Parts of Johannesburg resembled a war zone yesterday after supporters of former president Jacob Zuma wreaked havoc in the city, leaving a trail of mass destruction behind them.
Brazen looting of shops, stealing and burning of vehicles hit downtown Johannesburg on Saturday night and continued into yesterday morning as the #FreeJaconZuma protests that started in KwaZulu-Natal last week spilt into Gauteng.
Police had their hands full as they tried to disperse crowds in Malvern and Jeppestown while armed protesters allegedly fired shots at police in Alexandra, leaving a police officer hospitalised.
A 40-year old man died at a clinic in Alexandra yesterday after he was shot. However, it is unclear if his death is linked to the protests.
“ An investigation is under way to determine the circumstances surrounding the fatal shooting of a 40-year-old man who was certified dead at a local clinic,” National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure spokesperson Col Brenda Muridili said.
“It is alleged that one group then headed to Jeppestown, where they looted a number of businesses. Seven suspects were arrested, four of whom were found inside one of the stores, while three were arrested for public violence and for being in possession of suspected stolen property.
“In Alexandra, police arrested 18 suspects – 16 of them for public violence, also linked to the shooting of a police officer who was rushed to hospital for urgent medical attention. Two other police officers sustained minor injuries.
“The other two suspects were arrested for possession of suspected stolen property and malicious damage to property. This came as police responded to information of a group of people from Alexandra who targeted and forced entry into businesses and started looting,” Muridili said.
She said the group of about 800 people was reported to have attacked police.
“[This] resulted in the shooting of police officers, who have now received medical attention, with only one in hospital in a stable condition.”
Over a dozen vehicles were left in ashes on Jules Street in downtown Johannesburg as protestors stormed, looted and burnt shops and cars dealerships in Jeppestown.
Other protesters had blockaded the M2 freeway from Germiston to Johannesburg overnight and thrown stones at cars that tried to pass and parts of the road were still closed by 10am yesterday.
Gareth Newham, the head of justice and violence prevention at the Institute for Security Studies, said police had the resources and experience to deal with public violence.
He said it would “take time for intelligence to identify those involved”.
He said those responsible for the violent protests seemed “well-resourced and have time to plan”.
“There are many challenges involved, for example the exact location of public-violence incidents are not always easy to predicteven if you know they’re likely to occur,” Newham said.
He said preventing the protests would be a challenge. “It’s very difficult for the police to respond beforehand.”
Johannesburg Metro Police Department spokesperson Xolani Fihla said several roads and streets in Jeppe, Benrose, Denver, Berea, Hilbrow and the CBD were barricaded with tyres, rocks and debris.
“Protesters are causing obstruction on Lilian Ngoyi Street, Marshall Street, Commissioner Street and Rahima Moosa Street in the CBD. The M2 has closed off both directions between Cleveland Road and Maritzburg Street,” he said.
The protesters have been accused of intimidating, robbing and stoning journalists.
In Alexandra many streets remained blockaded with stones, mobile toilets and burning tyres while the police maintained a presence in volatile parts of the township.
One protester in Jeppe said the unrest would continue if the courts did not reverse Zuma’s conviction of contempt of court, which saw him sentenced to 15 months behind bars by the Constitutional Court.
“All we want is for Zuma to be released from jail because it is wrong to arrest an old man like that,” she said.
One Gauteng leader of the pro-Zuma radical economic transformation faction of the ANC, Sbusiso Hadebe, indicated that the group was behind the protest but refused to give details of the key people responsible for its planning “for security purposes”.
Hadebe confirmed that there was a plan for a national shutdown today.
DA Gauteng leader Solly Msimanga has called on the police in the province to take immediate action against anyone who attempts to shut down roads and prevent businesses from operating.
“Absolutely no-one has the right to hamper or prevent the movement of any other individual from going about their daily lives and minding their own business,” Msimanga said.
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