Jackie Shandu, has been charged for the racial slur One Indian, one bullet chant allegedly made during a protest on the steps of the Durban City Hall in July 2021 following the civil unrest.
Jackie Shandu, whose real name is Gift Madoda Radebe, charged for the racial slur, “one Indian, one bullet” during the July 2021 riots following the civil unrest, will return to the Durban Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.
Shandu, the convenor of the #JusticeForPhoenixMassacreVictims group, appeared in court on Wednesday for what was anticipated to be the commencement of his trial.
Shandu, was among the protestors who had gathered at the City Hall in condemnation of the killing of at least 36 people in Phoenix during the unrest in 2021.
Shandu withdrew his remarks, stating that he did not condone violence and noted the potential it had to “inflame already existing racial tensions”. He said having reflected and sobered up, after being enraged, they were anti-racist in their outlook and did not condone racism in any way.
However, Shandu was of the view that his case was being heard in the wrong court and should have instead been in the Equality Court
According to Natasha Ramkisson-Kara, spokesperson for the National Prosecuting Authority in Kwazulu-Natal, the defence had made representations to the prosecutor, and the matter would return to court with regards to the outcome of the representations.
Speaking to the Sunday Tribune, Shandu said: “They are just wasting our time and abusing these very same processes that we have fought so hard for. So, it is a sheer abuse of process and power. But it is fine, we will work with them.
“I am not a racist murderer. The focus should be on the racist Indian vigilante criminals who murdered, tortured and assaulted harmless and innocent people. So, that is where the focus must be and that is what we are going to focus on firmly in court. More than anything, this is just an irritation, but there is absolutely nothing to hope for,” he said.
Shandu said that he was not intimidated and would be following legal processes accordingly.
His legal representative Melusi Xulu said: "We have asked them to consider the withdrawal of the case because the matter is a hate speech case, so to speak, and those cases are usually done through the Equality Court,” said Xulu.
He said that an answer was expected on Tuesday, which would indicate whether the matter would be heard in the Equality Court.
“In case they say we must continue in the Magistrates court, the matter would then be heard on July 19, which is when the trial would begin,” said Xulu.
Meanwhile in another matter related to the civil unrest, brothers Dylan and Ned Govender, who appeared in the Durban High Court recently, are currently out on extended bail of R15 000 each and will be back in court on July 5 for sentencing on assault charges.
They were charged with the murder of Mondli Majola, the attempted murder of Nkululeko Mangwe, the attempted murder of Mxolisi Putuzo, and the attempted murder of Qaphelani Mkovu. The crimes reportedly took place in Phoenix.
According to Ramkisson-Kara, the court found that there was insufficient evidence to sustain the charge of murder against the brothers and they were convicted of assault GBH.
Speaking on the outcome of Majola’s case, Shandu defined it as a mockery of justice.
“It is a mockery of justice. It goes to show how much the state does not care about black people and black lives, and that black lives mean absolutely nothing to the state and that is why even the courts come up with such erroneous and ridiculous judgements.
“People have been murdered, but the killers are let go. It is a mockery of justice,” said Shandu.
Both the Majola and Govender families declined to comment.
Following the racial tension during the civil unrest, several community social cohesion groups were formed to assist with uniting the black and Indian communities.
Phoenix Ubuntu Forum Convenor, Sham Maharaj, said several programmes, including sports programmes, had been initiated to bring about peace between communities affected by the racial implications for the civil unrest.
"We have tried to get people from Phoenix to understand the culture of people living in Inanda and vice versa. So far it has been good. The interventions won't resolve the problem today. There are groups working towards social cohesion from Inanda as well. The court process must take it's course to see who is guilty and not guilty from Phoenix. If found guilty they will pay the price. We have also made submissions to the Human Rights Commission regarding the civil unrest," said Maharaj.
Bishop Rubin Phillip, former chairperson of the then-Social Cohesion Council, said justice played a critical role in social cohesion.
"Without social justice the impression might be conveyed that we are pushing things under the carpet. If we don't deal with the issue of division, it is going to bite us again. We need to invest time and energy and ask, what is the glue that will bind our two communities? We need to be be careful that we don't spend too much time analysing what has happened. We are all saddened by the deaths and heartache. What we need to do as a community is ask how we can now build social cohesion," said Phillip.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE
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