“Racist and derogatory” TikTok video condemned

The South African Human Rights Commission has noted alleged racist comments made by a minor on the social media platform TikTok and condemned them with “serious concern”.

From Ntombi Nkosi

The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) has noted alleged racist comments made by a minor on the social media platform TikTok and condemned them with “serious concern”.

The incident made headlines this week after a video described as “racist and derogatory” went viral on social media. In the video, a high school student from the Northern Cape used the K-word and N-word towards a black content creator.

The student from Hoërskool Duineveld in Upington repeatedly used the K-word during a live video with @UncleSeeno, the content creator, while his three friends laughed in the background.

The chairperson of the technical committee for basic education, Joy Maimela, condemned the “racist and derogatory” video.

“This student was born in a free and democratic South Africa… so this is unexpected. It is shocking. It is disappointing. It is hurtful that he can make such comments. This must attract the attention of the authorities at the highest level. This cannot be tolerated,” Maimela said.

She added that given South Africa's painful history of racism and discrimination, the country has a zero-tolerance policy towards such behaviour and speech. “We need to act urgently on this matter,” she said.

Maimela further said, “The committee calls on parents, communities, organizations and schools to strengthen life skills programs and engagement to curb such behavior. Raising multi-talented children is the responsibility of all of us.”

The video, which has been viewed over a million times on social media, prompted some users to search until they found the perpetrator's identity, his address and his school.

Hoërskool Duineveld issued a statement in Afrikaans distancing itself from the incident.

“Hoërskool Duineveld regrets the incident that recently occurred on social media and we firmly oppose any discriminatory statements related to race, religion, politics and gender… Our school maintains a culture of mutual respect and tolerance and therefore Hoërskool Duineveld distances itself from individuals or organizations whose comments or actions contradict our values.

“We are working tirelessly to closely follow instructions to address this unfortunate incident in its entirety,” the school said.

Even more disturbing, according to the SAHRC, is the fact that the minor repeatedly made these alleged statements on the social platform 30 years after apartheid.

The Commission said it had been inundated with messages on its social media platforms from angry citizens demanding action against the perpetrator.

SAHRC spokesperson Wisani Baloyi said that after the alarming incident was brought to the attention of the Commission through its provincial office in the Northern Cape, it launched an investigation under its constitutional mandate under Section 184. This section empowers the SAHRC to promote, protect and advance human rights in South Africa. In addition, the Constitution empowers the Commission to take necessary measures to ensure appropriate redress for human rights violations.

“As part of the assessment process, the Commission has already met with the Northern Cape Provincial Department of Education to gather facts and information on the steps taken so far in this matter. The Commission will visit the school to gather further facts and assist the school in conducting a fair, decisive and comprehensive investigation, with the aim of also assessing the overall environment and culture of the school in terms of teaching values ​​such as social cohesion, social justice and diversity,” said Baloyi.

He said the commission commended Hoërskool Duineveld for publicly condemning the incident and expressing its stance that it is against any discriminatory statements based on race, religion, politics and gender.

“The Commission would like to remind the public once again that equality courts are freely accessible. Individuals and groups can approach equality courts and file complaints free of charge and without the assistance of a lawyer. Equality courts are specialised courts that deal with cases related to unfair discrimination, hate speech and harassment. All district courts are equality courts,” he said.

The Commission encouraged citizens who experience racism and other human rights violations to file complaints. Complaint forms can be found here.

“Finally, the Commission wishes to acknowledge the active participation of citizens who notify the Commission whenever it becomes aware of allegations of human rights violations. The Commission will keep the public informed of the progress of our investigations,” Baloyi said.