Thousands march in support of Palestine in Cape Town and Joburg, call for isolation of Israel

The handover of the memorandum calling for South Africa to isolate Israel through the enactment of sanctions and boycotts was the culmination of the march led by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC).

Mahumapelo assured the protesters that National Assembly Speaker Thoko Didiza would receive the memorandum and give feedback on its demands.

“We know that this is a struggle not only of the people of South Africa. We know as Parliament that we don’t exist by ourselves but we exist on behalf of the people. We are an instrument of democracy that must be used by the people to advance the cause of the revolution,” he said. 

The march came almost a year after the 7 October 2023 Hamas assault on Israel that killed 1,200 people. Since then, Israeli forces have killed about 41,802 people in the Gaza Strip, according to the Palestine Ministry of Health in Gaza. The conflict has been described by many activists in South Africa and other countries as a genocide against the Palestinians.

Read more: ‘So many devastating events’ — Humanitarian organisations call for immediate ceasefire in Lebanon and Gaza

In a recent escalation in the Middle East conflict, the Israeli military has warned people to evacuate areas in southern Lebanon that are outside a UN-declared buffer zone, indicating that it may widen the ground operation launched last week against Hezbollah, a Lebanese Islamist political party and militant group that has launched attacks across the Israel-Lebanon border in a show of support for Palestine.

At Saturday’s protest, people held signs with messages such as “Apartheid is a breeding ground for genocide” and “End the killing”. Among the organisations represented at the event were Equal Education, Gift of the Givers, the Congress of South African Trade Unions, the Housing Assembly and the Western Province Council of Churches.

Call for sanctions

The memorandum calls for an “end [to] apartheid and genocide in Palestine” and demands that Parliament adopt the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid.

“Our Apartheid Convention Bill, to be tabled in Parliament as a private member’s bill, is based on the 1973 International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid… South Africa acceded to the Convention on 14 May 2024 and the Convention entered into force for South Africa on 13 June 2024. Our accession to the Convention was informed directly by our experience of Apartheid in South Africa… The Convention declares apartheid a crime against humanity,” the memorandum reads.

According to the memorandum, passing the Apartheid Convention Bill into law will pave the way for South Africa to make boycotts, sanctions and divestment against Israel compulsory and mandatory, as well as prosecute and punish all those implementing or supporting apartheid anywhere in the world.

The protesters further called on the South African government to:

• Give effect to United Nations Resolution 377A, the Uniting for Peace resolution, for an immediate ceasefire and an “end to the genocide and daily terror against the Palestinians and the people of Lebanon, Syria, Yemen and the rest of the Middle East”;
• Support the return of land and property to Palestinians, along with adequate compensation and reparations; and
• Declare Zionism an “illegal, racist ideology”, to be outlawed internationally.

March for ‘humanity’

Speaking at the march, Gift of the Givers CEO Imtiaz Sooliman referenced the case brought by South Africa at the International Court of Justice, seeking provisional measures in order to “protect against further, severe and irreparable harm to the rights of the Palestinian people under the Genocide Convention” and to ensure Israel’s compliance with its obligations under the convention. 

South Africa is due to file its memorial to the ICJ in October, which will provide facts and evidence that Israel is committing the crime of genocide in Palestine, according to the Department of International Relations and Cooperation.

“South Africa congratulates you, we stand by you and we thank you,” said Sooliman about the ICJ case.

“The Palestinians have only one request – raise your voice; speak for us; don’t forget us… Let’s carry on the message. We’re preaching to those who don’t understand.”

Rafeeqah Watson, one of the marchers, said she was there not only to support Palestinians but humanity too.

“It’s not just the Muslims being oppressed in Palestine and across the world. It’s many other religions as well. We’re here to stand up for those who are unable to and who are being murdered in Palestine and across the world,” she said.

South African Zionist Federation (SAZF) spokesperson Rolene Marks told Daily Maverick that the SAZF “vehemently rejects” calls to isolate Israel and boycott Israeli products in South Africa. 

“Those calling for sanctions against Israel – a democratic nation defending itself against terrorism – remain conspicuously silent on the actual human rights abuses and war crimes committed by Hamas, Hezbollah and other terrorist organisations, as well as the countries supporting them. This selective outrage not only undermines the credibility of the protesters but also exposes their true motives,” she said.

Marks said the South African Jewish community called for the return of hostages and for terror groups to lay down arms in the lead-up to 7 October.

According to GroundUp, hundreds of people gathered outside the US consulate in Sandton, Johannesburg, on Saturday to protest against Israel and condemn the US’ role supporting Israel’s bombardment of Gaza. They included members of the South African Lebanese community, who joined the protest in light of the spread of the conflict to Lebanon. DM