Protests in South Africa

This article is part of a series on the
politics and government of
South Africa

South Africa has been dubbed "the protest capital of the world",[1] with one of the highest rates of public protests in the world.[2]

It is often argued that the rate of protests has been escalating since 2004,[2] However Steven Friedman argues that the current wave of protests stretches back to the 1970s.[3] The rate of protests "rose dramatically in the first eight months of 2012"[4] and it was reported that there 540 protests in the province of Gauteng between 1 April and 10 May 2013.[5] In February 2014 it was reported that there had been "nearly 3,000 protest actions in the last 90 days – more than 30 a day– involving more than a million people".[6][7]

Since 2008 more than 2 million people have taken to the streets in protest every year.[8] Njabulo Ndebele argues that "Widespread 'service delivery protests' may soon take on an organisational character that will start off as discrete formations and then coalesce into a full-blown movement".[9] There has been considerable repression of popular protests.[10] The most common reasons for protests are grievances around urban land and housing.[11][12] It has been reported that "Nearly 75% of South Africans aged 20-29 did not vote in the 2011 [local government] elections" and that "South Africans in that age group were more likely to have taken part in violent street protests against the local ANC than to have voted for the ruling party".[13]

In September 2013 the police reported that they had "made more than 14,000 arrests at protests in the past four years".[14]

According to The Times "Informal settlements have been at the forefront of service delivery protests as residents demand houses and basic services".[15]

During the 2004/05 financial year about 6,000 protests were officially recorded, an unknown number of protests went unrecorded, and about 1,000 protests were illegally banned. This meant that at least 15 protests were taking place each day in South Africa at this time.[16][17] However the number of protests has escalated dramatically since then and Business Day reports that "2009 and 2010 together account for about two-thirds of all protests since 2004".[18] There was a dramatic surge in protests shortly after Jacob Zuma first took office and the number of protests was ten times higher in 2009 than in 2004 and even higher in 2010.[19] The number of protests reached an all-time high in 2010/2011[2] and then a further all time post-apartheid peak in July 2012[20] with more protests occurring in the Western Cape than in any other province[21] and just under half of all protests occurring in shack settlements.[22] In early 2013 it was reported that popular protest had reached its highest rate since the end of apartheid in 2012.[23] In early 2013 it was argued that there have been as many as 3,000 protests in the last four years.[24]

Rebellion of the Poor/Municipal Revolts/Ring of Fire

There has been a major wave of popular protests since 2004.[25][26] Just under 40% of all protests take place in shack settlements.[18] There has been a significant degree of repression of popular protests.[27][28][29]

These protests are usually referred to as service delivery protests in the media but although there is evidence of growing unhappiness with service delivery[30] most analysts argue that this description is overly narrow and misleading.[31][32][33][34] A number of poor people's movements have insisted that their protests should not be referred to as "service delivery protests".[35][36][37] But others have termed the rapidly increasing wave of protests since 2004 as a "rebellion of the poor"[25][26] or a series of "municipal revolts".[38] Zwelinzima Vavi, COSATU Secretary General, has described the increasing rate of popular protests as a "ring of fire" closing in on major cities that could result in a Tunisia-style revolution.[39][40]

Some of the most notable protests during this period occurred in Harrismith, Kennedy Road, Durban, Diepsloot, Balfour, Thokoza,[41][42] Khutsong,[34] Macassar Village, Lansdowne Road[43][44] and Mandela Park[45][46] in Khayelitsha, KwaZakhele, downtown Durban,[47] Masiphumelele, Ermelo,[48] Grahamstown[36] and Thembelihle (Lenasia).[49]

Protests continue and some analysts take the view that protests are becoming increasingly radical.[50] Some commentators have concluded that "a large majority of South Africans feel that conventional mechanisms of engaging the state are failing, and that alternatives may be more effective".[51]

According to Professor Peter Alexander: "As many commentators and activists now accept, service delivery protests are part of a broader Rebellion of the Poor. This rebellion is massive. I have not yet found any other country where there is a similar level of ongoing urban unrest. South Africa can reasonably be described as the ‘protest capital of the world’."[52]

A number of community organisations and movements have emerged from this wave of protests,[53][54] some of which organise outside of party politics.[55] However, in most cases this wave of protest has not led to sustained organisation.[56]

Protest by trade unions

The national trade union federation, COSATU, has also organised a number of large protests, most notably against labour broking and highway tolls.[57][58]

Protest by workers organised outside of trade unions

The 2012 Marikana miner strike, organised outside of the ruling tripartite alliance, resulted in 34 strikers being killed by the police with 78 being wounded on 16 August 2012.[59]

Curtailment of the right to protest

It has been argued that the state is actively seeking to curtail the right to protest.[60]

Notable protests

Notable post-apartheid protest campaigns

Reasons for protests

Social Justice Coalition safe toilets campaign protest in 2010

Research has consistently shown urban land and housing to be the most common reasons for protest.[12] However, there are multiple reasons for protest including:

Tactics

See also: Toyi-toyi

The toyi-toyi originally a Zimbabwean dance, has been used for decades in South Africa as a protest tool. Road blockades,[135] land occupations, the mass appropriation of food[47][69][136] and vote strikes[137][138][139][140][141] are also common tactics.

