Salaamedia hosted a live discussion on how to respond to Islamophobic behaviour, following an incident in Norwood, Johannesburg. Dr Faisal Suliman, Chairperson of the South African Muslim Network, took part.
Watch the Discussion
“Norwood road rage: How to deal with Islamophobic tendencies?” — Salaamedia, streamed live 22 September 2026. Watch on YouTube.
What Is Alleged to Have Happened
Abdur Rahamaan, a 35-year-old content creator living in Johannesburg, says he was tailgated in Norwood by the driver of a white Porsche Cayenne GTS, who hooted repeatedly and flashed his lights. When he lowered his window at his own driveway, he says the other driver threatened his life, his family’s lives and Muslims generally, using slurs aimed at Indian Muslims.
All you Indian Muslims must die, I will kill you and your family.
Reported by the Sunday Tribune as the words Mr Rahamaan says were said to him
A second exchange was recorded on video. In it the driver is alleged to have repeated a racial slur and referred to the war in Gaza. Mr Rahamaan has said he is opening a case of hate crime at Norwood SAPS, and that his lawyer is lodging a complaint with the South African Human Rights Commission.
The other driver has been described in reports as a businessman and has not been publicly named. Nothing here has been tested in court or by the Commission. These are allegations, the matter is under investigation, and the South African Muslim Network makes no finding about any individual.
Danny Mofsowitz, Gauteng chairperson of the South African Jewish Board of Deputies, condemned the language and the behaviour, and all forms of racism. That condemnation is worth naming plainly, and worth appreciating.
Reported by Monishka Govender and Yoshini Perumal, Sunday Tribune / IOL, 22 September 2026.
Why This Matters
An ordinary traffic dispute that turns into a racial or religious slur is not an ordinary traffic dispute. It tells you what a person already thought, and what they believed they could say out loud. Incidents like this one are rarely isolated, and they are almost never reported.
The South African Muslim Network takes the position that prejudice is best answered in public, calmly, and on the record — and that the same dignity the organisation asks for its own community is owed equally to every South African. A case made selectively is worth nothing.
If You Have Experienced or Witnessed It
Report it. Incidents that are never recorded do not exist as far as policy, policing or the courts are concerned, and the absence of a record is routinely used as evidence that there is no problem. Write to info@samnet.co.za or send a message on WhatsApp to 084 333 3979, with the date, the place and what was said or done. Keep screenshots and dashcam footage.
Shared by the South African Muslim Network in the interest of a just, inclusive and dignified South Africa.
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