ANC's Julius Malema defends 'shoot the Boer' song

The head of South Africa's ANC Youth League, Julius Malema, has taken the witness stand in Johannesburg in a high-profile hate speech trial.

An Afrikaans community is seeking a ban on Mr Malema singing a controversial apartheid-era song with the words "shoot the Boer".

"Boer" means farmer in Afrikaans and they say its use incites racial hatred.

Mr Malema began his testimony insisting he is not an aggressive man, and that the song should not be taken literally.

Karen Allen reports.

  • Africa