Image Source: CBC
Local – Africa4Palestine is calling on the South African Football Association (SAFA) to take a principled stance and support the expulsion of Israel from international football.
The campaign forms part of the global #RedCardIsrael movement, which includes petitions, billboards, and protest actions.
Activists argue that FIFA’s statutes on equality, dignity, and non-discrimination leave no room for compromise while Palestinian footballers are being killed and stadiums bombed.
Africa4Palestine’s Communications and Campaigns Manager, Alie Komape, explained that the organisation was not hostile toward SAFA but wanted the association to join a global call led by Palestinians.
He stressed that the campaign was international in nature and aimed at holding Israel accountable through sport.
“Firstly, we have not targeted Safa. We are asking them; we’re being kind and cordial with Safa. Please be on the right side. The Red Card Israel campaign is an international campaign led by the Palestinians themselves.”
Komape said neutrality in this moment would amount to complicity. He highlighted Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s words on justice, warning that silence in the face of oppression placed one alongside the oppressor.
“We believe what Archbishop Desmond Tutu said is true. If you are neutral in the situation of injustice, you’ve chosen the side of the oppressor. Safa can’t be neutral. Safa can’t be complicit. Safa must act on behalf of Palestinians.”
Calls for SAFA to Take Action
Africa4Palestine highlighted that its requests to SAFA were reasonable and aligned with South Africa’s own foreign policy stance.
Komape said the association could take concrete steps such as endorsing the Palestinian campaign, lobbying international bodies, and distancing itself from abuses linked to recent arrests of activists.
“We are requesting Safa to officially endorse the Palestinian campaign, to table a motion to expel Israel, to lobby CAF, and to apologise and distance themselves from unlawful arrests of activists.”
Komape dismissed arguments that sports and politics could be separated. He said the killing of Palestinians was not a political matter but a humanitarian catastrophe that demanded a moral response.
“Absolute nonsense. Firstly, killing people is not politics. Palestinian children, women, the elderly, and men are being killed mercilessly in Gaza. People are dying.”
He also reminded critics of historical precedent. Komape pointed to apartheid South Africa’s exclusion from FIFA and the recent expulsion of Russia, both examples of political decisions in sport.
“Was it not politics when Russia was expelled from FIFA? Was it not politics when South Africa was sanctioned by FIFA?”
Komape appealed directly to South Africans to take action. He encouraged citizens to email SAFA, sign petitions, and proudly display Palestinian flags at matches as visible support.
“Write an email to Safa and say my name is XYZ, I do not like what Israel is doing, therefore I’m calling for Safa to do 1,2,3. Secondly, we have a petition out… Carry your Palestinian flag with pride and go to the stadium and wave it.”
Africa4Palestine insists that sport, just as it was during apartheid, must again serve as a powerful tool for justice, this time for the people of Palestine.
