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South Africa: Anti‐Ramaphosa Protests

South Africa: Anti‐Ramaphosa Protests More than 550 people were arrested during South Africa's opposition rallies, security forces said on March 21st, a day after marchers called for the departure of President Cyril Ramaphosa over the ailing economy and crippling energy crisis. The National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure said the arrests covered “public violence, intimidation, damage to critical infrastructure, theft and attempted looting”.The left‐wing Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), the country's third‐largest party, had called for a “national shutdown,” sparking fears of a repeat of bloody clashes and looting just under two years ago. But turnout was low and calls for strikes went unheeded as the government mobilised thousands of police, backed by troops, to stifle unrest. About 5,000 people demonstrated outside Ramaphosa's official residence in the capital Pretoria. In other parts of the country, protesters gathered in groups varying in size from dozens to hundreds.Ramaphosa, a former union boss who turned business tycoon after apartheid and became president in 2018, had vowed to prevent “anarchy” at the latest protests. His popularity ranking has slumped, battered by his handling of the economy, chronic electricity shortages and joblessness. (© AFP 21/3 2023)The EFF had called for nationwide protests as the “mother of all shutdowns”. The party tweeted on March 20th that “it is not business as usual; South Africa is on a standstill!”.The EFF described the deployment of the army in black townships as resembling a military state, Scrolla reported (20/3). “The current deployment of the army and law enforcement agencies has surpassed that of the Apartheid regime in the 1980's during the State of Emergency.“The scenes of military personnel descending into the townships of South Africa, policemen searching the homes and cars of citizens without warrants or just cause, and shutting down tyre shops reveal a paranoid government that is capable of grave human rights violations,” the party said in a statement. (BBC Monitoring 20/3) http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Africa Research Bulletin Political Social and Cultural Series Wiley

South Africa: Anti‐Ramaphosa Protests

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Publisher
Wiley
Copyright
© 2023 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
ISSN
0001-9844
eISSN
1467-825X
DOI
10.1111/j.1467-825x.2023.10999.x
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

More than 550 people were arrested during South Africa's opposition rallies, security forces said on March 21st, a day after marchers called for the departure of President Cyril Ramaphosa over the ailing economy and crippling energy crisis. The National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure said the arrests covered “public violence, intimidation, damage to critical infrastructure, theft and attempted looting”.The left‐wing Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), the country's third‐largest party, had called for a “national shutdown,” sparking fears of a repeat of bloody clashes and looting just under two years ago. But turnout was low and calls for strikes went unheeded as the government mobilised thousands of police, backed by troops, to stifle unrest. About 5,000 people demonstrated outside Ramaphosa's official residence in the capital Pretoria. In other parts of the country, protesters gathered in groups varying in size from dozens to hundreds.Ramaphosa, a former union boss who turned business tycoon after apartheid and became president in 2018, had vowed to prevent “anarchy” at the latest protests. His popularity ranking has slumped, battered by his handling of the economy, chronic electricity shortages and joblessness. (© AFP 21/3 2023)The EFF had called for nationwide protests as the “mother of all shutdowns”. The party tweeted on March 20th that “it is not business as usual; South Africa is on a standstill!”.The EFF described the deployment of the army in black townships as resembling a military state, Scrolla reported (20/3). “The current deployment of the army and law enforcement agencies has surpassed that of the Apartheid regime in the 1980's during the State of Emergency.“The scenes of military personnel descending into the townships of South Africa, policemen searching the homes and cars of citizens without warrants or just cause, and shutting down tyre shops reveal a paranoid government that is capable of grave human rights violations,” the party said in a statement. (BBC Monitoring 20/3)

Journal

Africa Research Bulletin Political Social and Cultural Series – Wiley

Published: Apr 1, 2023

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