POLL | Do you agree with 'Kill the Boer' ruling?

The Equality Court's ruling that singing Dubul’ ibhunu (Kill the Boer) does not constitute hate speech has sparked fierce debate.

The matter was brought by AfriForum against EFF leader Julius Malema and MP Mbuyiseni Ndlozi after they allegedly sang the song outside the Senekal magistrate’s court in October 2020.

Handing down judgment on Thursday, judge Edwin Molahlehi said AfriForum failed to show that the lyrics are prohibited by the Equality Act and incite violence.

Molahlehi said objective evaluation does not constitute hate speech. Rather, it has to be protected under freedom of speech. He ruled that AfriForum failed to prove the song constitutes hate speech.

The EFF welcomed the ruling, while AfriForum said it plans to appeal, saying the law was not applied properly.

One SA Movement leader Mmusi Maimane said the song was divisive: “We are being dragged into American-style culture wars and this takes us away from serious discussions about how to build a united nation with common goals towards shared prosperity. We are a diverse nation and we should work to preserve it”.

This was dismissed by political commentator Eusebius McKaiser: “It is not divisive simply because AfriForum says so. In the judgment there is an excellent summary of Prof [Elizabeth] Gunner's expert testimony about the song.”

Advocate Ben Winks joined McKaiser on Eusebius on TimesLIVE to explain the judgment.