EFF STATEMENT ON POLAND DETAINING PRESIDENTIAL SECURTY DETAIL AND MEDIA CREW FOR OVER 24 HOURS
Sunday, 18 June 2023
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) condemns, in the strongest terms, the refusal of Poland for the South African media crew and security detail to form part of the delegation of the African leaders peace mission in Ukraine and Russia.
A chartered flight carrying security forces and journalists was blocked upon landing at Warsaw Chopin Airport on Thursday, with Polish authorities not allowing those on board to disembark from the plane for over 24 hours.
Poland outwardly restricted media freedom and the human rights of passengers and the crew by detaining them on a flight, and then refusing them their journey forward to Ukraine and thereafter, Russia.
The South African head of state had to travel all the way to Kyiv in a compromised state in a war zone without his security detail. This is an unacceptable and a deliberate form of humiliation. While Cyril Ramaphosa is an incompetent and corrupt buffoon of imperialism who is incapable of taking a firm stance on the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the South African state and our sovereignty was undermined through him.
Their treatment is rooted in racism, however, this is not surprising from a country that has been begging our government to release Chris Hani's killer Janusz Walus and return him to his country of origin. Poland has lobbied for the release of the cold blooded killer for many years, and he has developed a large following in the racist, right-wing, neo-Nazi country.
Furthermore, this incident is reminiscent of the Red Scare against those who aligned with communism during the Soviet Union era, which was a result of imperialist aggression from the USA. Poland is essentially practicing Cold War antics in a democratic society to also bully African nations on their foreign policy objectives.
The EFF calls on the government not to respond to this lightly, but defend our sovereignty and dignity by recalling our ambassador to Poland, and downgrading the Polish embassy in South Africa.
Statement issued by the EFF, 18 June 2023
