Is flag burning illegal in South Africa?
Legal / protected speech
There is currently no law prohibiting flag desecration in post-apartheid South Africa.
South Africa is one of 10 countries classified “Legal / protected speech” for flag desecration — 15% of the 67 with data. (Also searched as flag burning.)
Source
- Taken from
- Wikipedia: Flag desecration
- Last checked
- 17 September 2026
- How it was classified
- Classified by a language model from the source text, then checked against hand-verified reference countries.
Nearby countries
- Ethiopia
- Criminal offense Defacing the national flag is prohibited under the Federal Flag Proclamation.
- Nigeria
- Criminal offense Flying or exhibiting the national flag in a defaced condition is a criminal offense.
- Saudi Arabia
- Criminal offense Desecrating the national flag is considered blasphemy and is strictly prohibited.
- Egypt
- Criminal offense Desecrating the national flag is illegal and punishable by a fine.
- United Arab Emirates
- Criminal offense Desecrating the UAE flag or flags of other countries is illegal in the UAE.
- Israel
- Criminal offense Deliberately burning the Israeli flag is a criminal offense punishable by up to three years in prison.
Other laws in South Africa
- Blasphemy Laws
- Fines / civil penalties
- Holocaust Denial
- No specific law
- Conversion Therapy
- No ban
Every law in South Africa → · Where is burning the flag illegal? →
A visual reference compiled from Wikipedia’s law-by-country articles, not legal advice. Laws change and summaries simplify — check a primary source before relying on anything here.