Malema’s challenge of apartheid-era legislation back in court

The EFF plans to picket outside the High Court in Pretoria on Thursday when two applications involving the party will be heard in court.

The first application is the party’s constitutional challenge to the Riotous Assemblies Act of 1956 and the second pertains to former president Jacob Zuma’s leave to appeal a court ruling that orders him to personally pay the legal costs for trying to block the release of the State of Capture report by former public protector Thuli Madonsela.

The first application was launched by EFF president Julius Malema who is facing separate charges under the Riotous Assemblies Act of 1956 in the Bloemfontein and Newcastle magistrates’ courts for his calls on EFF supporters to illegally occupy land.

The act was called apartheid legislation by the party, and was “enacted to fight the Freedom Charter”.

The EFF said: “That act was the basis of the famous treason trial of Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, and others.

The party added that the ANC government used that apartheid legislation to charge Malema, claiming that should the court rule the act unconstitutional, Malema’s related charges would be dropped.

The EFF said it and other parties would oppose Zuma’s application to ensure the former president personally pays the costs.

“Both of these cases have huge implications for the people of South Africa. They relate to the first and seventh non-negotiable pillars of the Economic Freedom Fighters: land and the call for a corrupt free government,” they added.

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