ANC APPLAUDS A STIFF SENTENCE GIVEN TO PENNY SPARROW BY EQUALITY COURT
10 June 2016
The ANC in KwaZulu-Natal has heaped praise at the Scottsburgh Equality Court for giving Penny Sparrow her comeuppance for slapping her with a R150 000 fine for calling African beach-goers monkeys, sparking a national outrage which plunged the whole country into an ugly racism row.
While we welcome the judgement but it is our considered view that Sparrow must publicly apologies for demeaning the African people and therefore caused an untold pain.
Today, 10th June 2016, the Scottburgh Equality Court found Sparrow guilty of hate speech for her derogatory comments. The court also ordered her to pay R150 000 within 60 days to the Oliver and Adelaide Tambo Foundation.
“As the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal we wish to commend, Magistrate Irfaan Khalil for the his ruling which, we believe, will send a strong message to all covert and overt racists that they have no place in South Africa we are trying to build. This country has come a long way from being the pariah of the international community because of its apartheid policies which were declared a crime against humanity to becoming an embodiment of hope for humanity for how it has fostered a sense of multiculturalism and unity from the ruins of the apartheid edifice. We cannot allow one individual to reverse all the gains we have notched to build a country in which all us have a right to human dignity,” Cde Super Zuma, ANC Provincial Secretary.
The ANC also called for Sparrow to apologise to all South Africans for the offense she caused and for creating the impression that the country was racist.
“Even at this late hour, we still habour the hope that, Sparrow will show remorse and contrition. The ANC has never been an organization that believes in retribution or an eye for an eye approach to conflict resolution. We are an organization that subscribes in the inherent goodness of every human being regardless of the colour of their skin.
“These are the values that were taught to us by one of the founding fathers of our democratic project, Tata Nelson Mandela. In this regard, if Sparrow humbles herself to the nation for the harm and hurt she caused, we would be more than ready to accept her apology. We think that all human beings have the capacity to change their ways and discover their sense of shared humanity. We do hope that in the fullness of time Sparrow will also find it in her heart to apologise for the national outrage she caused,” said Cde Zuma.
Statement issued by Cde Mdumiseni Ntuli, ANC KZN Provincial Spokesperson, 10 June 2016
