South Africa’s leading opposition party on Monday (July 31) accused its main rival on the radical left of inciting hatred by singing a famous controversial anti-apartheid song. At a rally Saturday, Julius Malema, leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), sang “Kill the Boer” in front of some 90,000 cheering supporters in a crowded stadium in Soweto. The Boers are the descendants of the first Dutch settlers.
“Here is a man determined to start a civil war,” charged John Steenhuisen, leader of the liberal-based Democratic Alliance (DA) party. He described Mr. Malema – “Juju”, as South Africans call him – as a “bloodthirsty tyrant”, determined to incite “mass murder”. The EFF, interviewed by AFP, did not comment immediately. The DA is considering filing a complaint against the charismatic and willingly provocative Julius Malema, 42.
Wearing his indestructible red beret, the latter raised his fist for a long time on a raised stage on Saturday, in a whirlwind of red and gold confetti. This great show, intended to celebrate 10 years of his movement, also took the form of a show of force less than a year from crucial elections where the African National Congress (ANC), in power since the end of apartheid, could for the first time lose its parliamentary majority and therefore the presidency.
This latest falling out comes as opposition parties actively seek alliance strategies to dislodge the ANC in 2024. Mr. Malema had recently said he was ready to join a coalition with the DA, which leads the a group of six small parties. But Mr Steenhuisen ruled it out last week to AFP, saying the EFF does not share the coalition’s “values ??and principles”. Any prospect of rapprochement, at least at the national level, seemed ruled out on Monday, with Mr Steenhuisen also describing the EFF as “political enemy number one”.
The DA, still widely perceived as a white party, could win 16% of the vote according to a recent poll, against 13% for the EFF, which notably advocates land reform favorable to black South Africans.