New Johannesburg mayor is from openly queerphobic partyMayor Thapelo Amad, is a representative of the fervently queerphobic party, Al Jama-ah, and the ANC and EFF helped get him into the position.
by Mambaonline.com
03-02-2023 08:23
in LGBTQIA
Johannesburg's new Executive Mayor, Thapelo Amad. Photo Mambaonline.com
Amad was this week appointed Johannesburg's Executive Mayor as a result of ongoing power-grabbing machinations between political parties that are disrupting the running of the country's largest city.
--
He is the metro's sixth mayor in just three years.
Amad is a representative of Al Jama-ah, a small religious-based political party that only has three seats on the city council. (In South Africa, mayors are not directly elected by residents but by the city's councillors.)
Al Jama-ah is openly queerphobic and espouses the adoption of Shari'ah [Islamic religious law] values in South Africa. It is opposed to homosexuality, same-sex marriage and gender diversity.
--
In 2020, the party's founder and leader, Ganief Hendricks, told Daily Maverick that when it comes to homosexuality, We're against it, because the Quran opposes it.
ALSO READ: Sam Smith's new body-positive video celebrates queer sexuality
In November last year, the party lashed out at draft proposals to make schools safer and more inclusive for LGBTIQ learners. It said it vehemently opposes any moves by the Department of Basic Education to turn bathrooms at schools into unisex and to remove pronouns indicating gender of persons.
--
Hendricks asserted in a statement that: This is a direct assault on the constitutional rights of learners coming from homes with religious, faith and cultural objections to LGBTQ. God-fearing citizens must stand up against these atrocities as in our silence we would be leaving a disgraceful legacy for the future generations.
We say NO to attempts to normalise LGBTQ in this country He called for religious communities to be protected against any measures to force down a LGBQT agenda on them, and urged the government to stop wasting resources meant for education on matters such as LGBQT agendas which are not welcome to a largely faith-based South African society .
Hendricks added: We say NO to attempts to normalise LGBTQ in this country.
In October, the party fumed at a headline suggesting that a threatened terror attack on Johannesburg Pride was rooted in Islamic fundamentalism.
Al Jama-ah complained that the report implies that only Muslims are opposed to the Gay Pride event [but journalists] are aware that there are several Christian organizations - based on religious grounds - that are also vehemently against it; yet they do not talk about Christian terror!
The party reiterated that we determinedly disagree with their forms [of] sexual orientation and their queer belief system Their lifestyle is condemned and unacceptable with the practices of Islam and Muslims.
Amad's election was only made possible with votes from councillors from the EFF and ANC; parties that claim to be LGBTIQ allies.
The cynical move showed that these parties are prepared to discard their commitment to human rights for political expediency.
Amad was personally congratulated by ANC Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi at his swearing-in ceremony. The event was also attended by the ambassadors of Qatar, Palestine, Saudi Arabia and Turkey; states that persecute LGBTIQ people.
It remains unclear to what degree Amad personally shares his party's queerphobic stance or if and how Al Jama-ah's bigotry will impact his role as mayor. Efforts to contact a spokesperson for the mayor were unsuccessful.
Article by Luiz De Barros
This article was initially published on MAMBAonlie.com
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ARTICLES BY Mambaonline.com
Financial freedom helps to reduce the burden of living from paycheck to paycheck. Read more here!
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
10/06/2026
DAZN-owned digital-media company launches three fan-first series leaning into cr...
10/06/2026
Clear-Com has announced the appointment of Jason Dino as Southwest Regional Sales Manager USA, covering Southern California and the Southwest region. Dino joins...
10/06/2026
An 11% decrease in number of global broadcast deals reflects the organization...
10/06/2026
The Women Without Boundaries Awards recognize women whose work is advancing the future of media, broadcast, AV, workplace technology, digital experience, and re...
10/06/2026
Today is match day minus two for FIFA and HBS. On Thursday, there will be two ma...
10/06/2026
SES is supporting broadcast distribution of the world's biggest football tou...
10/06/2026
NDI has announced that BirdDog has become the first hardware manufacturer to achieve full NDI 6.3 compatibility across its complete lineup of cameras, encoders,...
10/06/2026
Vince Caputo and Scott Carter, winners of the 2026 Sports Emmy for Outstanding Post Produced Audio have been announced as presenters for the 2026 SVG Advanced A...
10/06/2026
FOX One today unveiled a slate of new product features and enhancements designed to elevate the viewing experience for fans on the official streaming platform o...
10/06/2026
Primary production partners Dome Productions and Raycom Sports once again played...
10/06/2026
The Women in Sports Filmmaking Experienceship is an immersive professional devel...
