Global Voices » Afrikaans

South Africa: Malema is Out, What's Next?

Muhammad Karim — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 18:17:59 +0000

South Africa's most controversial character and politician Julius Malema has been suspended from the ANC for five years. Julius Malema is the former president of the African National Congress Youth League.

Last year, Malema led students in singing an old anti-Apartheid struggle song called ‘Kill the Boer' and a South African judge found him guilty of hate speech because of comments he made about a woman who accused President Jacob Zuma of rape.

In May 2010, Malema was forced into making an apology to the nation and attend anger management classes. He then changed the song ‘Kill the Boer' to ‘Kiss the Boer‘.

Malema is regarded by his supporters as the genuine voice of the poor in South Africa particularly with his call for nationalisation of South African mines.

Fr Stephen's Blog writes about his suspension:

Former President of the ANC Youth League. Photo released under Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0) by Gary van der Merwe.

Julius Malema is to be removed as leader of the ANC Youth League (ANCYL) after being suspended from the organisation for five years.

Malema is barred from involving himself in any activities of the ANCYL and the ANC for the duration of his suspension, which came into immediate effect today after Derek Hanekom,the ANC’s national disciplinary committee (NDC) chairman, announced the findings of a disciplinary process against Malema and the league’s top brass in Joburg today.

Malema was not present at the announcement at Luthuli House for the announcement. He was reported to be in Limpopo writing an exam.

The committee found Malema guilty on two main charges. One related to a statement he made on July 31 – that the ANC was no longer dealing with issues affecting the interests of Africa.

….

Malema was also ordered to vacate his position as league president with immediate effect.

He has 14 days to appeal…

Hardspear's post on Malema [af] is a simple expression of fear for the future:

Julius Malema… Ek sidder om te dink watse kak gaan hy nou aanjaag…

I shiver to think what shit he's going to do next.

Looking at events leading up to this point, we have to take a look at the recent “Economic Freedom March” led by Malema. Leaboy's Domain gives us a fitting introduction to this by highlighting Zapiro's cartoon on the event in his post titled, “Zapiro has a dig at Malema's ‘Economic Freedom March”.

The biggest argument in the South African blogosphere about this march was the inherent hypocrisy of Julius Malema who highlights the plight of South Africa's poor while he lives in luxury. One Long Minute gives us his point of view in his post titled, “What are you walking for?”:

First the March for Economic Freedom, well that was lead by Julius Malema, when he wasn't too tired and taking a break in his chauffeur driven beamer [BMW car]. There is just so much irony in that I'm headed for sensory overload. Lazy bastard still letting the masses do all the work for him but taking all the limelight for himself.

Vuilblog takes a satirical approach against Malema's followers with a picture of Malema, which has the following text:

You don't have running water, you live in a shack, you ride in a taxi. I buy expensive cars, I buy expensive houses, I only drink Johnnie Walker. You still like me.
Thank you for being a $%^&ing idiot

Other posts discuss the image and character which Julius Malema portrays. Covering what Malema thinks of himself with a hint of sarcasm is 2OceansVibe:

In his recent address at Walter Sisulu University in Mthatha, Malema said it was the job of the youth to introduce radical ideas, but bemoaned the fact that these days, one is hauled before a disciplinary committee for “telling the truth”.

This from the man who was in the media again this morning for a using a racial slur against Indians. Poor Juju. He really just feels misunderstood and unsupported.

Bibliopolit compares Malema to Lady Gaga:

Of course, here in South Africa, we have the equivalent of Lady Gaga in Julius Malema! Just in the political scene. Should we call him Julius Gaga, or Lady Malema? If it were not for Malema’s outrageous statements and claims, he would not have had a fraction of the attention that he is getting currently. For Malema, if it isn’t going to be controversial, it is not worth saying anything about it, according to how Lady Malema thinks.

Malema thrives on attention, and in my opinion, he falls in the same category as Lady Gaga. Although he is physically an adult, he has not matured mentally or sociologically to becoming an adult, and continues to crave attention like a 10-year old girl. And, the only way he can get the attention he so desperately desires, he acts and says things that are controversial.

