WESTERN CAPE DA SPEAKER'S OUTRAGEOUS RULING

The Office of the ANC Chief Whip is outraged by the undemocratic and bullying tactics of the DA in the Western Cape legislature, which seeks to illegalise expression of views that disputes its deceitful version of history told in its controversial "Know Your DA" campaign.

DA deputy speaker on Thursday kicked out ANC MPL Max Ozinsky out of the Western Cape legislature for stating the historical fact that Helen Suzman supported arms sales to the apartheid South Africa, which were used to kill anti-apartheid activists.

This is the true, unmodified version of history the DA would rather South Africans didn't know. Members of the Provincial legislature enjoy freedom of speech, protected under the constitution, to express themselves on such historical facts and other matters, regardless of how uncomfortable the DA might feel about them.

The DA deputy speaker's ruling sets a disturbing precedent which undermines the constitutional role of the legislature, which is a forum for robust and lively debates on important matters.

Essentially, it criminalises any challenge to its sanitised version of history, as told in the DA's campaign. What is next? Is the Western Cape Legislature now going to create a legislation that makes it illegal for anyone to speak critically of the atrocities committed in the past?

The Office of the ANC Chief Whip supports the ANC legislature caucus in its challenge of this outrageous ruling.

Statement issued by the Office of the ANC Chief Whip, June 11 2013

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