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AfriForum has previously called on international governments to impose sanctions on Malema.
EFF leader Julius Malema. Picture: X/@EFFSouthAfrica
AfriForum has welcomed the United Kingdom’s (UK) decision to deny EFF leader Julius Malema a visa, saying “this is only the beginning”.
This comes after British authorities on Wednesday denied Malema permission to enter England, just hours before he was to depart South Africa for the Cambridge Conference.
The EFF said Malema was invited by the African Society of Cambridge University, to address its 11th Annual Cambridge Africa Together Conference, under the theme of “The Making of Africa’s Future President’s”.
“In what can only be described as an administratively orchestrated ban on the president of the EFF, the British High Commission has actively delayed the processing and approval of the visa application by the CIC, and has sent a letter of regret that it will not be processed in time for the address at Cambridge University.”
ALSO READ: Malema denied UK visa
The EFF said a letter of regret was sent on Wednesday when Malema was set to depart to the UK following a confirmation that the visa would be processed that afternoon.
AfriForum CEO Kallie Kriel welcomed the move.
“Great news! This is only the beginning. AfriForum is intensifying its international campaign, calling on the global community to take punitive action against Julius Malema for inciting violence against Afrikaners and farmers with the ‘Kill the Boer’ chant.
“South African courts have failed to protect Afrikaners from calls for violence against them, and President Ramaphosa has refused to condemn the hateful chant. To ensure that Malema cannot act with impunity, international intervention is now necessary,” Kriel said in a post on X.
In a letter to EFF deputy president Godrich Gardee, British High Commissioner Antony Phillipson said he had been following the processing of the necessary visa for Malema.
Phillipson apologised that his colleagues at the UK Home Office said they would regrettably be unable to process the application.
This was due to the time owing to the necessary steps required to consider visa applications and the timing of some recent UK bank holidays.
“I recognise that this will be deeply disappointing, especially as the delegation applied in advance and some paid for priority service. I would like to assure you that I have taken a personal interest in this issue and have been in regular communication with relevant Home Office officials about this case, including over the last week and this morning,” Phillipson said.
ALSO READ: Trump lashes out at SA again as AfriForum thanks US president
“I am afraid, though, that I have no means of intervening in the decision-making process itself, which is solely a matter for the Home Office.
“Given the fact that the purpose of the visit was to attend the Cambridge conference, and that will now no longer be possible, it would be open to the delegation to withdraw their applications on this occasion. We have secured agreement from Home Office colleagues that should the delegation choose to do so, the Home Office will fully refund all application fees,” he said.
Malema has come under fire for inflammatory political messages, including encouraging land invasions.
AfriForum called on international governments to impose sanctions against Malema over the “Kill the Boer” chant, as well as others who are “guilty of gross human rights violations through their public calls for violence against Afrikaners and farmers”.
In March, US President Donald Trump lashed out about Malema’s ‘Kill the Boer’ chant.
This came after South African-born CEO of Space X and Tesla, Elon Musk, shared a post on his platform X about a “major political party that was actively promoting white genocide” in the country.
Trump then took to his Truth Social platform, where he posted a screenshot of Musk’s tweet on the matter.
The US president’s post ignited a spark of enthusiasm from Kriel, who thanked Trump for his support.
During the same month, the Constitutional Court dismissed AfriForum’s application for leave to appeal previous rulings that found the struggle song not to be hate speech.
The ConCourt concluded that the application “bears no reasonable prospects of success”.
The ruling came as President Cyril Ramaphosa was urged to take action against Malema for singing Dubul’ iBhunu at a Human Rights Day rally in Sharpeville.
ALSO READ: AfriForum’s bid to have ‘Kill the boer’ declared hate speech fails at ConCourt
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