In January, the independent TV station ANN7 organised a panel debate on security in Sandringham for a programme it was making on the subject. It was reported that one of the panellists, Zahir Omar (of the Muslim Lawyers Association of SA), made explicitly antisemitic comments during the discussion. The Board contacted ANN7 to ensure that these were not included in what was broadcast and further asked that it be allowed to view the unedited footage of the debate in order to as

It was both predictable and inevitable that this year’s Israel Apartheid Week (IAW) would result in incidences of antisemitism. The Piazza at the Wits University Campus was divided into two separate areas to allow space to both pro-Israel under the banner of SA Union of Jewish Students (SAUJS) and the BDS movement under the banner of the Palestinian Solidarity Committee (PSC) to present their views. Throughout the week, however, supporters of Israel were subjected to antisemi

Last Friday, the SA Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) led a delegation to Parliament, comprising mainly South African Jewish stakeholders to address the International Relations Portfolio Committee, at the invitation of its Chairperson The Honourable Masango.  The delegation challenged and refuted assertions that had been presented to the committee in previous weeks by certain anti–Israel lobby groups.  SAJBD National President, Mary Kluk, raised concerns that anti-Israel senti

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies is horrified by the shocking racial attack in Mpumalanga referred to as the 'coffin assault'.  We condemn this racist incident in which Victor Mlotshwa was kidnapped, forced inside a coffin and threatened with his life. Most South Africans strive each day to build a country in  which human rights, including the principles of dignity and freedom, are afforded to all who live in it. Acts of humiliation and hate have no place in a multi

Just one year after Penny Sparrow reached notoriety for her racist comments about beach-goers on the Durban coast, it is with a sense of déjà vu that the SA Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) condemns yet another South African, Ben Sasanof, for similar offensive comments he made concerning the Durban beachfront this weekend.  All forms of racism are unacceptable in a South Africa where we strive daily to build a culture based on human rights and principles of dignity and freedo

The antisemitic graffiti (‘Kill a Jew’ and ‘F*** the Jews’) that appeared in Solomon Mahlangu House yesterday is indicative of the ugly racism that has unfortunately surfaced during the student protest.  We note that this follows a Jewish student being called a `Mother-f***ing Jew’ on Wits campus a couple of weeks ago. The Dean of Students has confirmed that the graffiti has been removed and that an investigation to ascertain the perpetrators is underway. Hate-filled graffiti

On Sunday, the SAJBD Gauteng Council and the Johannesburg Holocaust & Genocide Centre (JHGC) held a joint function in memory of legendary human rights activist and Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel. What lent additional significance to the occasion was that it was the first joint event to be held in the JHGC’s newly completed premises in Parktown. The Board was very much involved in the establishment of the JHGC, and since then has collaborated with it on a number of memorable.

Reports of violence, intimidation, and hate speech directed against lesbians, Jews and whites during the protests at Wits University yesterday are distressing. While the South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) is sensitive to the myriad serious issues facing students in this country, it is never acceptable to target minority groups and inflame hatred. According to comments and photos on Twitter, a student claims: “They strangled me, choke-slammed me, threatened me. Aft

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) has made a submission for this year’s Constitutional Review, focusing on issues of ‘hate speech’ and how the SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) could be made more effective in addressing them. The SAJBD is of the view that racist hate speech is of itself damaging, and this is not fully covered by the current definition. Rather, the SAJBD believes that at present, the definition is overly narrow since it proscribes advocacy of

Over the past year, we have seen an escalation of hate speech being disseminated through social media. The authorities, to a large extent, have struggled to truly address this trend. It is for this reason that the SA Jewish Board of Deputies (SAJBD) supports the Portfolio Committee on Communications in its undertaking to amend the Film and Publications Act, 1996. However, the SAJBD is of the view that the extremely complex nature of the electronic media cannot be effectively

The South African Jewish Board of Deputies mourns the loss of Bertie Lubner, who passed away this morning. Bertie was an extraordinary man contributing to so many worthy causes. His vision and leadership were responsible for the creation and development of some leading South African NGOs such as Afrika Tikkun and the Field Band Foundation. Whether in the business, philanthropic, educational, Zionistic or Jewish communal fields, he has made a huge contribution to poverty allev

In a letter to its colleagues and students, the Senior Executive Team from the University of the Witwatersrand has described as “devious” the action of the Wits Palestinian Solidarity Committee’s booking of the lawns under the pretence of other activities. It was stressed that the students had deliberately misled the university management, and that this had far-reaching consequences: “This kind of disruptive, deceitful action cannot be dealt with through security,” the letter

Early this morning, the South African Jewish community lost one of its most loved and respected members with the passing, at the age of 98, of Advocate Jules Browde, an eminent member of the Johannesburg Bar and a long-serving human rights activist and Jewish communal leader. In the course of a career stretching over more than half a century, Browde acted for Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo, as well as other anti-apartheid activists, and was a founder member of Lawyers for Hu