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[1]. This Hatred and Anger... By Nhlanhla Hlongwane

o: The Human Rights Commission; From: The Rastafarian United Movement; RE: Complaint of brutality and religious discrimination against the Rabie Ridge Police Station; Date: 2 June 2006

We the Rastafarian United Movement are lodging a formal complaint against the Rabie Ridge Police station on the basis of human rights violation in the forms of police brutality, torture and religious discrimination.

On the morning of the 28th of May, while concluding their weekly over night religious ceremony inside their church in Phumolong, Tembisa, the gathered community of Rastas were confronted in the privacy of their church sanctuary by certain members of the local Rabie Ridge Police Department. They verbally and physically assaulted the Rasta’s taunting; “You should not be Rastas! This is not Jamaica!” They proceeded to desecrate the place of worship. Three Rastas who were arrested had their dreadlocked hair shaved against their will while in police custody, an act which goes against the divine royal principles of Rastafari. An act which also contravenes both their human as well as their legal rights. Essentially, they were attacked, humiliated, arrested, found guilty right here and then by their arresting officers, tortured, had their hair forcibly and cruelly removed from their heads and then allowed to post bail. Today they are not even allowed have their confiscated blood stained white robes back as evidence of who was at the receiving end of the altercation, even as the police claim that it was in actuality the Rastas who were attacking them. We may be the despised and the rejected, it is our crowning glory to be deemed such by this society, but we cannot and refuse to be the abused and the dejected. The police generally judge and discriminate as to whom is worthy of their tax paid protection and service versus whom is worthy of their viciousness and loathe as though it was some informal policy.

We now lodge this formal complaint for the following reasons; firstly, that we want justice for our Brethren, secondly, that we are afraid that this might set a precedent, and thirdly, that also, through this incident, want our human rights and human dignity restored and recognised particularly by those who often stand in constant violation and disregard of it. We therefore seek and implore this august commission’s intervention in this affair and in so doing, intervening also in other such inspired unconstitutional, continuous and growingly criminal acts against the Rastafari community by certain members of the nation’s police force. Our human and constitutional rights have been consistently violated, we now take this opportunity to fight back as we know that we are well within our human and constitutional rights.

We will go anywhere and do anything to ensure that, beginning with this very heinous and criminal act by the Rabie Ridge Police officers in Phumolong on the 28th of May 2006, that we begin now to set examples and definitions of how we demand to be treated by the authorities going forward. In our response, we need to set a precedent for how the police should approach and conduct themselves before the Rastas; as they would do with members of society that they hold in high regard. We are no less than they citizens of this land we too love. We are no less South African than they. And we are certainly no less human than they are! Tekle Hymanot; High Priest of the Melchezedek Order.
Kush Khoza is the voice behind kush.co.za; the spirit of kush kollective. he's that voice that speaks the truth in all of us.