Wits Jews watching newly-released Dlamini

ANT KATZ

ABOVE: Mcebo Dlamini addressing hundreds of #FeesMustFall supporters outside court after being granted bail last week

Wearing his trademark keffiyeh over his shoulders in the court, Dlamini, who was dismissed as Wits SRC president after posting on social media in April 2015 how much he respected Nazi leader Adolf Hitler, had been arrested during a #FeesMustFall protest and accused of assault, public violence and theft, among other charges.

The Jewish students who were worried by his release did not want to be named, citing their desire to try to reconcile with Dlamini and persuade him of the community’s understanding and involvement with the #FeesMustFall movement.

Shortly after his arrest (Dlamini spent 21 days behind bars), the infamous “Kill a Jew” and “F*** the Jews” graffiti was painted on a wall on the Wits campus, but there has been no proven link between #FeesMustFall and the graffiti.

Wits and Jewish leadership were at pains to point out at the time that there was no evidence that the #FeesMustFall movement was anti-Semitic and they could not apportion blame for the graffiti to the movement. The perpetrators of this shocking hate speech have yet to be identified.

RIGHT: Mcebo Dlamini wearing his trademark keffiyeh in court last week

After being freed, Dlamini told a crowd of students that prison had been “like an initiation” and that it had made him even more resolute.

Dlamini’s “I love Adolf Hitler” Facebook post caused a huge outcry as did his subsequent interview with campus newspaper Vuvuzela, which quoted him as saying: “He admired the German leader (who sent millions to death camps), for his ‘charisma’ and ‘organisational skills’.”

A Facebook friend had written: “Hitler new [sic] they [Jews] were up to no good.”

When challenged and told that his posts – like this one – had been reported to Facebook, Dlamini, who was SRC president at the time, responded: “Shame nxaaaaa (expletive deleted) am not removing it… truth hurts… face it… murderers. I have researched about president [sic] Adolf Hitler,” in defending his “knowledge” of Hitler.

Dlamini further defended his remarks saying that his love of Hitler had “nothing do to [sic] with white people”. He said he found it “very absurd that people expect me to regard their enemies as my enemies. The same way I love Robert Mugabe, it has nothing to do with white people” and that he would “write what I like on my Facebook” and was not on the social media platform to “nurse Jewish people’s feelings. Who told them (Jews) they deserve special treatment?” he asked.

Nathan Pollack, then SAUJS chairman, told Jewish Report at the time that he found it “obscene” that someone “can be so small-minded as to say he admires Hitler for his organisational skills. It’s like saying PW Botha was a fantastic cook. So what,” he said, “does that excuse apartheid?”

While Jewish students have roundly backed the #FeesMustFall movement, and while no direct evidence exists showing it to be anti-Semitic, Dlamini has been a vociferous supporter of numerous anti-Israel campaigns in the past.

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