R2K Human Rights Day Statement: On this day we are reminded of how crucial it is to defend the right to protest!
This Human Rights Day, R2K is mourning with the community of Qoboqobo in the Eastern Cape which lost
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a community member during a service delivery protest. The 62 year old man was reportedly shot dead on Monday morning after police dispersed an angry crowd with rubber bullets. Unlike the fallen heroes of Sharpeville and kwaLanga who were gunned down by the apartheid police in 1960 for refusing to carry a dompas or pass book, this comrade was killed in a democratic South Africa where the right to protest is a fundamental human right guaranteed in the Constitution.
Criminalising protest and dissent:
Sadly this is not the first nor the last time that a comrade has been lost this way. Protest is being criminalised leaving little to no space for dissenting voices.
As it happened 58 years ago, protesters are still being targeted by the police and the private security services in this country. Protestors are shot at with stun grenades and rubber bullets even when they are embarking on peaceful protests. In some cases live ammunition has been used and citizens are wrongfully arrested, falsely accused and imprisoned for being in the vicinity of protest actions as we witnessed with 23 students from the University of the Western Cape, who spent a week in jail for being “involved” in the Fees Must Fall protest last year. Fortunately charges against the students were successfully dropped at the beginning of this month.
Another recent case that shocked the nation was the illegal eviction of residents by members of the SANDF in Marievale, a former Army base in Nigel, Gauteng. Not only did the Army illegally evict residents from their homes, they did it with such brutality that one community member was hospitalised after being beaten for refusing to move. That community is faced with a bleak future in makeshift homes with no running water, no proper sanitation nor electricity and some of their belongings were destroyed during the violent evictions. What was hugely disappointing was the complete silence of Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula who has done nothing to address such gross violation of human rights.
We demand PSiRA acts on private-security abuses:
We are also concerned by the lack of action against the private security services after people have lost their lives due to the brutality meted out by private security personnel. One such case is that of a Reclaim the City activist who was allegedly stabbed to death by a security guard in Cape Town last week. As R2K we will follow this case closely and demand justice for our fallen comrade.
A complaint we lodged with PSiRA last year, over the conduct of a private security company known as the Red Ants has yet to be answered. Our formal complaint followed the death of Ivory Park resident, Mr Samuel Mabunda who died after being beaten with a crowbar and kicked by members of the Red Ants Security. PSiRA as a body responsible for the regulation of all private security in the country has allowed the Red Ants to brutalise the poorest of the poor with impunity and the government has failed to act as well.
Poor service delivery:
A common denominator in these cases is poor service delivery by the local, provincial and national government. We see in municipalities such as eThekwini which recently purchased casspirs at a total cost of R19.9 million to target landless people instead of building decent houses for the poor. Such twisted priorities should be strongly condemned. We cannot allow the militarisation of the Metro Police and SAPS. Police are meant to serve and protect the nation not brutalise with impunity. It is in this regard that we welcome the arrests of nine top SAPS officers who are facing charges in relation to the murder of Marikana miners six years ago. While we are disappointed that it has taken so long to take action, we do hope that justice will prevail in the end. We continue to demand justice for Marikana.
Today R2K Western Cape will be joining the march for Land for People to Live hosted by Reclaim the City in Cape Town from 10AM. In Gauteng, R2K will be part of the #ScrapTheNewLabourLaws Campaign march, starting at Newtown from 10am. We will be marching to remind our government that Workers’ rights are human rights and that the right to strike is non-negotiable!
Finally, we urge South Africans to use the right2protest Hotline should they find themselves in trouble with the law for exercising their constitutional right to protest/gather and fighting for what is right. The Right2Protest Project is a coalition that wishes to change the narrative of protest action in South Africa and enhance progressive lawyering. The Hotline Number is 0800 212 111 and is operational during business hours. Remember, the right to protest, freedom of expression, freedom of movement and equality before the law all form part of your human rights, defend them till the end. We remember Sharpeville, we remember kwaLanga, we remember Marikana, we remember Andries Tatane and all the comrades who lost lives in the fight for a better life for all that the current government promised prior to 1994.
Ongazi Makazi!
We have a Right2Protest!
