S. African court fines woman for making racist comments
Xinhua, June 10, 2016 Adjust font size:
A South African court on Friday imposed a fine of 150,000 rand (about 10,000 U.S. dollars) on a woman for labelling blacks as "monkeys" in a Facebook post.
The Equality Court in Scottburgh, KwaZulu-Natal Province also ordered that the case be referred for possible criminal prosecution.
Penny Sparrow, a former estate agent, made headlines during the New Year holiday when she vented her displeasure at the number of black people swarming public beaches during New Year in Durban, likening them to "monkeys". Her comments went viral on social media and caused a public uproar.
The ruling African National Congress (ANC) later laid charges of crimen injuria against Sparrow and other individuals for allegedly promoting racism.
The ANC said it would explore ways to make racist comments punishable by law.
In Friday's ruling, Magistrate Irfaan Khalil said Sparrow's comments amount to hate speech and such comments could throw the whole country into turmoil. Endit