Can you still boycott or protest against Cape Union Mart? What the High Court ruling means - IOL
Palestine activists in front of the Western Cape High Court, which has ruled that the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) cannot link Cape Union Mart, its brands and its chairperson to the Israeli regime and the genocide in Gaza..
The Western Cape High Court has granted Cape Union Mart a final interdict against Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) activists, barring them from publicly linking the retailer and its chairperson, Philip Krawitz, to Israel or the genocide in Gaza.
The ruling comes after nearly two years of nationwide protests outside the company's stores and leaves the boycott itself intact.
But what does the ruling mean? Can there still be boycotts and protests, and what are they not allowed to do? We do a deep dive into what is allowed and what the interdict bans.
Yes, they are fully allowed to continue their boycott and protest.
The court explicitly noted that no order was sought or granted to prevent the respondents from boycotting Cape Union Mart or from assembling in public places to protest.
The boycott itself remains a legally protected form of expression, if the activists stay within the boundaries set by the court's interdict.
According to the court, it was not making a political or international relations pronouncement on the war in Palestine.
It reiterated that it was evaluating justiciable legal claims under South African law regarding defamation, personal dignity, and lawful protest conduct.
This interdict comes after the PSC held protests outside and near Cape Union Mart stores across the country for nearly two years.
The retailer has been accused on numerous occasions of “supporting genocide”, in reference to what the group describes as the ongoing genocide in Gaza, involving the continued killing of Palestinians by Israel.
In court papers, Cape Union Mart is cited as the first applicant, and the second applicant is owner and executive chairman.
The respondents are five activists from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign: Magmuda Ockards, Muhammad Shafiq Gamiet, Mohamed Zaid Jeenah, Sherazaad Rahima Sylvester, and Sayed Ridhwaan Mohamed.
The sixth respondent is unidentified protesters, and the seventh respondent is the PSC.
In its application, Cape Union Mart asked the court to interdict and restrain the PSC from harassing and intimidating customers and staff.
Judge J Cloete said the respondents failed to establish a factual basis for their allegations and relied heavily on hearsay evidence.
This is not the end of the boycotts. The Palestine Solidarity Campaign says its boycott campaign against Cape Union Mart will continue despite a Western Cape High Court interdict in favour of the retailer.
