Julius Malema Sentenced to Five Years for Firearm Offences
Julius Malema, the prominent 45-year-old leader of South Africa's Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and a Member of Parliament, has been handed a five-year prison sentence following his conviction for the illegal possession of a gun and its discharge in a public area.
The sentencing took place in an East London court, where Magistrate Twanet Olivier delivered the verdict. Malema, attired in a dark suit and red tie, displayed minimal emotion throughout the proceedings.
Last year, Malema was found guilty of five offences, including unlawful firearm possession, discharging a weapon in public, and reckless endangerment. These charges stem from a 2018 incident captured in a viral video, showing him firing a semi-automatic rifle into the air during the EFF's fifth-anniversary celebrations in the Eastern Cape province.
During his defence, Malema asserted that the firearm was not his and that he discharged it to energise the crowd. However, Magistrate Olivier countered this, stating that the act was not impulsive but rather a significant event of the evening.
Political Career and Controversy
Malema is widely recognised as an outspoken, charismatic, and radical left-wing politician with a devoted following. Hundreds of his supporters gathered outside the court, chanting and singing revolutionary songs in solidarity.
Once the leader of the African National Congress (ANC) youth wing, Malema was expelled after a disagreement with then-President Jacob Zuma, subsequently forming the EFF. The EFF, advocating for land expropriation without compensation and wealth transfer to the black majority, has significantly eroded the ANC's vote share, becoming the fourth-largest party in the 2024 elections.
Following his conviction last October, Malema defiantly declared to his supporters that "going to prison or death is a badge of honour" and vowed to challenge the judgment up to South Africa's Constitutional Court.
The prosecution against Malema was initiated by AfriForum, an Afrikaner lobby group with a contentious relationship with the EFF, after the video of the incident emerged. AfriForum was also involved in another conviction against Malema, where he was found guilty of hate speech in August last year for remarks made at a 2022 rally, which the equality court ruled "demonstrated an intent to incite harm." The EFF maintained these remarks were taken out of context.
