The Durban High Court’s decision regarding the use of the MK trademark and logo will be appealed, according to the African National Congress (ANC).
The African National Congress (ANC) has declared that it will challenge the Durban High Court’s decision over the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party’s use of its trademark and logo.
On Monday, 22 April, the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Durban dismissed with costs the ruling party’s suit to restrict the Jacob Zuma-led party from using the emblem and trademark which resembles a spear and a shield.
ANC Will Appeal the Decision That Benefitted MK Party
The MK Party was accused of trademark infringement by the ANC, which claimed that the party’s name and logo, which features a spear and a shield, are part of its legacy and intellectual property.
The recently established party bears the same name as the ANC’s military wing, which the late Nelson Mandela oversaw from exile during the apartheid period.
Acting Judge Nicolette Beket rejected the lawsuit earlier on Monday, awarding the ruling party costs.
Following the ruling, the ANC hosted a media briefing to discuss it and outline its next course of action.
The party plans to appeal the decision that forbids the MK Party from using its trademarks, history, and emblems illegally, according to Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula.
Mbalula stated that in the application that the High Court reviewed, they cited sections 34(1)(a) and (c) of the Trade Marks Act, 194 of 1993 (“the Act”) to demonstrate that the party led by Zuma is misrepresenting its affiliation with the African National Congress (“ANC”) by utilizing the ruling party’s well-known name and logo, uMkhonto weSizwe.
Additionally, he stated that the ANC would focus its appeal of the ruling on the issue of whether or not an unauthorized party’s use of someone else’s intellectual property depends on what and how the property is used.
Moreover, we think that the ANC is the source of the goodwill connected to the uMkhonto weSizwe. The Zuma Party is seeking to unjustly take this kindness for itself.
In keeping with the electoral code, the African National Alliance (ANC) reaffirms its commitment to upholding national laws in order to have a free and fair election. We are a group that supports democracy in all of its forms, hence we have nothing against the MK Party being on the ballot. Mbalula continued, “But by pursuing this lawsuit, the ANC is defending its intellectual property and the legacy of the liberation fight for coming generations.
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