Malema’s legal team’s desperation indicates damning weight of testimony after first week of firearm trial

Day five and the first week of the criminal prosecution of Julius Malema for several contraventions of the Firearms Control Act has concluded in the East London Regional Court. AfriForum filed the charges against Malema and his bodyguard, Adriaan Snyman in 2018.

The first week of the trial saw many key witnesses testify in court, including a ballistics expert.

“In February Malema appeared in the Kill the Boer hate speech case where the key issue was the incitement to violence contained in that song. Now Malema is appearing in court for allegedly firing a firearm illegally on stage. This leads one to ask a serious question, what’s next? Actually shooting victims?” says Ernst van Zyl, Campaign Officer for strategy and content at AfriForum.

“Add to that Malema’s testimony in that trial that if he and his party meant their lyrics literally, they would fire real guns on stage, rather than simply gesturing with their fingers,” Van Zyl adds.

“It seems as though Malema and Snyman’s legal team have bet all their chips on a tactic of trying to plant doubt everywhere in this case and to attempt to discredit those who have testified, especially the ballistics expert. This tactic does not seem to be working though,” says Marnus Kamfer, AfriForum’s Legal and Risk Manager.

The case is set to continue on 5 – 9 September 2022 in the East London Regional Court.

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