10/06/2026
The league has expanded its HSAN architecture for the NBA Finals to manage more ...
10/06/2026
The inaugural MoonPay X Games League (XGL) Winter Draft will take place Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at Cosm Los Angeles from 7-9 p.m. PT. The event will strea...
10/06/2026
The University of Oklahoma (OU) Athletics Department and Learfield have announce...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has released TR-06-4 Part 8, a new specification for RIST Satellite-Hybrid: Out-of-Band Method. The specification creates a mecha...
10/06/2026
Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, supporting live medical proc...
10/06/2026
A still from The Doom Generation by Gregg Araki (Courtesy of Sundance Institute)
By Lucy Spicer
Have you checked out our Sundance Film Festival 101 list yet...
10/06/2026
Get Hands-On with Interfaces & Mic Preamp Brands
If youre after a new interface or preamp, then GearExpo UK is the place to be! Well have a whole host of au...
10/06/2026
November 13-14 2026, The Midway, San Francisco
Following their recent rebranding, MONO Music Conference (formerly Music Expo) have officially announced thei...
10/06/2026
Debut instrument free for limited time
deFORM is the debut release from newly founded developer ebbandflow, and it's being offered as a free download fo...
10/06/2026
Alone Australia Season 4: Meet the Cast
10 June, 2026
Media releases
WATCH THE TRAILER
Smash-hit survival series Alone Australia drops its highly anticipa...
10/06/2026
DEADLY THEN, DEADLY NOW, DEADLY ALWAYS: SBS & NITV IGNITE NAIDOC WEEK 2026 WITH ...
10/06/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and TRUMPF advance laser-based drone defense with THORIS LCS Rohde & Schwarz is showcasing THORIS at ILA 2026: A sovereign, end to end counter...
10/06/2026
MAHLE and Rohde & Schwarz develop application for sensor testing of modern drive...
10/06/2026
Production and Development Funding supports the creation of compelling, commercially viable, artistic and culturally relevant South African screen content. Deve...
10/06/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare YouTube reach from computer, mobile, an...
10/06/2026
Accedo, Humans not Robots, and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) have announced the launch of Ecoflow X. Formerly an IBC Accelerator project, ...
10/06/2026
Frequency, the engine powering the world's leading streaming television channels, today announced that James Smith has joined the company as General Manager...
10/06/2026
At the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for live medical procedures s...
10/06/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of broadcast, media, and entertainment managed services, today announced the launch of its Content Exchange platform powered by Or...
10/06/2026
Klvr will showcase how venues, integrators and production teams are rethinking disposable battery usage at InfoComm 2026 (Las Vegas, June 17-19, booth #N6311). ...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has further enhanced the Reliable Internet Streaming Transport (RIST) protocol by incorporating a new feature, RIST Satellite-Hyb...
10/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
10/06/2026
10 Jun 2026
VEON's Banglalink Brings Every World Cup 2026 Match to Football...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
How to watch every ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 match live on Sky Sports
Where is the ICC Women's T20 World Cup 2026 availabl...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
P RLA brings first-ever Beautifully Clean Oral Care'...
10/06/2026
Wednesday 10 June 2026
Sky reveals pulse-pounding first teaser trailer for upco...
10/06/2026
Wuppertal June 10, 2026
Riedel Artist at the Heart of the 14th World Live Neurovascular ConferenceAt the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Li...
10/06/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Showcases New Mobile Experience, Collections and Games Vision in APAC
Product
10 June 2026
GlobalSouth KoreaJapan
Link copied to c...
10/06/2026
Back to All News
Ready to Join? The Netflix Fan Club Arrives at Cannes Lions
Business
10 June 2026
Global
Link copied to clipboard
Download all assets
N...
10/06/2026
Chemists snap together complex 3D molecules from highly reactive radicals-without losing their shape Scripps Research team develops stereoretentive radical-radi...
09/06/2026
Kiswe announces an expanded long-term partnership with ONE Championship (ONE), t...
09/06/2026
SiriusXM will broadcast FOX Sports' English-language commentary for all 104 FIFA World Cup 2026 matches from June 11 through July 19, available to subscribe...
09/06/2026
EVS has announced it is changing its corporate name from EVS Broadcast Equipment to EVS, reflecting the company's expanded portfolio beyond broadcast equipm...
09/06/2026
Fox Corporation and the NFL have announced a multi-year agreement to bring NFL c...
New Johannesburg mayor is from openly queerphobic partyMayor Thapelo Amad, is a representative of the fervently queerphobic party, Al Jama-ah, and the ANC and EFF helped get him into the position.
