Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Ronald Lamola has welcomed the Jon Qwelane hate speech judgment handed down by the Constitutional Court. On Friday, the court found in a unanimous ruling that Qwelane’s 2008 article, Call me names, but gay is NOT okay, was indeed hate speech. The landmark decision, which follows a court battle spanning more than a decade, also set down a constitutionally legal definition of hate speech as: “Words that are based on one or more of the prohibited grounds, against any person, that could reasonably be construed to demonstrate a clear intention to be harmful or to incite harm and to promote or propagate hatred.” “We welcome the judgment as it brings certainty and clarity as to what constitutes hate speech,” said Minister Lamola in a statement. “Judgments such as these provide legal certainty and develop our constitutional jurisprudence on issues such as freedom of expression and issues of equality. This can only serve to deepen constitutionalism in our society,” he continued.