Julius Malema attacks AfriForum

EFF leader Julius Malema responded to his looming crimen injuria case, saying it is the work of the right-wing white supremacist organisation Afriforum.

The EFF said that it was not fazed by AfriForum’s announcement that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) will pursue a charge of crimen injuria against Malema.

“The pursuit of this by the NPA at the behest of the racist reincarnation of the Boeremag, AfriForum, is part of a vindictive ideological agenda by right-wingers,” the EFF said.

“They cannot bear the influence that the EFF and its leader continue to hold in various spheres of government and society.”

The party argued that Malema acted in the best interest of children, and that his remarks were a political statement of outrage on behalf of a child and a grieving family.

“It is our political duty to ensure that anyone who commits harm or appears to have caused harm to a child is pursued decisively,” it said.

“We do so unapologetically, and AfriForum, even with the might of Donald Trump, will not silence us.”

It added that AfriForum has aggressively pursued SAPS and the NPA on behalf of a white male school principal while dismissing the human rights of an African child.

“AfriForum’s relentless political prosecution against Julius Malema has reached an unprecedented low,” the EFF said.

It argued that it was weaponising the justice system in a child rape investigation by disregarding the rights of a 7-year-old African child for the ‘rights’ of an adult white man.

“This is precisely the pattern the EFF has highlighted as the white supremacist self-serving nature of AfriForum,” it said.

“The cowardice of SAPS, NPA, and SAHRC is unsurprising as it is a reflection of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government.”

The party added that Ramaphosa’s government has consistently allowed AfriForum’s treasonous acts to go unchecked.

The criminal case against Julius Malema

Last month, Afriforum chief executive Kallie Kriel revealed that EFF leader Julius Malema was being criminally prosecuted for crimen injuria after their intervention.

The case stems from public statements and social media posts Malema made about Jaco Pieterse, the former principal of Bergview College in Matatiele.

The case involves a child whose mother alleges she was raped at the Bergview College in Matatiele, Eastern Cape, in October 2024.

Pieterse and the school’s caretaker became targets of a social media campaign. However, they were proven to be innocent.

Following the unfounded allegations against him, Pieterse took steps to hold politicians, including Malema, accountable for publicly violating his dignity.

Pieterse, represented by AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit, led by advocate Gerrie Nel, laid charges of crimen injuria against numerous politicians.

The charges were filed against ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula, EFF leader Julius Malema, and Eastern Cape Education MEC Fundile Gade.

Mbalula and Malema faced additional charges of violating the Cybercrime and Intimidation Acts.

Barry Bateman, the unit’s Spokesperson, said the politicians’ comments unjustly violated a man’s dignity by accusing him of a heinous crime.

“Pieterse was publicly labelled a paedophile, a label that in society’s eyes is among the most irredeemable and damning,” Bateman said.

“AfriForum’s legal team will pursue individuals who attempted to destroy Pieterse’s life and spread lies about AfriForum.”

On Sunday, 9 August 2026, Kriel revealed that Malema is now criminally prosecuted for crimen injuria after AfriForum helped file the charge.

“Gerrie Nel and his team at AfriForum’s private prosecutions unit helped to ensure that justice is done for the Eastern Cape school principal, Jaco Pieterse,” he said.

“AfriForum’s Private Prosecution Unit has succeeded in convincing the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) that Malema should be prosecuted for crimen injuria.”

He added that Malema was the first of those who defamed Pieterse to be criminally charged in this case for crimen injuria.

“We will ensure that others who also falsely accused Pieterse, such as Fikile Mbalula, follow suit,” he said.

“Civil defamation cases against, among others, Phumzile van Damme and others who falsely accused Pieterse will also follow.”