Bridges rejects out-of-court deal

Embattled Afrikaans singer Sunette Bridges has spurned an olive branch from the SA Human Rights Commission and the Equality Court.

Bridges is popular Afrikaans singer Bles Bridges' daughter and a prominent member of the "Red October" movement, which seeks to publicise the murder of whites as "genocide".

Commission chairma n Lawrence Mushwana mounted the legal challenge against Bridges in the Equality Court, sitting in the Cape Town High Court, after receiving complaints about racist content on her Facebook pages .

The case is a test on what constitutes hate speech on social media.

Bridges runs a news service on Facebook, which she calls the Sunette Bridges News Page, about the Afrikaans community.

According to the commission, one of the comments that got some people hot under the collar was a picture of a post by a "Siyabonga IIyezi", which stated: "I'm not condoning killing, but the reality is that these farm killings won't stop until Black people get the land they rightfully own back from those who stole it".

Bridges responded: "Dit is hierdie SOT se opinie oor die 4 PLAASMOORDE die aftgelope paar dae!!!" This loosely translates to: "This is this fool's opinion of the four farm murders over these past few days".

Judge Siraj Desai told Bridges' counsel, advocate Paul Kruger, to urge her to consider an out-of-court resolution. But Kruger said Bridges could not be held liable for what other people posted on her profile.

The hearing continues on April 20.