Government Commissions Mark Christians as Potential Criminals

The Human Rights Commission (HRC) and Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) have recently made a number of very concerning remarks regarding Christians that should put us on high alert.So for example, in the recent case of Coulson v Neethling, the CGE commented that they were “very disappointed” with the outcome as the gay couple “had a strong case and this matter would have created a precedent in law, which would have prevented potential perpetrators of hate speech and related crimes from raising religious freedom and belief as a justification for infringing on the constitutional rights of same-sex partners and the LGBTI and queer community individuals repeatedly considered by staunch Christians as deviant and unnatural according to biblical scriptures.” (my emphasis) (See link to article here)On a number of occasions already, the HRC and CGE have invited the public to bring complaints against ‘discriminating’ Christians. The message to Christians is loud and clear: “Compromise, or face the consequences of your ‘Christian crime’”.Below are examples where the HRC and CGE have blatantly spoken or chosen sides against Christians:

• In the “hate speech” case of pastor Bougardt last year, the SAHRC was the party who actually instituted the litigation against pastor Bougardt (on behalf of gay people in SA) in Court;

• In the case of Coulson, the SAHRC acted as the legal representatives for the gay couple against the Christian guesthouse owners. The CGE intervened as Second Amicus Curiae;

• In the case of Oakfield wedding venue last year, Mofihli Teleke, CGE Head of Communications, in secular media “urged anyone who feels they’ve been similar discriminated against by Oakfield Farm to lodge a complaint with the commission.” (See link to article here.)

• In the case of Kilcairn wedding venue last year, the SAHRC decided to take their own initiative and look into the case after the lesbian couple dropped the complaint against Kilcairn. Spokesperson Isaac Mangena of the SAHRC told secular media, “It is very worrying that despite the progressive laws prohibiting violence or any form of discrimination against persons based on their sexual orientation, we still have incidents where gays and lesbians are discriminated against.” (See link to article here). In another article, Mangena said, “The SAHRC is hoping to deal with this kind of discrimination in similar matters on its books. It is dealing with issues of alleged discrimination… in a number of complaints, and is involved in Equality Court litigation relating to incidents of denial of services… on the basis of sexual orientation.” (See link to article here.)

• In another recent article, this time in relation to Rosebank Union Church, the SAHRC’s Mangena encouraged the public to take action against “discriminatory venues”. (See link to article here.)