As outrage mounted against Johannesburg businessman Adam Catzavelos for his use of the k-word and his shameless racism, lawyers say it will be very difficult to make criminal charges stick.
In a video‚ Catzavelos, 39, uses the k-word to celebrate the fact that no black people were present on the beach he was on. The leaked video, which was sent to a WhatsApp group, went viral on Tuesday night.
Advocate Mark Oppenheimer told Times Select that prosecuting Catzavelos for crimen injuria would be challenging.
“First, it must be proven that he intended to impair someone’s dignity. This may be difficult because his words were aimed at his friends in a private message, not at someone he was intending to demean.
Verlie Oosthuizen, social media lawyer at law firm Shepstone and Wylie, said she could not see how Catzavelos would be criminally charged, although she understood the video was very offensive.
“Crimen injuria needs to be directed at someone. His comments were not directed at anyone in particular.”
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