As protests against Germany’s stance on the Israel-Gaza war were held in South Africa this week, it was revealed that local columnist Malaika Mahlatsi has been summoned to appear before German police.
The summons relates to Mahlatsi allegedly “rewarding and endorsing a crime event” while she was in Hanover on October 27 2023, during the height of heavy bombardment of Gaza by the Israeli army.
She has been vocal about her stance on the conflict in her writing and on social media. It is unclear what comment riled the German authorities.
Mahlatsi this week declined to discuss the summons she was served with last month. “I am not doing interviews on the matter until the German police and courts have resolved it,” she said.
However, the Sunday Times has established that Mahlatsi had requested that her court appearance be postponed for a month as she is undergoing eye surgery in South Africa on Thursday.
Sebastian Seedorf, a German constitutional law expert based in Berlin, said it is standard procedure in Germany for police to issue a summons to those at the centre of an investigation.
“This is far from the court stage, it’s a police investigation. She can appear and choose to remain silent, that’s her right.”
The investigation will continue with or without Mahlatsi’s appearance, Seedorf said, but the matter could be closed if the police believe there is no evidence of wrongdoing.
“It means something happened in October and led to someone reporting a case with police. It could be what she [Mahlatsi] said in a closed group or even a video call, but we don’t know what the charge is.”
Though German law allows free speech and artistic expression, there are limitations as defamation and incitement of hatred are punishable crimes. Even if police concluded that a crime was committed, German prosecutors will conduct their own investigation before a decision to prosecute is taken, Seedorf said.
“If I were her right now, I wouldn’t really worry much about this.”
In a letter sent to the German authorities, Mahlatsi, who is a PhD candidate at the University of Bayreuth in Germany, said she was not in the country on the date of the alleged offence.
“The summons indicates that I rewarded and endorsed a crime event on October 27 2023 at my residence in Nenndorferstrasse ... however, as my passport will show, I was not in Germany at the time, I was home in Johannesburg.”
Mahlatsi indicated she had left Germany on October 20 from Hanover and only returned three weeks later on November 14.
“I do not understand how I could have committed a crime in Germany when I was not there. I would appreciate further details in order to get proper legal advice,” she stated.
International relations & co-operation spokesperson Lunga Ngqengelele said the department was made aware of Mahlatsi’s summons by the South African embassy in Berlin.
“We are also monitoring the situation but unfortunately we cannot say much on it. Our colleagues from our embassy in Berlin have been in contact with her,” Ngqengelele said.
Several South African organisations, including the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, African Artists Against Apartheid, South African Jews for a free Palestine, the South African BDS Coalition and Healthcare Workers for Palestine protested against Germany’s stance on the Gaza war in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Gqebhera on Friday.
Among those at the Johannesburg protest at the Goethe Institute was former intelligence minister Ronnie Kasrils.
Kyla Davids from African Artists Against Apartheid said they were concerned about “the growing culture of repression of artists, academics and activities in Germany. Malaika’s case is precisely an example of rising censorship and neo-fascism. And hers is just one of too many examples.”
Protesters criticised Germany’s support of Israel in the genocide case brought by South Africa at the International Court of Justice.
Other issues cited in a joint statement by protesters handed in at the German consulate included “a reactionary wave [which] has resulted in a slew of firings, cancellations, public doxing, and outright censorship, effectively silencing any criticism of the Israeli state” in Germany.
Examples were the cancellation of an award ceremony for Palestinian writer Adania Shibli at the Frankfurt Book Fair, and pressure on Indian cultural theorist and curator Ranjit Hoskote “who resigned amidst a controversy linked to his support for Palestinians”.
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