Parliament’s Portfolio Committee Justice and Constitutional Development welcomed the Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s decision to issue a démarche to US Ambassador to South Africa Leo Brent Bozell III, saying remarks he has made cannot be ignored.

Speaking at a business conference in Hermanus on Tuesday, Bozell was quoted as stating, he did not care about South African court rulings that had declared the “Kill the Boer” chant was not hate speech.

Bozell insisted that the chant constituted hate speech despite judicial findings.

Bozell has since apologised for his remarks, clarifying on social media that while he holds personal views on the chant, the US government respects the judicial independence of South Africa’s courts.

Committee chairperson Xola Nqola said it was not acceptable for Bozell to say that these were his personal views and not those of the US government.

“… he is here representing his country,” explained Nqola.

Bozell assumed office last month after being nominated by US President Donald Trump.

Relations between Washington and Pretoria have deteriorated in the last year as Trump accused South Africa of persecuting its white minority, criticised its ties with Russia and China, imposed steep tariffs on its exports and cut all aid.

South Africa has not had an ambassador in Washington since the Trump administration expelled Ebrahim Rasool.

Nqola reminded Bozell that the independence of the judiciary was a cornerstone of South Africa’s constitutional democracy.

“The courts of the Republic of South Africa operate without fear, favour or prejudice. Publicly dismissing the findings of the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court constitutes not only a breach of diplomatic protocol but also an affront to the sovereignty of the South African State,” he said.

He explained that as a guest in the country, Bozell’s role was to foster bilateral relations based on mutual respect.

“Contemptuous remarks regarding our judicial system undermine the rule of law that both South Africa and the United States state they uphold,” he added.

The committee further rejected the Ambassador’s characterisation of broad-based black economic empowerment and land reform policies as “apartheid-like”.

“These policies are constitutional measures intended to address the structural and economic scars left by centuries of racial dispossession,” said Nqola.

He added that South Africa’s legislative framework was a product of a democratic process and subject to Parliament's oversight and the scrutiny of the courts.

“It is not determined by the personal preferences of foreign envoys,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Economic Freedom fighter has called for Bozell’s expulsion and that he must be declared persona non grata immediately.

The party also asked Chief Justice Mandisa Maya to condemn what it says are attacks on the South African judiciary by Bozell.