“I Want the Blood of an Afrikaner”—DA Files Hate Speech Case Against EFF’s Ramabodu

South Africa's second-largest political party—the Democratic Alliance (DA), which is part of the Government of National Unity (GNU), has filed criminal charges against an Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) councilor for their alleged hate speech during a city council meeting on July 25th..According to the DA's statement, the Tshwane Municipality Ordinary Council Meeting "included a Motion of No Confidence (MONC) against Executive Mayor Cilliers Brink [and] quickly descended into chaos when the African National Congress (ANC) and EFF realized they lacked sufficient votes to remove the Executive Mayor. Both parties chose to disrupt the meeting through violence and intimidation.".It was during this time, according to the DA, that an EFF councilor—one of the parties that form part of the opposition 'Progressive Caucus'—said, "I would be happy to moer (assault) a Boer, that will be nice. An Afrikaner blood. I want the blood of an Afrikaner…bring the blood of an Afrikaner…I want it.".What You Need to Know.Obakeng Ramabodu, the councilor in question, later apologized on X, claiming the comments came after he was threatened by a Freedom Front Plus (FF+) councilor..However, the alleged threat from the FF+ councilor was not recorded on the meeting's livestream..The Tshwane City Council's Mayor, Cilliers Brink, has called Ramabodu's comment "hate speech rhetoric," with the DA filing an additional complaint with the country's Human Rights Commission to investigate Ramabodu for hate speech and incitement of violence..The Details.The word 'Boer' means 'farmer' in Afrikaans but colloquially refers to South Africans of Dutch descent. The EFF, throughout its history, has used the chant "call the fire brigade/burn the Boer" as well as "kill the Boer/kill the farmer." Despite multiple complaints over the years by various interest groups to the nation's Human Rights Commission, Equality Court, and Supreme Court of Appeal, the chant has not yet been designated as hate speech..The chant 'kill the Boer' is extremely polarizing in South Africa, a country that records hundreds of farm attacks and murders each year..Farm attacks and farm murders in the country are characterized by extreme brutality, including the use of power tools, machetes, and chemicals to torture victims; rape is also common. For example, in August 2023, a couple from the city of Pietermaritzburg was attacked at their smallholding. The female victim was "beaten with a bolt cutter and lead pipes, and eventually stabbed with a spear while her attackers chanted 'kill the Boer, kill the farmer.'".In another example, in October 2023, four perpetrators of the murder of Western Cape farmer Jurie Wynand Wessels and his wife were charged. The court's prosecutor stated, "the accused tortured the deceased and his wife by stabbing them. They poured boiling water over the victims, attempted to cut off the deceased wife's fingers with a grinder, and when the deceased and his wife prayed, cried, or talked to each other, they would be punched in the mouth.".So, What Now?.It is unlikely that Ramabodu will face any drastic punitive measures, based on how charges of hate speech against Boers have been handled by the country's rights organizations in the past..The criminal charge, however, may result in some form of action, although what that action might be is yet to be seen.