Fury erupted on social media after the three friends were arrested for public drunkenness when they had raised concerns about the apartheid government flag displayed at the pub.
The incident took place in the early hours of Saturday 26 August.
Richard Juries told the Weekend Argus that a bekgeveg broke out and one of his friends had called the police.
He claimed the police turned on them and hauled them into the back of a police van.
They were kept in jail overnight, but they refused to pay the admission of guilt fine and instead opted to oppose the charges in court in October.
When the Weekend Argus visited the pub last week, the old flag was taken down.
The pub’s owner, Brian Dunn, says he is a collector of flags and explained he meant no harm by hanging the old SA flag.
“I have no emotional attachment to the flag. I never wanted the flag to start a racial issue. I do understand people’s pain. It hurts me that I am being labelled a racist,” he says.
According to barman Mervyn Junies, the group swiped people’s drinks off the counter and threw ashtrays at him.
“I got upset because they started interfering with my clients. All I know is that they became really racist. They were screaming and hysterical,” Junies says.
Juries dismissed these claims, and said he has been in talks with the SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) about the treatment he and his friends received from the police.
They will be meeting with commissioner Chris Nissen from the SAHRC on Tuesday.
Nissen said they will not be looking into the displaying of the flag as it is not illegal to do so.