In areas with high rates of popular protests residents tend to boycott elections, to support independent candidates or to support parties other than the ANC.[142]

Misuse of the criminal justice system to intimidate grassroots activists

It has been argued that the criminal justice system has been misused to intimidate grassroots activists.[143]

Violence

Violence from the state

A number of people have been killed by the police in these protests over the years[48][63][144][145][146][147][148] including Andries Tatane.[78][149][150][151][152][153][154][155] The number of deaths of protestors after apartheid is currently standing at fifty four. Four people were killed by the police during protests between 2000 and 2004, two in 2006, one in 2008, two in 2009, three in 2010 and eleven in 2011.[156]

There have also been constant allegations of non-fatal police brutality against protestors.[147][157][158][159][160] It has been argued that people organizing independently of the ruling African National Congress are more likely to face state repression.[10][161]

The worst incidence of police violence in post-apartheid South Africa was the Marikana Massacre in August 2012 in which 34 striking miners were killed and 78 were injured. One pistol was recovered from the strikers after the massacre.[162]

Violence from protesters

Violence on the part of protesters, including attacks on ward councilors and their homes, has been escalating.[163][164] In two years nine houses belonging to ward councillors in Gauteng were burnt down.[165]

See also

Further reading

Other Resources

Notes and references

  1. ‘Black boers’ and other revolutionary songs, Chris Rodrigues, 2010
  2. 1 2 3 Protests and Police Statistics: Some Commentary, Peter Alexander, Amandla Magazine, April 2012
  3. Calm down, the poor are not about to revolt, Steven Friedman, Business Day, 16 May 2013
  4. 'The year that anger boils over', Nirhsa Davids, The Sowetan, 11 October 2012
  5. Public protests: Gauteng’s rising pressure cooker, Khadija Patel, The Daily Maverick, 16 May 2013
  6. Our protest culture is far from dead, Max Du Preez, 'Pretoria News, 11 February 2014
  7. Our protest culture is far from dead, by Max Du Preez, Pretoria News, 11 February 2014
  8. Behind the Marikana massacre, by Martin Plaut, The New Statesmen, 20 August 2012
  9. Liberation betrayed by bloodshed, by Njabulo S. Ndebele, City Press, 26 August 2012
  10. 1 2 Media underplaying police, state brutality, Jane Duncan, Sunday Independent, 26 August 2012
  11. 1 2 3 Service-delivery protests getting uglier - report, Nashira Davids, The Times, 11 October 2012
  12. 1 2 SAHRC: People need access to land and housing, Koketso Moetsi, The Daily Maverick, 24 November 2015
  13. Deep Read: 'Born free' voters may not choose ANC, JON HERSKOVITZ, Mail & Guardian, 29 January 2013
  14. Crime stats: Worst violent crime figures in 10 years, Sarah Evans, Mail & Guardian, 17 September 2013
  15. Gauteng under shack attack, Penwell Dlamini, The Times, 02 April, 2014
  16. "Amandla! Protest in the New South Africa". FXI.
  17. Sekwanele! - Social Movement Struggles for Land and Housing in Post-Apartheid South Africa, by Toussaint Losier, Left Turn Magazine, 2010
  18. 1 2 Are fiery street protests replacing the vote?, Karen Heese and Kevin Allan, Business Day
  19. Municipal Hotspots Monitor research as reported in the City Press newspaper, 20 February 2011
  20. South African Television's Accumulation by Dispossession, Jane Duncan, SACSIS, 7 August 2012
  21. Western Cape is protest capital of SA, Oryx Media, 2012
  22. Marrian, Natasha (7 August 2012). "Mangaung ANC 'link' to new wave of protests". Business Day.
  23. ‘Steep increase’ in service protests, by SETUMO STONE, Business Day, 17 JANUARY 2013
  24. http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/SA-has-a-protest-every-two-days-20130121, Athandiwe Saba and Jeanne van der Merwe, News 24
  25. 1 2 3 Rebellion of the poor: South Africa’s service delivery protests – a preliminary analysis, Peter Alexander, Amandla Magazine, 2010
