An activist, Bandile Magibili, calls on Parliament to hold a hearing into an authorship claim about South Africa’s national flag. The claim is made by artist Thembani Hastings Mqhayi, who says his 1994 submissions influenced the design of the flag.
The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture disputes Mqhayi’s position and says archival records support the authorship attributed to Fred Brownell. Magibili’s request for a parliamentary process centers on reviewing the historical documentation behind the flag’s design during the transition era.
The reported difference is therefore over whose work shaped the 1994 flag design and what the archival evidence shows. While one side seeks a formal parliamentary review, the department relies on its records to support Brownell’s authorship, leaving the question of authorship for authorities and lawmakers to consider.
