Cape Jewish leader sues after life threatened

Cape Town Jewish business leader Philip Krawitz and his family were warned by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (the Hawks) in July 2024 to “leave the country temporarily” because they had “credible information of a planned hit” on his life.

Krawitz, who is Cape Union Mart’s executive chairperson, and his company, filed a legal application, which included this information, in the Western Cape High Court on 17 June. It asked that the court interdict extremists’ unlawful actions and defamatory claims made outside his retail outlets.

Krawitz said that the Hawks later told him that “the active threat to my life had been resolved”, but they warned that the “constant escalation of my public profile” by the anti-Israel lobby “caused concern for them, as it could reasonably spark another hit on my life. I had to take the drastic steps of employing full-time bodyguards and using a bulletproof vehicle.”

Cape Union Mart has been “the subject of a relentless boycott campaign for no apparent reason other than that the company was founded by and is owned by Jews,” Krawitz said. “It’s abundantly clear that Cape Union Mart and I are targeted for being Jewish. Many of the posters [at the protests] are simply expressing disgust at Jews in general.”

Cape Union Mart and its customers, “are being drawn into a battlefield about a war we have no part in”, stated Krawitz. “The untenable situation forced our hand” to approach the court. “The applicants are in no way attempting to prevent the respondents from exercising their right to freedom of expression and freedom to assemble. The relief sought doesn’t curtail those rights.” he said.

The court action follows ongoing protest action since November 2023, which falsely claims that Krawitz and Cape Union Mart are funding “genocide”, the Israeli army, and the conflict in Gaza, and are complicit in killing children. Krawitz and Cape Union Mart categorically state that they have never donated funds to the Israeli army or Israeli government. Cape Union Mart has never donated funds to any entities outside of South Africa, and Krawitz has donated funds only for humanitarian purposes.

Cape South African Jewish Board of Deputies (Cape SAJBD) Chairperson Adrienne Jacobson says the Cape SAJBD “condemns this targeted harassment. The sustained targeting of Mr Krawitz is not only a personal attack on him and his family, but also an attack on South Africa’s Jewish community.”

She says the Cape SAJBD calls on management of the V&A Waterfront, Canal Walk, other shopping centres, and local authorities to “take immediate action to ensure the safety and dignity of Mr Krawitz, his employees, and customers”.

However, the head of communication at the V&A Waterfront, Donald Kau, told the SA Jewish Report that, “As uncomfortable as these incidents can be, we continue to uphold that peaceful protest and the right to protest is constitutionally protected. Our role is to monitor the protests and ensure there’s no threat to safety”, and “act in a way that doesn’t escalate the situation. The South African Police Service is on site to monitor and intervene should it deem that the situation warrants it.”

The court application was brought as a last resort after many efforts to communicate the correct facts to the protesters failed. A hearing date is yet to be set. Respondents include several named individuals. The sixth respondent is unidentified protesters, and the seventh the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC).

Krawitz and Cape Union Mart are asking the Western Cape High Court to interdict and restrain the named individuals, the PSC, and unidentified protesters from making defamatory claims that he or the company are funding “genocide”, the “killing of children”, or Israel’s war in Gaza.

It also asks that the court interdict and restrain protesters to ensure that they abide by the law, which would limit the number of protesters to that allowed by the Gatherings Act; ensure they don’t incite hate or violence; and prohibit people from covering their faces, harassing, or intimidating customers, or preventing access to stores. It asks that the court orders a public apology from the defendants, and payment of “sentimental damages to be donated to a charitable organisation chosen by the applicant”.

Krawitz’s affidavit describes the escalating lies and defamation directed at him and Cape Union Mart, and the illegal actions of the protesters. Extremists continuously reference an award Krawitz was given by an Israeli humanitarian organisation in 2015 for raising funds for Israeli victims of terrorism, falsely claiming that this money funded the Gaza War a decade later.

The escalation led to a meeting with trade unions, because “the [protesters’] vitriol shocked me and Cape Union Mart employees alike”, stated Krawitz, and employees asked for union support.

Cape Union Mart then issued a press release clarifying that the company has contributed only to humanitarian projects in South Africa, and hasn’t donated funds outside of South Africa. It noted that Cape Union Mart has never donated funds to Israel, the Israeli army, or any other army, and neither has Krawitz. However, extremists continued their lies and illegal actions, leading to a physical altercation with a customer.

Even as protesters repeatedly accused Krawitz of “killing children”, Cape Union Mart again met with them, which still made no difference to their rhetoric or actions. For example, the first respondent, Maghmuda Ockards, who is employed by the University of Cape Town, held a sign saying that Jews were part of “the synagogue of Satan”, an “overt attempt to demonise Jews in general and me in particular”, stated Krawitz. On 22 March 2025, protesters blocked the entrance to the store at the V&A Waterfront, and police had to remove them.

Protesters are also “subjecting clients of Cape Union Mart to hate symbols such as the swastika. Cape Union Mart is continuously suffering unlawful reputational damage and economic losses through false claims of the protesters,” stated Krawitz.

“The fact that the display of the swastika is directed at me because I am Jewish and the company is therefore perceived to be a ‘Jewish company’, is egregious and unacceptable in a democratic society,” Krawitz said. He said his right to dignity and reputation continue to be infringed.

The affidavit expresses the urgency of the matter. “Given the credible threats to my and my family’s safety, we didn’t want to draw attention to the protests through litigation,” Krawitz said. “However, the protesters are emboldened after the recent closure of a Cape Union Mart store in Johannesburg.” The store closed on 30 April because the lease agreement ended, but extremists saw it as a victory.

The PSC said the case wasn’t about “defamation or safety” but about trying to stop protesters from engaging in “legitimate protest actions”. It said it and the other respondents would “be meeting urgently to pass a formal resolution on whether to defend against the application”.

“The respondents cannot be prejudiced by being ordered to adhere to the laws of the country,” Krawitz said. “The applicants, on the other hand, will continue to suffer harm if relief isn’t granted.” Krawitz told the SA Jewish Report that he deeply appreciates the community’s unwavering support.

Said Jacobson, “The Cape SAJBD has already successfully pursued a case of hate speech in the Equality Court and won, and three further cases will be brought before the court in coming months. We reaffirm our commitment to upholding the rights of the Jewish community, and call on all South Africans to join us in standing against hatred, antisemitism, and intimidation.”