  26. 1 2 Rebellions of the poor, by the poor, for the poor, Khadija Patel, The Daily Maverick, May 2011
  27. Dissent Under Jacob Zuma, Jane Duncan, May 2011
  28. Dissent Under Thabo Mbeki, Jane Duncan, May 2011
  29. Political tolerance on the wane in South Africa, Imraan Buccus, University of KwaZulu-Natal, SA Reconciliation Barometer, 2011
  30. 1 2 3 4 Dismay over service delivery growing, survey shows, CHANTELLE BENJAMIN, Business Day, 2011/05/13
  31. Burning message to the state in the fire of poor’s rebellion, Richard Pithouse, Business Day, 2009/07/23
  32. People are demanding public service, not service delivery, Steven Friedman, Business Day, 2009
  33. The Service Delivery Myth, Richard Pithouse, The Daily Dispatch, 2011
  34. 1 2 3 4 "We are Gauteng People" Challenging the politics of xenophobia in Khutsong, South Africa, Seminar Presentation, Joshua Kirshner, 23 February 2011, Rhodes University
  35. Living Learning, Abahlali baseMjondolo
  36. 1 2 3 4 South African rebellion comes to Grahamstown, Unemployed People's Movement, 2011
  37. The Uprising, Dylan Valley interviewed by Sean Jacobs
  38. Making sense of municipal revolts, by Mandisi Majavu, Foundation for Contemporary Research, 2011
  39. Jobless youth a ‘ticking time bomb’ for SA, Vavi warns, SAM MKOKELI, Business Day, 2011/06/07
  40. Unemployment in South Africa: Feel It, the Ticking Time Bomb Is Here, Ebrahim-Khalil Hassen, 23 June 2011
  41. "Police get blame for making protests worse". Business Day.
  42. "Protest violence: cops blamed". News24.
  43. "An Urgent Update on AbM-WC Protest". Khayelitsha Struggles.
  44. "Cop fires on Cape Argus team". Cape Argus.
  45. "Mandela Park Backyarders to march peacefully on Housing MEC at 9am this morning". Mandela Park Backyarders. Archived from the original on 26 June 2010.
  46. "Hundreds protested yesterday in Mandela Park after assault by Chippa security guards. Demonstrations to continue…". Mandela Park Backyarders.
  47. 1 2 "94 arrested for protest thefts at supermarkets". Daily News.
  48. 1 2 3 Ermelo Residents See No Reason to Vote, Diane Hawker, Independent Online, 2010
  49. Five lessons from Themb'elihle, Phillip de Wet, The Daily Maverick
  50. The 'Gatvol' Factor, Jane Duncan, 2011
  51. Delivery protests National problem requires local, tailor-made solutions, Udesh Pillay, Business Day, 1 April 2011
  52. A Massive Rebellion of the Poor, Peter Alexander, Mail & Guardian, April 2012
  53. The elite and community protests in South Africa, Shawn Hattingh, LibCom, 2009
  54. The 'new' ANC and the Alliance, Shawn Hattingh, Z Mag,2009
  55. "Popular Anger and Protest in Cape Town is Under the Control of Ordinary People and No Political Party Likes That", People of Color Organize!, 2010
  56. [* Whose Liberation? A Partly-Forgotten Left Critique of ANC Strategy and Its Contemporary Implications, by Steven Friedman, Journal of Asian & African Studies, February 2012 doi:10.1177/0021909611429436]
  57. 1 2 Cosatu finds a way through the tricky political minefield, Carol Paton, Business Day, 16 May 2012
  58. South Africans march in mass protest at toll roads, BBC News, 7 March 2012
  59. Marikana: What really happened? We may never know., by Mande de Waal, The Daily Maverick, 23 August 2012
  60. Death by a thousand pinpricks - South Africa’s ever-vanishing right to protest, Jane Duncan and Andrea Royeppen, The Daily Maverick, 8 March 2013
  61. Harrismith police killing follow-up, Freedom of Expression Institute, 2004
  62. A collection of newspaper articles on the Harrismith protest
  63. 1 2 Tatane’s death opens old wounds for family, Lucas Ledwaba, City Press, 24 April 2011
  64. Struggle Is a School: The Rise of a Shack Dwellers’ Movement in Durban, South Africa, Richard Pithouse, Monthly Review, 2006
  65. Housing and Evictions at the N2 Gateway Project in Delft, by Kerry Chance, Abahlali baseMjondolo, 2008
  66. The Cape Town model, state violence and military urbanism, Christopher McMichael, Open Democracy, 5 January 2012
  67. South Africa’s Poor Renew a Tradition of Protest, Barry Bearak, New York Times, September 2009
