Stand-off over memorial heckling
Citizen group to forge ahead with court action
THE Active Citizens Movement will not meet the ANC Youth League and will instead file contempt of court proceedings against the league over its refusal to apologise for the disruptions at the memorial service for Struggle icon Ahmed Kathrada.
The service, organised by the Active Citizens Movement and held in Durban on April 9, turned chaotic as members of the youth league heckled and booed speakers, including former finance minister Pravin Gordhan and ANC treasurer-general Zweli Mkhize.
The ANC Youth League members attended the event after the Active Citizens Movement’s attempt to get a court interdict to bar them failed.
The court allowed the league members to attend the event but warned they should not disrupt it.
After the event, the Active Citizens Movement demanded an apology from the league “for the unlawful disruption”.
However, the youth league refused to apologise and asked for a meeting with the Active Citizens Movement.
The movement confirmed that its lawyer had not received a response to its demands.
Instead, a letter from the league requesting a meeting with the movement had been received, it said.
“The Active Citizens Movement will not meet with the ANC Youth League unless a written apology, as requested, has been provided,” the movement said in a statement.
It said it would proceed with bringing a contempt of court application against the youth league.
However, Thanduxolo Sabelo, the ANC Youth League’s KZN secretary, yesterday said the league would not bow to the demands of the Active Citizens Movement.
“We will not issue an apology, and we have sought an audience with them to cover issues, including what happened at the memorial service, so that we can come to an amicable solution,” Sabelo said.
It would be “premature” to suggest the league had been disruptive at the memorial with any conclusive evidence to suggest the disruptive people were league members, he said.
“It would be unfair to argue that those who were wearing yellow (ANC) T-shirts were members of the youth league because there were others wearing white T-shirts who were heckling and booing the KZN chairperson of the ANC,” said Sabelo.
The youth league’s attorneys had written to the Active Citizens Movement requesting a meeting to take place on Tuesday but had not received a response to the request, he said.
The Active Citizens Movement said it had also asked the youth league to “identify the disruptive members and institute disciplinary proceedings against such members”.
The league won’t bow to their demands