The Fire in My Eyes gets straight to the point:

Julius Malema has the makings of a dictator.
He encourages the black population of South Africa to procreate and seems to dream of a country where white people are erased.
The way he speaks makes on think of reverse Apartheid and he constantly speaks of white people as the enemy.
He has a huge youth following in South Africa even though he is facing allegations of corruption.
The bad press he has received seems to fuel the fire of his followers and he's become something of a 'saviour' figure for many.

The Property Mag summarises the current state of South African politics in light of recent events:

“The dismissal of two cabinet ministers, the firing of the police chief, the enquiry into the arms deal and the fact that whatever the outcome, Julius Malema has had to go on trial, have all sent out a positive message that South Africa will not be allowed to drift into a chaotic Third World state. These moves by the President along with the financial minister's new mini-budget, have very definitely restored confidence in a leadership which appeared to be losing control.

So we know where we are now, we still have yet to see what the future holds for Malema and South Africa.

South Africa: Motorcyclist in Amageza Rally Rescues Calf

Juliana Rincón Parra — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 04:04:10 +0000

The video captured on a helmet cam by South African Johan Gray is making him famous. While doing one of the qualifying rounds for the Amageza 2012 motorcycle endurance race he spotted a calf trying to stay afloat in a canal. He stopped to help the stranded animal and then drove him on his bike to the rest of his herd.

South Africa: Nation mourns passing of Dr Frederick Van Zyl Slabbert

Prisha Bhoola — Tue, 18 May 2010 15:56:20 +0000

The day was July 9 1987. The place was Dakar, Senegal. The participants - members of the then banned African National Congress and a group of 61 influential white Afrikaners. The mission – sketch a new, democratic future for South Africa. Amongst this delegation was a man who would become a giant in South African politics – Frederick Van Zyl Slabbert.

It is no wonder then, that South Africa was deeply saddened by the loss of one of her greatest sons.

But who was the man who is so fondly remembered by so many? Frederick Van Zyl Slabbert was born on 2 March 1940 in Pretoria. He lectured at University of Stellenbosch , Rhodes University ,the University of Cape Town and achieved his doctorate at 27. In 1973 he became professor of sociology at the University of the Witwatersrand.

Slabbert ventured into politics in 1974 and joined the Progressive party with Helen Suzman. This would mark his stand against apartheid. However, it soon became evident that this was not achieving his desired result and in 1986 he announced his resignation from both parliament and his party on the grounds that parliament “had become irrelevant to the future of South Africa”.

A year later, he became director of policy and planning for the Institute for a Democratic South Africa and led the delegation to Senegal, as described above, leading to the white government of the day denouncing Slabbert's group as traitors.

In the new South Africa, Frederick Van Zyl Slabbert continued to contribute to finding common ground amongst South Africans and remained committed to identifying a joint future for all until his death on 14 May 2010.

The blogosphere was abuzz with news of his death. It soon became clear that many South Africans realized that a huge debt was owed to the man known as “Van”.

The Daily Maverick describes him thus:

It is a measure of Van Zyl Slabbert’s importance and influence that he helped lead the country’s great change, exposed and out in the open. Teddy Roosevelt would certainly have said of him he was “the man in the arena”.

South African politicians don’t agree on too much, but on the death of Frederick Van Zyl Slabbert, the views were largely unanimous. President Zuma said,

His visionary leadership lives on in our efforts to build and strengthen democracy. He will be remembered as a principled and patriotic South African, who served his country diligently.

OFM reported similar sentiments attributed to the Freedom Front Plus, a political party largely representative of the Afrikaner community and Former President FW de Klerk:

Die leier van die Vryheidsfront-Plus, Pieter Mulder, sê Slabbert was altyd eerlik en het ‘n integriteit getoon wat vandag volgens hom nie meer bestaan nie. Oudpresident FW de Klerk het hom geloof as een van die mees uitsonderlike en briljante persoonlikhede op Suid-Afrika se politieke toneel.

The leader of the Freedom Front Plus, Pieter Mulder says Slabbert has always been honest and showed integrity, something that no longer exists in today's political arena. Former president F.W. de Klerk praised Slabbert as one of the most outstanding and most brilliant personalities ever on the South African political scene.

