[imagesource: YouTube / News24]

It’s taken a long while for most of us to get accustomed to Zoom meetings and proceedings, but still, video conference call fails are hot and happening.

Although, this one is arguably less about a lack of video call skills and more about an utterly ridiculous and harmful comment.

Members of the Constitutional Court were sitting in for a hearing regarding an application by the Women’s Legal Centre Trust (WLC) to provide finality on the state’s obligation to recognise Muslim marriage, per News24.

One member of the virtual meeting can be heard making a comment aimed at Nazreen Bawa, a lawyer dressed in a hijab.

Bawa is visible in the lower right corner of the screen.

The full comment that could be heard was:

“Look at Nasreen Bawa, she’s dressed like a ninja. Did she always dress like that? She didn’t. She’s putting on an act today, can you see?”

Yes, she actually said that:

Justice Steve Arnold Majiet identified that the comment came from Yasmeen Omar, the lawyer acting for an interested party in the matter with Zehir Omar Attorneys.

Omar denies that her comments were aimed at Bawa:

“There was something playing in the background, and I was not referring to her at all. It was not directed at her at all. We were talking about something else.”

Asked to comment on the fact that the remarks had already sparked outrage, Omar said: “How can I be Islamophobic, if I’m wearing a hijab and we are calling for the preservation of the Quran.”

You can see the other members shake their heads in disapproval as the comment is made, but it has to be Justice Theron who looks the most gobsmacked.

[source:news24]