The era before 1994 was highly painful for millions of black South Africans. It was the apartheid era that devided the nation. To evoke less painful memories the Nelson Mandela Foundation has approached Equality Court in Johannesburg to ban gratuitous displays of the apartheid-era South African flag.
NMF argued the public display of apartheid-era South African flag amounts to harassment, unfair discrimination and hate speech saying it was a celebration of crimes against humanity committed on millions of black South Africans for decades by white minority.
A press statement of NMF writes, “The decision to launch this application comes after years of watching public displays of the old flag and hoping that such behaviour would stop. These displays demonstrably compound the pain experienced by millions of black South Africans who suffered under apartheid and continue to struggle under its legacy.”
The foundation mentions further that total wipeout of the flag from history is not being called as it is undeniably a part of their history, but it belongs to cathartic creative works, documentaries and museums.
AfriForum argued that banning would be an infringement of their freedom of expression as it was part of their history.
The flag was national symbol between 1928 and 1994 and is still used by sections of white right-wing community as a symbol of patrimony. A new flag was introduced after 1994 when South Africa entered a democratic dispensation.
The apartheid-era flag was based on Dutch Prince’s flag and reminds the colonial past of South Africa.