The Democratic Alliance said:

As a politician, academic and businessman, he lived his life in devotion to improving his country. His leading role in opposing apartheid and facilitating South Africa's transition to democracy is testimony to his enduring contribution to the country he loved.

Tributes similarly flowed on Twitter. Anneroselt tweeted that Slabbert

was an awesome man who will always be rembered (sic)

John Clark stated that,

South Africa is the poorer for the loss of your intellect and humanity.

And perhaps the most poignant of all was from Tinus le Roux who tweeted:

Stil broers. Daar gaan ‘n groot man verby.

Silence brothers. A great man has passed on

It is clear that South Africans owe a huge debt of gratitude to Dr Frederick Van Zyl Slabbert. His legacy will be remembered and celebrated in South Africa for years to come. It is also clear that his beliefs still hold true in present day South Africa. He once said:

When I look towards the future, I am fearful of the long darkness that may await us all. I am saddened by the human potential we have squandered. But we here in South Africa have problems to solve for which the rest of the world has found no solutions. That in itself is a great challenge.

HIV & AIDS: Creative awareness raising campaigns

Juliana Rincón Parra — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 07:50:12 +0000

AIDS Day 2008 took place this past December 1st, and it is usually a day for marches and activities to promote AIDS awareness and provide information. Raising awareness for HIV & AIDS requires heavy doses of honesty and creativity to make sure the message is received, accepted and acted upon by very diverse audiences from vastly different backgrounds. Here we bring you a Christian Church that raps in Spanish against Drugs and AIDS, correct male condom usage in El Salvador, a Peruvian campaign using modified Tarot cards to tell “clients” about their future regarding love and sexuality, a Venezuelan calendar that brings nude artists together against AIDS, an African network show about living with HIV/AIDS and an HIV+ Argentinean who shows through video what his life is like.

The Christian Church La Palabra shows a musical drama scene where the victim is sung to by a character playing Drugs in white, and another one playing AIDS in red. They rap a well rhymed rhythm about how the way out of drugs and risky behaviours is to accept Christ, and to listen to the testimony of those who have managed to break free of vice and drugs through religion:

In El Salvador, a young woman asks a member of the audience to show what is the correct way to use a male condom, and he proves that he knows the theoretical and practical aspects of it:

Although the following video can't be embedded, we invite you to view the video on their YouTube page. The Red Juvenil (Youth Network) in Peru came up with a different way to get people involved with knowledge regarding love and sexuality in a somewhat private environment. They set up a divination tent where a “fortune-teller” would read them their future on modified cards that had different concepts like love, friends, self-esteem and as they read them their future, they would tell them about relationships, safer sex behaviours and how to protect themselves.

In Venezuela, Accion Solidaria, an NGO who works with AIDS and HIV has put out its fourth annual calendar, this time featuring Venezuelan starlets and tv personalities giving out the message that if AIDS affects even one of us, the it is a problem for all of us. The hook to get people to purchase this calendar? The starlets are in the nude, with strategically placed props and scenery to avoid getting an R rating for the calendar. Their promotional video showing behind-the-scenes footage of the calendar making process is up on YouTube:

From South Africa, Siyayinqoba Beat It! is a TV show geared towards people living with HIV/AIDS as well as their caretakers, family and friends. They started in 1998, and for this year they have included Community Journalists who interview people in four rural communities discussing their experiences with the disease, stigma, treatment and safe sex issues among others. Their YouTube channel is a great way for all of us living outside the country to see what they are up to and what is being discussed. Following, one of the interviews in a community, discussing disclosure in a community in Lusikisiki:

From Argentina, Hector Toscano is an HIV positive photographer and blogger who is also uploading videos showing an introspective view of life with AIDS, his frustrations, successes and fears. In the following video, we see a vignette of his evening routine taking his daily pills:

See more about this topic on our AIDS&HIV coverage page which includes an embeddable map with HIV Positive bloggers from all over the world.

Also, there will be a Live Chat about HIV/AIDS on December 3, 2008

Please join us in a live chat with bloggers and activists on how to use citizen media to promote awareness of HIV/AIDS, it will be facilitated by Kenyan bloggers Serina Kalande and Daudi Were (3pm Nairobi time). See more information, here.