South African Ambassador kicked out of America

The USA has just declared the South African US Ambassador persona non grata and kicked him out of America. The SA Government’s actions and attitude before this momentous reprimand reminds me of the first time I attended a High Court Murder Trial.

As a lawyer fresh out of Law School, my attendance was one of the assignments I had to complete as part of my pupilage. I still had to write the Bar Exam (which I passed later that year) and had no idea what to expect. To my great surprise, there was something almost akin to a festive atmosphere in Court during the Trial; the 4 co-accused had friends and family in attendance every day, they all chatted to each other, smiled, and basically acted as if they were just there to answer some questions before we all go home and everything can go back to normal.

Only problem for the accused was, the victim’s blood cried out from the ground.

The Judge, by way of regularly descending into the arena to ask his own questions as well as some truly worrying remarks en passant, was giving the accused ample indication of his attitude throughout the Trial; a warning sign that their dismissive pretense of innocence was not going down well. However, the carnival atmosphere never changed, even when the State produced shocking evidence which totally obliterated their defense.

And then came Judgment Day.

On the day when the Court delivered its judgment, the atmosphere was so dramatically different that you’d swear this was another Trial, and these were 4 totally different accused. Gone was the bluster, the confidence, the dismissive smiles. The accused all just sat there with their heads bowed, and their families wept silently as they were all convicted of Murder.

We see the exact same attitude from the ANC in its current trials and tribulations. The evidence against the South African Government is mounting of their oppression of minorities, injustice, and the inhumane treatment of its own citizens. But, instead of making an honest assessment and investigating the possibility that they may be themselves at fault, we see the dismissive arrogance of the ANC on full display; perfectly symbolized by their recent decision to change the name of Sandton drive in JHB, where the US Embassy is located, to the name of a Palestinian terrorist. This comes after the South African Government’s decision to attack America’s key ally in the Middle East, Israel, by way of a criminal charge at the ICJ.

Yes, even though the Trial is in full swing, the Accused are all still acting like it’s a carnival. I strongly suspect that, by the time we finally see some remorse from the SA Government, it will be too late. Judgment Day is coming, and I can’t wait.