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The prevention of erstwhile ANCYL president Julius Malema by South African Police Force to enter Wonderkop Stadium in Marikana and address the striking workers must be condemned in the strongest terms by all democrats.
The South African Constitution guarantees all of us, including Malema the rights to address any gathering in South African without any hindrance, within the confines of the law. The police quoted no law or court order under which they denied Malema this fundamental rights. If the conduct of the police is left unchallenged, simply on the basis that Malema is not everybody's favourite politician, then South Africa is in danger of collectively violating our own Constitution.
The Malema phenomenon is a political matter that must be left to politicians and history tells us that the police must stay out of it. The news that the Hawks were investigation a charge of incitement by Solidarity must never mean that his rights and freedoms must be denied. Furthermore, it is clear after the utterances by the security cluster last week that the police received a political instruction to "deal" with Malema.

The blurring of the lines and the criminalisation of political opponents like Malema is gravely dangerous. We must never turn a blind eye when rights are denied unfairly simple because the person on the receiving end is someone we dislike.
During times of intolerance, intimidation and victimisation, we must always remember the great words of a German theologian, Martin Niemöller:
"First they came for the communists, and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist. Then they came for the socialists, and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a socialist. Then they came for the tradeunionists, and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out - because I was not a Jew; Then they came for me - and there was no one left to speak out for me."