South African novelist: ‘I don't like black people’

An award winning South African author has sparked controversy and heated debate after saying she doesn’t like Black people.

Annellie Botes (pictured), a leading novelist, was asked by an Afrikaans newspaper to name people she does not like and replied saying “Black people.” She was sacked from another newspaper where she was a columnist soon after her racial slur came to light.

The 53-year-old stood by her original comments. "I'm scared," she said. "In my daily life there's no one else that I feel threatened by except black people. If a courier comes to my door and he's white, coloured or Indian, I'd have no problem inviting him in for a glass of water. But I would feel threatened by a black man."

The comments, reprinted in other South African papers, have a provoked heated debate in the country still sensitive about race relations 16 years after the end of apartheid. The author, who has been subjected to widespread condemnation of her views, has sought to defend herself by claiming she has received 1000 emails in support.