A hate speech complaint against African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) leader Julius Malema was part of a conspiracy to undermine the organisation, the Equality Court in Johannesburg heard on Monday.
”I think there are other agendas which are trying to undermine this leadership,” said Malema, who was under cross-examination over a statement he made about President Jacob Zuma’s rape accuser.
He said ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe had suggested a meeting between himself and the complainant, the Sonke Gender Justice Network, to explain the context of his statement.
But the women’s rights organisation was not interested in meeting him, said Malema.
”They should have seen an opportunity to educate a young man … I must say I am highly disappointed … the first opportunity they saw to educate a young man was to rush to court.”
He was responding to questions by Chris Todd, lawyer for the Sonke Gender Justice Network, which laid a complaint of hate speech and harassment against Malema for saying in public that Zuma’s rape accuser ”had a nice time”.
”Those who had a nice time will wait until the sun comes out, request breakfast and ask for taxi money. In the morning, that lady requested breakfast and taxi money,” Malema said at the Cape Peninsula Technikon in January in the run-up to the general elections.
Todd started his cross-examination by reading Malema the Equality Act and summarising testimony by women’s groups, which included a report by activist Lisa Vetten on the statistics around reported rapes.
Malema said he supported the values enshrined in the Equality Act, but told Todd that he had not read the specific report quoted in his case in court.
”I’m not an expert. I’m a layman who can only respond to the utterances I’ve made. On statistics … it’s something you have to argue with your learned friend [Malema’s lawyer]. I know nothing about statistics.
”That’s why I didn’t even bother myself to read this document … which I would not [have] the capacity to do.”
Malema said a man needed to have the capacity to accept and admit when he had made a mistake, and learn from that mistake, but in this instance he did not believe he did anything wrong.
He was not giving a ”general lecture” on rape victims when he made the comment, said Malema.
”It was a specific response to a specific case. I was never, in whatever way possible, trying to be an expert on rape victims.
”The audience I was addressing never ever interpreted this as a general comment,” added Malema, who was dressed in a light brown pin-striped jacket and beige trousers.
He was trying to clarify why Zuma remained the ANC’s presidential candidate despite negative coverage of his trial for rape, a charge on which Zuma was acquitted in 2006.
”I was explaining why the ANC still had Zuma as a candidate.”
To this, one of his woman supporters in court whispered a loud ”Yes” and punched her fist in the air.
Malema acknowledged her with a nod.
The court was packed with journalists and Malema supporters wearing green ANCYL T-shirts and black T-shirts printed with the words ”Umshini Wami [bring me my machine gun]”.
Last month, magistrate Colleen Collis dismissed a complaint of unfair discrimination against Malema, but ruled that the charges of hate speech and harassment remained.
The Sonke Gender Justice Network said the comment perpetuated rape myths and could affect the lobbying and workshops they did among boys and men to prevent sexual violence.
It wants a full apology and R50 000 in damages to be paid to a shelter for abused women. — Sapa