AfriForum filed a contempt of court application in the High Court in Pretoria against the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and its leader, Julius Malema, over alleged breaches of a 2017 court order prohibiting calls for the illegal occupation of land.
In a statement released to the media on Sunday, AfriForum CEO Kallie Kriel said the application follows renewed calls by the EFF and Malema for people to occupy land without the required permission of the owner or lawful occupant.
Kriel said the latest incident occurred on July 23, when Malema told a public EFF lecture at the University of Limpopo in Polokwane that young people would one day enter and occupy a farm in Stellenbosch.
“In its latest court application, the civil rights organisation requests the court that Malema and the EFF be found guilty of contempt of court, and that the EFF be fined R500 000 and Malema be sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment, or another appropriate sanction be imposed”.
The 2017 order prohibits Malema and the EFF from encouraging people to trespass or enter land without the permission of the owner or lawful occupant.
The lobby group said the EFF and Malema are aware of the court order and have spent years trying unsuccessfully to have it overturned.
Kriel added, “the EFF and Malema know exactly what the court order stipulates and have spent years unsuccessfully trying to overturn it. They are now wilfully ignoring the order, and AfriForum will ensure that they face the consequences of their actions.
“This case is about the rule of law. AfriForum pursued this matter through the courts precisely because we believe that the rule of law applies to everyone. It cannot be that ordinary citizens are bound by court orders, while certain political parties and political leaders regard themselves as above the law and can openly disregard court orders without consequence.”
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