Johannesburg - Expelled African National Congress Youth League leader Julius Malema is “okay” with a picture of him under one of monkeys in a Bloemfontein school classroom, the Sowetan newspaper reported on Thursday.
“They can do that with me, displaying me next to the monkeys, it's okay,” Malema told the newspaper.
“Nothing shocks me. Our people are subjected to harsh realities of racism every day. As for me, once you display a racist attitude, I don't waste time, I deal with it right away because I know that that is how they are brought up.”
The South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) said on Monday that it would investigate allegations of racism at a Free State school.
“There were complaints that some of those kids (in the school) have been called k*****s,” said spokesman Isaac Mangena.
The old South African flag and a picture of Malema alongside that of a monkey were also reportedly put up on a classroom wall.
The Sowetan reported that wording written on the monkey picture said primitive brains only allowed monkeys to make strange expressions when they wanted to speak.
The SAHRC said it conducted an on-site inspection of the Wilgehof Primary School in Bloemfontein, after a white pupil's parent laid a complaint.
The South African Democratic Teachers' Union said on Wednesday that racism was rife in Free State schools and called for an investigation into racism at schools in the province. - Sapa