Feminists take on Jelly Totsi

This should be fun. Will Julius miss the chance of putting his foot in his mouth again by mentioning that Lisa Vetten of Tshwaranang Legal Advocacy Centre (TLAC) to End Violence against Women is a self-confessed belly dancer in her spare time and therefore up for anything and everything?

Julius Malema is attempting to woo the gender activists who took him to court over his claims that President Jacob Zuma's rape accuser enjoyed herself with him.

Minutes before the Johannesburg Equality Court began its hearing on the future progress of the Sonke Gender Justice NGO's hate speech complaint against Malema, the ANC Youth League president's lawyer Tumi Mokwena offered the group's lawyers a settlement deal.

"We have offered to release a joint statement (with Sonke) saying that Mr Malema's comments were never intended to undermine gender equality... which he believes in.

"The offer has not been rejected outright and we hope that Sonke will be open to resolving this issue with us," Mokwena told the Weekend Argus on Friday. He went on to describe Malema as a "human rights activist".

Malema's offer is seemingly an about-turn from his previously dismissive stance on the case against him.

Contacted after his legal team first appeared to defend him against the Equality Court complaint against him, Malema denied even being aware that he had been accused of hate speech.

"I don't know about this. Let those people who want publicity go to court because they won't find me there.

"I don't have time for this," he said at the time. (Yeah, right. He was too busy planning the invasion of the Western Cape. And that's a picture of an unwrapped condom up there.)

Mokwena on Friday said Malema would be prepared to testify in his own defence "if needs be".

Malema's current attempt to smoke the peace pipe with Sonke comes just days after ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe attempted to persuade head of advocacy for Sonke Gender Justice, Mbuyiselo Botha, to drop his Equality Court complaint.

Botha, himself a stalwart ANC member, took Malema to court for telling a gathering of Cape Peninsula University of Technology students that when a woman didn't enjoy sex, she would leave early in the morning.

"Those who had a nice time will wait until the sun comes out, request breakfast and ask for taxi money. In the morning, that lady requested breakfast and taxi money," Malema was reported as saying.

He added: "You can't ask for money from somebody who raped you."
Botha on Friday said he was unaware of Malema's settlement attempt.

In court on Friday, his organisation asked that Malema be ordered to pay damages for his rape remarks - which they contend are discriminatory, amount to hate speech and sanction the harassment of rape survivors.

Sonke also dropped its appeal for Malema's remarks to be referred to the NPA for potential criminal prosecution because, the group said, there was "no of

fence currently on the statute books" that Malema could be charged with.

The Equality Court postponed the case against Malema to July 9 for hearing.

In his own words

ANC Youth League president, Julius Malema is facing charges for his latest verbal tirade directed at Western Cape premier Helen Zille. Here are some of the most memorable lines from the country's most infamous mouth.

Comrades, comrades, let us make it clear for everybody now. We are prepared to die for Zuma; we are prepared to die for Zuma. (And) not only that, if these people think we are only prepared to die for him, we are prepared to take up arms and kill for Zuma."

"She must use her fake American accent to address our problems." - To Tshwane University of Technology students about then education minister Naledi Pandor.

"That cartoon was disrespectful of the ANC and the alliance... and our problem has been that there has been an emergence of some attitude from white journalists who want to project African leadership as irresponsible people who can't take responsibility. Our president will never rape the judiciary."

"Those of you who suffer from sugar diabetes, if you are against the ANC your sugar will be very high because the ANC has the majority."

"For those of you saying Zuma should not be president, (you) are daydreaming... he will be the best ever first president of the republic."