Gayton McKenzie accuses SA Human Rights Commission of defamation

Gayton McKenzie accuses SA Human Rights Commission of defamation

Zuko Komisa

• South African Sport, Arts, and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie has accused the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) of defamation after it announced an investigation into him.
• The investigation was launched following public outrage over old social media posts by the minister that allegedly contained a racial slur.
• McKenzie claims the SAHRC’s decision to go public with its “preliminary findings” was premature and made without giving him an opportunity to respond.

South Africa’s Minister of Sport, Arts, and Culture, Gayton McKenzie, has accused the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) of defamation. The accusation comes after the commission announced it was investigating him for alleged racism.

The controversy began when old social media posts by the minister, which reportedly used a highly offensive racial slur, resurfaced on X, formerly Twitter. This prompted complaints from political parties and public outrage, leading the SAHRC to launch an investigation. The commission stated that the posts were “prima facie violations” of the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act and that they had asked McKenzie to delete the posts, apologise publicly, and undergo sensitivity training.

However, McKenzie says the SAHRC’s statement was released prematurely and without any prior communication with him. In a statement, he argued that the commission’s public pronouncement was an act of defamation because it effectively announced preliminary findings and penalties before conducting a proper investigation or giving him a hearing.

“The SAHRC in this way made itself the prosecutor, the judge, the jury, the sentencer and the executioner—all in a single day’s work,” he said.

The minister maintains that his tweets did not intend to “harm, incite harm, or promote hatred,” and that if the commission had done a proper investigation, it would have found his comments were misunderstood. He added that the incident has caused him “unnecessary embarrassment” and that he is not opposed to deleting the posts if they are causing public confusion.

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