News24 reports that trade union Solidarity says that although Black First Land First (BLF) leaders have been saved from punishment in the Equality Court over remarks made about the Hoërskool Driehoek tragedy, the court's judgment has laid the foundation for a criminal case.  

In February this year, four Driehoek pupils were killed and 26 others injured when a concrete slab linking two buildings at the school fell on them.  In the wake of the incident, BLF spokesperson Lindsay Maasdorp said their deaths meant future problems had been eliminated, adding the incident was God responding.  Judge Ratha Mokgoatlheng found Maasdorp guilty of hate speech and ordered him and the BLF's deputy secretary-general, Zwelakhe Dubasi, to pay R50,000 in damages to each of the affected families of the dead children, which would have amounted to R200,000.  However, due to a recent ruling by the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA), which found that the current definition of hate speech was unconstitutional and invalid, Judge Mokgoatlheng was forced to nullify his ruling.  Solidarity then announced that a criminal case could still be pursued, notwithstanding that the SCA had ruled part of the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act to be unconstitutional with the outcome that Maasdorp and Dubasi could not be punished using that legislation.  Solidarity’s head of legal services Anton van der Bijl said the Equality Court judgment was the perfect platform to launch a criminal case to ensure justice was served.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Alex Mitchley at News24

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