. I can't apologise to this young boy. He insults people all the time, then just runs to court,' a defiant Kunene said at the time.
He said that he found it strange that calling the EFF leader a cockroach was deemed hate speech, while Malema's continued use of the 'Kill the Boer, Kill the Farmer' chant at rallies has been ruled not to be so.
In a statement on Tuesday, EFF spokesperson
Thambo said the pair's inability to discern the difference between political language and discourse, and blatant hateful rhetoric rooted in historical instances of genocide, was a reflection of that.
Kunene had argued in court that the term 'cockroach' was valid if read in response to Malema's remarks regarding the inclusion of ex-convicts in government in the form Kunene and the PA, however the court dismissed his claims.
'The court rightly referred to these [Malema's] comments as having been made in good faith and interpretable as a reflection of concern for public interest, as it is a fact that Kunene and his party leader are indeed ex-convicts,' Thambo said.
'To state this objective fact in reflection of a political agreement which includes ex-convicts in government is acceptable in political discourse.'
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