A South African court sentenced radical left-wing opposition leader Julius Malema to five years in jail on Thursday for firing an assault rifle at a rally eight years ago.
Hundreds of red-clad supporters of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party leader gathered outside the court for the sentencing in the politically charged case.
Large groups of EFF supporters also gathered in other cities, including Johannesburg, to watch the sentencing broadcast live from the court in the city of KuGumpo, formerly called East London.
Magistrate Twanet Olivier said Malema, 45, had deliberately violated firearm laws by shooting a gun in the air at an EFF rally in 2018 in a planned event.
“It wasn’t… an impulsive act,” the magistrate said. “It was the event of the evening.”
“The decision to break the law has been made and it was made with the approval of the accused person, and the leadership,” she said.
Malema’s defence said the shots were only intended to be celebratory.
The state had been seeking the maximum 15-year jail term for Malema, who was found guilty in October. His defence team said they would appeal the conviction and the sentence.
– Criticism –
The EFF — a small but vocal party inspired by Marxism — says the case is an attempt to silence its outspoken leader, who is known for fiery speeches.
With this sentence, Malema stands to lose his seat in parliament.
Party supporters have threatened protests should their leader be jailed.
The magistrate stressed it “is not a political party who has been convicted here… it is a person, an individual.”
The case against the EFF leader was brought by the small, conservative group AfriForum.
Malema has long been criticised by AfriForum, notably for his use at rallies of an anti-apartheid chant, “Kill the Boer” — a word for the country’s white Afrikaner population.
The far-right group says it is hate speech and incites anti-white violence. This has been rejected by the courts.
While the chant is controversial in South Africa, courts have ruled it does not constitute hate speech and should be considered in the context of the struggle against white-minority rule, which ended in 1994.
The Afrikaner lobby group has brought its long-standing complaints against Malema to the attention of US President Donald Trump.
Trump showed clips of Malema chanting the slogan at talks at the White House with President Cyril Ramaphosa in May last year.
“But why wouldn’t you arrest that man?” Trump asked Ramaphosa, referring to Malema.
The EFF won under 10 percent of votes in the 2024 general elections, and has 39 seats in parliament.
Malema’s sentencing was welcomed by the centre-right Democratic Alliance, the second largest political party in the country after Ramaphosa’s African National Congress.
“Gun violence is out of control in South Africa, so any crime involving illegal gunfire is extremely serious. It’s important to punish illegal firearm crimes harshly,” party leader Geordin Hill-Lewis said in a statement.
