KZN to crush violent protests - the legal way
The KwaZulu Natal provincial government has announced plans to clamp down on violent protests using existing laws.
|||Durban - People participating in violent protests that cause massive damage to property are in for a surprise in KwaZulu-Natal.
The provincial government has announced plans to clamp down on violent protests using existing laws.
Tabling a R210-million budget for his department, Community Safety and Liaison MEC Willies Mchunu warned that organisers of and participants in violent protests would be held liable for millions worth of damage caused by their actions.
Last month, protests turned violent in Mandeni when factories, a truck, two vehicles and five containers were torched after the community protested against the nomination of a former mayor as ward councillor.
Damage was also caused in Folweni when a municipal building, a grader, a light delivery vehicle, a tractor-loader and two police vehicles were set alight when ANC members went on a rampage protesting against the nomination of a councillor.
Mchunu said the majority of protests in the province were not only unlawful, but were characterised by violent behaviour.
“The unlawful nature of the protests avoids prior notice to authorities and the consequent ability of authorities to exercise control over the protests,” he said.
Mchunu also said the government was duty-bound to act decisively against those behind the protests.
He said the government has been responding to protests by sending response teams, deploying the police and also charging those responsible with common law offences.
“However, we also now exploring other legal remedies,” Mchunu said.
The Gatherings Act would now be used to clamp down on the violent protests, he told lawmakers.
This law states that should any riot damage occur as a result of a protest, the participants and conveners would be held liable.
In enforcing this law, Mchunu said a legal task team was devising strategies against unlawful and violent protests.
“We say this financial year, people will have to be careful when they embark on illegal and violent protests. Where there is damage to property in terms of violent protests, there will have to be consequences,” he insisted.
The ANC was the first party to welcome the tough measures during the budget debate.
“This is not a banana republic. There are laws governing this country, the ANC’s” Mxolisi Kaunda said.
Kaunda said there was no way people could burn tyres and block roads as well as destroy facilities in the name of protests.
“We urge the police when there are public protests to ask: Have you been granted permission to march? Police should focus on that, and deal with that behaviour,” he said.
Opposition parties cautiously welcomed the stance on violent protests.
EFF’s Vukani Ndlovu said: “We must agree that you can’t organise a strike and become violent. That must not be allowed,” Ndlovu said.
The DA’s Rishigen Viranna said his party has long called for people to be held accountable for destruction of property during protests.
“There must be consequences. However, we do not want it selectively implemented,” Viranna said.
He also said the ANC was to blame for the protests, because of its failure to deliver on services.
“If there was proper delivery of services, people would not protest,” Viranna said, adding that this response should also apply to strikes by unions.
The NFP’s Erickson Zungu said his party partly concurred with Mchunu’s proposal, because a closer look at the service delivery protests showed they were caused by ANC internal squabbles that have now escalated to embarrassing levels to the ANC.
mayibongwe.maqhina@inl.co.za
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