Social media has always had the good and the bad sides to it. This week we were exposed to perhaps the extreme bad side of social media after reports on the death of SA’s ambassador to France, Nathi Mthethwa.
The former minister reportedly fell from the 22nd floor of the Hyatt Hotel in Paris and his body was found on Tuesday after being reported missing by his wife on Monday. While the department of international relations & cooperation said the circumstances surrounding his death were still under investigation by French authorities, this did little to quell speculation on the possible cause of death.
Social media users went into overdrive with unsubstantiated claims of foul play, conspiracy theories, and even posting insensitive memes depicting his fall from the 22nd floor of the hotel. The memes and videos were circulated after newspaper reports in France had quoted authorities claiming Mthethwa had died by suicide.
People dying by suicide is not something we can joke about because doing so would mean trivialising mental illness. Clowning about suicide is not only in bad taste but also makes a mockery of the lived experiences of those with mental illness. It is harmful and perpetuates misconceptions about mental illness.
Such reckless exercise of freedom of expression is dangerous and must be discouraged.
Mthethwa’s contested political legacy became another feeding fodder for social media rumour mongering. Mthethwa was never far from controversy during tenure in government, having served in different portfolios in the executive from 2009 to 2023.
A week before his death, KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi implicated Mthethwa in acts of political interference in the work of the police while serving as minister. Mkhwanazi was speaking during his testimony at the Madlanga commission of inquiry, which is probing corruption and political interference in the criminal justice system.
Mkhwanazi said Mthethwa had compelled the former inspector-general of intelligence, Faith Radebe, to withdraw the criminal case against former crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli.
Social media users latched on this when the news about Mthethwa’s passing broke, making innuendos about his death and claims not supported by any evidence. We hold no brief for Mthethwa, and his legacy is well documented for all to know he was a politician who never escaped controversy.
But we must caution against a world where rumours replace facts and showing insensitivity, especially during a time of grief seen as being funny. Speculation around how Mthethwa fell from his hotel room must be discouraged and French authorities must be given space to establish the circumstances that led to his demise.
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