Media statement: Justice Lamont ruling on Roets contempt of court
Date: 17 September
Nelson Mandela Foundation
Johannesburg: The Nelson Mandela Foundation notes the judgment by Justice Lamont of the Johannesburg South High Court. Although the judgment was not in favour of our submissions, the Foundation would like to express respect for the judiciary as well as the rule of law.
After studying the judgment, the Nelson Mandela Foundation has instructed its legal team to prepare a Conditional Application for Leave to Appeal, which includes an application for direct access to the Constitutional Court.
Gratuitous displays of the old flag express a desire for black people to be relegated to labour reserves, a pining for the killing, the torture, the abductions, a melancholia for the discrimination, the death squads, the curfews and the horrific atrocities committed under the flag.
The right to freedom of expression is widely protected in our law. However, it does not protect the right to hate speech and does not trump the right to human dignity. That is so because of our history – which is a painful one.
For media enquiries, please contact the Spokesperson of the Foundation, Luzuko Koti, on
+27 (0)82 994 0349 or at LuzukoK@NelsonMandela.org.
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