A South African estate agent who described black people as monkeys on social media could face criminal charges after her comments reignited an angry debate about racism in the country.

The Democratic Alliance (DA), the official opposition party, suspended Penny Sparrow’s membership and promised to bring charges following a Facebook post in which she blamed black revellers for littering a beach during New Year’s Eve celebrations in Durban.

A party spokeswoman, Refiloe Nt’sekhe, said the DA had referred Sparrow’s conduct to its federal legal commission and expected she would be charged.

“Racists are not welcome in the DA, and have no place in our democratic South African society,” she said. “Attitudes of such vitriolic racism have absolutely no place in SA. To this end, the DA has laid criminal charges against Penny Sparrow, for investigation of crimen injuria for infringing the dignity of all South Africans and for dehumanising black South Africans.”

Penny Sparrow in a Facebook photograph. Sparrow went from relative anonymity to a hate figure within hours.

Sparrow sparked fury on social media after she complained in a Facebook post about crowds in Durban.

“These monkeys that are allowed to be released on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day on to public beaches towns etc obviously have no education whatsoever so to allow them loose is inviting huge dirt and troubles and discomfort to others,” she wrote.

“I’m sorry to say that I was amongst the revellers and all I saw were black on black skins what a shame. I do know some wonderful and thoughtful black people. This lot of monkeys just don’t want to even try. But think they can voice opinions about statute and get their way, dear oh dear.

“From now I shall address the blacks of South Africa as monkeys as I see the cute little wild monkeys do the same, pick and drop litter.”

The post caused huge offence and set off yet another round of anguished debate about the state of race relations in the country 22 years after the end of apartheid.

Using the hashtag #RacismMustFall, thousands expressed their disgust at Sparrow, who went from relative anonymity to a hate figure within hours.

The South African Human Rights Commission also said it was investigating the comments and could lay charges against her.

A survey by the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation released in December found that 61.4% of South Africans felt that relations between different ethnic groups had either remained the same or deteriorated since the end of white minority rule in 1994.

We were all taught to forgive and then you get some people that spit in the face of peace! I'm sooo offended 💔 #RacismMustFall — Minenhle Dlamini (@MinnieDlamini) January 4, 2016

That sentiment partly reflects widespread discontent about the failure of the post-apartheid South African government to spread the country’s wealth more evenly, but comments such as Sparrow’s are often cited by black people as an expression of continuing white privilege.

Sparrow seemed to make matters worse in an interview with the News24 website, claiming her comments had been misinterpreted.



“I made the mistake of comparing them [black people] with monkeys. Monkeys are cute and they’re naughty, but they [black people] don’t see it that way, but I do because I love animals,” she said. “It’s just that they [black people] make a mess. It is just how they are.”

The ruling African National Congress demanded Sparrow’s prosecution, while the opposition Economic Freedom Fighters party, whose leader, Julius Malema, has advocated nationalising mines and radical redistribution of wealth, said the row reflected a failure to implement structural reforms in post-apartheid South Africa.

“The recent Facebook posts are manifestations and results of a failed reconciliation project which was conceptualised without justice in the first place … The ANC is the first to blame for the comfort white racists enjoy in our country. It taught them to just say sorry and life will move on as normal,” the party said in a statement.