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Serious incident-risk has increased markedly
Only hours after former state president FW de Klerk, in a letter to President Jacob Zuma, warned that particularly the utterances by African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) leader Julius Malema were beginning to create a volatile atmosphere into “our national debate” and a situation "in which any additional intemperate statement or action might spark an unfortunate incident", a serious threat to peace in the country exploded onto local news pages. It took the political temperature to dangerous levels.
Interestingly enough, it did not come from the extreme right wing as De Klerk feared, but from another erstwhile freedom movement. It graphically illustrated the real danger of such an “unfortunate incident”, which he said would be an unaffordable tragedy - particularly on the eve of the 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup.
Following shortly on the heels of De Klerk’s observation in his letter that many South Africans were deeply disturbed by the "increasingly inflammatory tone of some facets of our national debate", Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) Youth League president Pitso Mphasha at a press conference - in his reaction to a Malema statement that the PAC had “hijacked” the 1960 Sharpeville anti-pass demonstrations - issued the chilling warning: “We are saying to Malema to apologise within five days or we will injure him to death... He will either end up in a hospital or in a mortuary."
Mphasha said all formations of the PAC would be mobalised to hunt down Malema. He also spoke of a “one enemy one bullet” campaign in a parody on one of the slogans employed during the days of the freedom struggle.
From the right, Malema’s continued insistence to use the struggle song urging “kill the Boer… kill the farmer” even has prompted the known publicity-hungry Afrikaans singer Steve Hofmeyr to write an open letter to the ANCYL leader. The letter is riddled with racial innuendo and stereotyping. "Tomorrow, after you've shot the boere, you will still be a pitiful black African living in denial of your own impotence parading as a fake achiever without contributing to the world a single original idea," wrote Hofmeyr.
Hofmeyr claimed he had written the letter after President Zuma failed to rebuke Malema, and the ANC defended the youth leader's singing of "Dubula ibhunu".
How wide all the sorts of dividing lines and political persuasions the polarisation caused by Malema’s ever provocative antics have become, is well illustrated by the number of and the tone of comments on a very wide spectrum of Internet blogs, news sites and Facebook pages.
In his letter, De Klerk called on the president "to take the lead in moderating the tone of the national debate and in ensuring that it is conducted in a manner that promotes national unity and compliance with the letter and spirit of the Constitution."
However, reaction from the ANC, of which Zuma is also the leader, seems to be going in the opposite direction. After the use of the song "Dubula ibhunu" was declared unconstitutional and unlawful after an urgent application was brought before the high court in Johannesburg, the ANC said it was "shocked and disappointed" by the court decision and will challenge the ruling.
"We believe that this song, like many other that were sung during the struggle days, is part of our history and our heritage," the ANC said in a statement.
According to one report, Malema, when asked for reaction to the court ruling, said: “I have no comment. Speak to the ANC. This is not my song.”
The way in which Malema has been using the song in recent weeks as a rallying call at ANC gatherings has led also to an unprecedented number of complaints being lodged at the South African Human Rights Commission. By the end of last week, the number of complaints was approaching 500.
The atmosphere around the song, which opposition parties and minority interest groups claim the lyrics of which incite violence against white farmers, is emotionally laden in the face of mounting statistics on farm murders. Earlier this month, Minister of Police Nathi Mthethwa said there had been 1 248 murders involving farmers and farmworkers between 1997 and 2007.
The "Sunday World", commenting on both Malema and Mphasha, wrote: “A timebomb is ticking underneath us when all our young people can talk about is killing. Kill for Zuma. Kill the Boer. Kill Malema. Kill Jub-Jub.
“The proud history of the PAC and ANC is being urinated on by the present-day lot that spawns the likes of Malema and Mphasha. It cannot be otherwise when the president of the ANC and the country himself chants “Bring me my machine gun”, and his organisation goes to the Constitutional Court to fight for the right to chant Shoot the Boer.
“We will never begin to chip away at the culture of violence unless we get our collective mindset right. When we glorify violence, and young people threaten to kill at every opportunity, and with impunity, it is just a matter of years before this country becomes a killing field," it wrote.
“What is clear is that there is no leadership on this – certainly none in the mould of the founding fathers of the freedom struggle.”
