SA support for Huntley

2009-09-07 08:24

Brandon Huntley

Pretoria - Civil rights initiative, AfriForum, plans to support the Canadian refugee status of South African expatriate Brandon Huntley.

AfriForum said it was currently consulting with Canadian and international human rights experts regarding the possibility of stepping in as amicus curiae (friend of the court) in the Canadian government's planned request for a revision of Huntley's refugee status.
 
The Canadian government recently announced its intention to review the Immigration and Refugee Board's verdict.

According to Willie Spies, AfriForum's legal representative, the organisation has now decided to become involved in the matter.

AfriForum made this decision after it emerged that ANC deputy secretary-general, Thandi Modise, had discredited the Huntley incident by stating that, in her experience, racial attacks in South Africa were more likely to take place the other way around (white against black).

ANC version

Spies said AfriForum's involvement with the case would ensure that Modise and the ANC's version of the crime crisis in South Africa was counteracted.

Regardless of whether Huntley was opportunistic or not, AfriForum felt it was of national importance that the daily confrontations South Africans had to deal with, were exposed.

According to Spies, Huntley's application to the refugee board would never have passed if it weren't for regular reports from South Africa which indicated government's exaggerated obsession with race.

It would be a pity if the Canadian review of the decision had to rely only on the information supplied by the South African government, said Spies.

- Die Burger