KASiBCAFRiCA©®™
BY: CHANON LECODEY MERRICKS | ONLINE EDITOR
VIOLENT PROTESTS IN SOWETO AND DURBAN
Good evening. The South African Police Service will not tolerate lawlessness. We will not allow violence, the torching of vehicles, destruction of property or attacks on people to continue.
Anyone who chooses to break the law will be dealt with decisively, without fear or favour. Those behind the torching of vehicles will be pursued.
Those responsible for acts of violence and destruction will be identified, investigated and, where sufficient evidence exists, arrested and brought to book.
There will be consequences for criminality.
The right to raise concerns and to protest does not give anyone the right to commit crime. Legitimate grievances must be pursued through lawful and constitutional processes.
As SAPS, we will protect the public, we will protect property, and we will enforce the law.
I am here in Soweto this evening following incidents of violence and disruptions that have occurred in parts of the country, including here in Gauteng and in KwaZulu-Natal.
Let me start by making a clear appeal to our communities: let us remain calm and allow government to deal with the matters that are currently before it.
We understand that there are concerns within communities regarding the issue of asylum seekers and the implications of the recent Constitutional Court ruling. These are matters that require a government response through the appropriate constitutional and legal processes.
The Minister in the Presidency briefed the nation today and outlined government's approach to the Constitutional Court ruling concerning asylum seekers.
We therefore urge communities to allow these processes to unfold. We cannot solve these issues through violence. Violence, intimidation, the destruction of property and attacks on other people will not resolve the challenges before us. Instead, such actions create further hardship for communities and place lives at risk.
We have seen 10 vehicles burnt in Soweto, while 14 vehicles have been torched in Durban. These are serious incidents. In KwaZulu-Natal, three foreign nationals have been arrested.
These arrests demonstrate that the South African Police Service will act where criminality occurs, irrespective of who is involved.
Ladies and gentlemen, the police are not here to prevent people from expressing legitimate concerns. We are here to ensure that such concerns are expressed within the confines of the law. Our responsibility is to protect life and property, maintain public order and ensure that communities remain safe.
As we speak, all Provincial Commissioners, led by the Head of Organised Crime, Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, are currently meeting to assess the situation and coordinate the policing response across the affected areas. The Divisional Commissioner for Intelligence has also been directed to reinforce intelligence gathering and assessment.
This is critical because we need to understand developments on the ground, identify emerging threats and ensure that our deployments remain responsive to the situation.
Our Public Order Police deployments have also been reinforced in areas where there are protests, gatherings or indications of possible unrest.
I want to assure the people of South Africa that the situation is under close police monitoring and that the SAPS has mobilised the necessary resources and capabilities to respond to any incidents of violence or criminality.
We are on the ground. We are monitoring developments. We are coordinating our response.
We have a policing plan in place, and we will continue to adapt our deployments as the situation develops. But let me be equally clear about something else:
We will not tolerate lawlessness.
We will not allow people to burn vehicles.
We will not allow people to destroy property.
We will not allow people to attack or intimidate others.
We will not allow communities to be held hostage by violence.
And we will not allow criminal elements to use legitimate community concerns as a licence to commit crime.
Where people step out of line and break the law, the police will act decisively.
Those who commit criminal offences must expect to be identified, arrested and brought before the courts where sufficient evidence exists.
There will be no fear or favour in the enforcement of the law. Whether you are a South African citizen or a foreign national, if you commit a criminal offence, you will be dealt with in accordance with the law. At the same time, I appeal to our communities not to take the law into their own hands.
Do not burn vehicles.
Do not destroy property.
Do not attack people.
Do not intimidate others.
If there are grievances, raise them through the appropriate channels. Government has indicated that it will address the Constitutional Court ruling through the established constitutional processes.
Our message tonight is therefore simple: remain calm, remain vigilant and remain within the law.
The SAPS is in control of its policing response. We are closely monitoring the situation, we are strengthening deployments where necessary, and we will respond firmly to any threat to public safety.
To those who intend to exercise their right to protest peacefully, we say: do so peacefully and lawfully.
To those who intend to use violence, intimidation or destruction as a means of advancing their cause, our message is equally clear:
Do not mistake restraint for weakness.
The SAPS will exercise restraint where the law requires it, but where criminality occurs, we will act.
We will protect innocent people.
We will protect property.
We will protect critical infrastructure.
And we will protect the right of communities to live and move about safely.
We call on community leaders, traditional leaders, faith-based organisations, civil society and all responsible members of our communities to assist us in calming tensions and preventing further violence.
We all have a responsibility to protect lives, protect property and protect the stability of our communities.
We cannot resolve our differences through violence. We must resolve them through dialogue, lawful processes and respect for the Constitution.
The police are on the ground.
The police are monitoring the situation.
The police are ready to respond.
Let me assure the people of South Africa: we will continue to do everything within our mandate to keep you safe, and anyone who chooses to step outside the law will face the full consequences of their actions through our criminal justice system.
Let us remain calm.
Let us respect the law.
Let us allow government to deal with this matter through the constitutional processes available to it.
South Africa must not be allowed to descend into violence.
I THANK YOU.
LIEUTENANT GENERAL PULENG DIMPANE
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