EFF Leader Malema Says Farm Murder Chant Was Not Literal, Calls for End to Killings

The statement marks a notable rhetorical shift for Malema, whose party has long defended the chant as cultural expression, and comes as farm attack figures remain a contested political issue in...

Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema has publicly stated that the party's well-known chant, "Kill the boer, kill the farmer," was never intended as a literal instruction, and has appealed for farm killings to stop, according to Daily Maverick reporting published November 1, 2026.

The statement represents a direct public clarification from Malema on the meaning of a phrase that has been at the center of legal, political, and social debate in South Africa for more than a decade. The chant has historically been framed by the EFF as a political and cultural expression rooted in anti-apartheid struggle songs, not as incitement to violence.

South African courts have previously weighed in on the phrase. In 2011, the Equality Court ruled that a version of the song sung by African National Congress Youth League leader Julius Malema at the time constituted hate speech. That ruling was later overturned on appeal by the Supreme Court of Appeal in 2022, which found that the song, in context, did not constitute hate speech or incitement, according to reporting by News24.

Farm attacks and farm murders in South Africa are tracked by civil organization AfriForum, which reported 49 farm murders and 444 farm attacks in its 2025 annual report. The South African Police Service publishes its own quarterly crime statistics, though the categories used by police and those used by advocacy groups differ, making direct comparison difficult.

The EFF, founded by Malema in 2013 after his expulsion from the ANC Youth League, holds seats in the National Assembly and has consistently positioned itself as a radical economic transformation party. Its platform includes calls for land expropriation without compensation, a position that has generated sustained domestic and international attention.

Malema's appeal for farm killings to stop is notable because it is a direct acknowledgment from the party's leadership that actual violence is occurring and is undesirable, a point that critics of the EFF have argued the party has historically failed to state plainly. What prompted the timing of the statement on November 1, 2026, was not specified in available reporting.

South Africa is scheduled to hold local government elections in close proximity to this statement, according to Daily Maverick, which noted the proximity of the US midterm elections and South Africa's own local election cycle in the same reporting window. Whether the timing of Malema's statement is connected to the electoral calendar is not established in available source material.

The Khampepe Commission, a separate but concurrent South African legal process, is also active at this time. That inquiry, which examines delays in prosecuting apartheid-era crimes, received new physical evidence on November 1, 2026, according to Daily Maverick, suggesting that questions of accountability for political violence from South Africa's past remain unresolved in formal legal settings.

The EFF has not, as of the date of this report, issued a formal written policy change regarding use of the chant at party events. What would clarify whether Malema's statement reflects an official party position would be a formal resolution by the EFF's Central Command Team or a directive published through official party channels.