It almost feels like the Equality Court’s ruling on the Apartheid-era flag has, ironically, divided the nation. The landmark ruling was handed down on Wednesday, much to the satisfaction of the Nelson Mandela Foundation, the civic group that had submitted the application.

Apartheid-era flag banned for this reason

Judge Phineas Mojapelo, who handed down the ruling, noted that displaying the apartheid-era flag is prohibited and due to its embedded connotations that are linked to what it represented in the past, contravening this constitutes hate speech.

While the court admitted that it would be impossible to police such a judgment, with the apartheid-era flag still existing in many homes across the country, those found displaying will face the full might of the law.

“Displaying [the apartheid flag] is destructive of our nascent non-racial democracy… it is an affront to the spirit and values of batho / ubuntu, which has become a mark of civilized interaction in post-apartheid South Africa.” the judge said.

AfriForum, who attended the judgment, stated on record that they opposed the ruling and would require some time to study Mojapelo’s decision before announcing a way forward.

Speaking outside the court after the banning of the old South African flag. pic.twitter.com/bo19dtbrBZ — Ernst Roets (@ErnstRoets) August 21, 2019

A nation divided: What people had to say about the ruling

The landmark ruling shot right up to the top of the trending topics in South Africa. Scores of people from all around the country had some things to say about the ruling.

Minister of Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa celebrated the ruling, stating that the decision was taken “in the spirit of the preamble of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa.”

We welcome the judgement handed down by the Equality Court which ruled that the gratuitous display of the #ApartheidFlag constitutes prohibited hate speech, unfair discrimination & harassment; in the spirit of the preamble of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. pic.twitter.com/eeEpw0YMBv — Min. Nathi Mthethwa (@NathiMthethwaSA) August 21, 2019

The Steve Biko Foundation also welcomed the ruling. The foundation tweeted that “the old South African flag is a symbol of white supremacy”.

The Steve Biko Foundation welcomes the ruling by the Equality Court that the gratuitous display of the old apartheid South African flag constitutes hate speech, unfair discrimination, and harassment. #ApartheidFlag — SteveBikoFoundation (@BikoFoundation) August 21, 2019

The ANC chimed in too with a statement that read:

ANC WELCOMES COURT JUDGEMENT DECLARING THE DISPLAY OF APARTHEID FLAG AS HATE SPEECH pic.twitter.com/MOX4COrOgQ — African National Congress (@MYANC) August 21, 2019

Here are more reactions to the landmark ruling from ordinary South Africans.

The #ApartheidFlag has NO place in South Africa! — Ulrich Janse van Vuuren (@UlrichJvV) August 21, 2019

This is Dylann Roof – the Charleston Church Massacre Terrorist. Look at the patch on his jacket. #ApartheidFlag #notfakenews pic.twitter.com/DBGfyLwN3W — Kim (@Kimisinacult) August 21, 2019