A petition to stop American superstar Chris Brown from performing in South Africa has reached over 10 000 signatures, with the initiators of the campaign saying it would be irresponsible to let the RnB star perform in the country given its high incidents of domestic violence.
Brown, whose visit was announced recently, sold out the 94 000 capacity FNB stadium in just two hours late last week, which prompted promoters to organise a second date to meet demand.
Ticket prices range from R515 to R5,745.
Pushing back against the event, Women for Change launched a petition on October 2, as they argued that Brown’s visit to South Africa could not be justified.
Six days later, the petition has 10,248 signatures and has a goal of reaching 15,000. The petition is demanding that Home Affairs revoke Brown’s Visa and prevent him from performing in South Africa.
The organisation’s spokesperson Bulelwa Adonis said that Brown should not be allowed to set foot in South Africa given the country’s struggles with domestic violence.
“In this case, the fact that he obtained a visa to our country and the looseness in our system to allow him the accessibility to us. Considering how dire this pandemic is in our country, it is distressing and disheartening to say the least.”
Women For Change in the petition called on concert organisers Big Concerts, promoters, and the South African government to reconsider the decision to allow into the country.
“His concert is scheduled just days after the global commemoration of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, making this event a direct insult to the millions of women and girls affected by violence in South Africa and worldwide,” said the non-profit organisation.
“Allowing a man with such a history of violence to perform in South Africa, a country grappling with one of the highest rates of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) in the world, sends a harmful and dangerous message.
“Instead of glorifying individuals with a history of abuse, we must be empowering and supporting survivors.”
Brown is a controversial figure who notoriously assaulted his former girlfriend and singer Rihanna in 2009, leaving her with severe facial injuries. Brown was charged with felony assault and pleaded guilty.
In 2010, Brown was forced to postpone his UK tour after being denied a visa to enter the country due to his assault case, the BBC reported.
Since then, Brown has had multiple assault charges and sexual assault allegations.