  68. Martin Legassick on the Macassar Village Land Occupation in Cape Town, Martin Legassick, 2009
  69. 1 2 South Africa's Outraged Poor Threaten President, Megan Lindow, Time Magazine, 24 July 2009
  70. "Shack dwellers up in arms". Sowetan.
  71. "Sutcliffe Continues His War on the Poor". Abahlali.
  72. The Rebellion of the Poor Comes to Grahamstown
  73. The Flames of Phaphamani, by Pedro Alexis Tabensky, LibCom
  74. Bullets fly as township erupts, Thabo Jijana, Grocott's Mail, 10 February 2011
  75. Protests in Zandspruit
  76. Police fire rubber bullets in Zandspruit, Jacob Moshokoa, Eye Witness News, April 2011
  77. South Africa rocked by footage of protester's death, Monsters & Critics, 14 April 2011
  78. 1 2 SAPS, SABC under fire after Ficksburg killing, The Times, 14 April 2011
  79. Ficksburg protesters torch buildings, by Miranda Andrew, Mail & Guardian, 14 April 2011
  80. Hall torched in housing protest, Mandla Mnayakama, The New Age, 29 April 2011
  81. 1 2 Fatal turn in taxi fare protest, By Lungi Langa and Nompumelelo Magwaza, IOL, 8 June 2011
  82. Army dispatched to ‘hot spot’, 13 May 2011, Cape Argus, BRONWYNNE JOOSTE and ESTHER LEWIS
  83. ‘Police fired rubber bullets without provocation’, by Adam Sege, 10 June, The Star
  84. Themb'elihle: Arresting a protest, Phillip de Wet, The Daily Maverick
  85. 1 2 Western Cape hit hardest by service-delivery protests, Setumo Stone, Business Day, 6 June 2012
  86. Service failure: next step, silence the dissent, Many de Waal, Daily Maverick, 25 June 2012
  87. KZN to build homes after fatal protest, by NONDUMISO MBUYAZI, Independent on Saturday, 2012
  88. Residents protest over lack of housing, Kamcilla Pillay, Daily News, 24 July 2012
  89. Protesters held in Northern Cape, SAPA, IOL Online
  90. http://www.peherald.com/news/article/7185 Premier Noxolo Kiviet slams protest violence, Zandile Mbabela and Luyolo Mkentane,The Herald, 6 July 2012
  91. The Marikana Massacre: A Turning Point for South Africa?, By Nigel Gibson, Truthout, 1 September 2012
  92. 1 2 Western Cape's grapes of wrath, Mandy de Waal, The Daily Maverick, 8 November 2012
  93. Neither ANC nor DA seems popular with farm workers, who just want a better deal, Carol Paton, Business Day, 15 November 2012
  94. Farmworkers' strike may be over - but everyone's a loser, Rebecca Davis, 23 January 2012
  95. Blood, smoke and tears: Zamdela's burning, G MARINOVICH & T LEKGOWA, The Daily Maverick, 23 January 2013
  96. Fighting for scraps in the Republic of Sasol(burg), Stephen Sparks, Mail & Guardian, 25 January 2013
  97. Protea South protests, from the inside, BHEKI C. SIMELANE, The Daily Maverick, 12 August 2013
  98. Shack dwellers take the fight to eThekwini – and the ANC takes note, Khadija Patel, Daily Maverick, 16 September 2013
  99. Bonfires of discontent, in horrifying numbers, ALEX ELISEEV, The Daily Maverick, 2014
  100. Langa residents take to streets, 20 people arrested in protests over basic needs, PAUL VECCHIATTO, Business Day, 10 July 2014
  101. Klipspruit, Soweto: Blackout meets violence, Bheki Simelane, The Daily Maverick, 4 July 2014
  102. http://ewn.co.za/2016/03/16/Protests-flare-up-in-Zandspruit
  103. http://www.saha.org.za/apf/electricity.htm
  104. 1 2 Lydia Polgreen (16 August 2012). "Mine Strike Mayhem Stuns South Africa as Police Open Fire". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 August 2012.
  105. The Farm Workers' Strike: It's Far From Over, Anna Majavu, SACSIS, 15 November 2012
  106. The broken vows and blocked roads of Kya Sands, by Greg Nicholson, The Daily Maverick, 22 March 2011
  107. Expect more flash-points - half of SA’s metro residents are still not satisfied with service delivery a year later, TNS Research, 4 March 2011
  108. Flood of water protests, The Times, SCHALK MOUTON, 17 September, 2013
  109. How poo became a political issue, Steven Robbins, Daily News, 3 July 2013
  110. Ayikho impunga yehlathi (There is no place to hide in the world), Abahlali baseMjondolo, 9 March 2011
  111. Corruption and Dependence: South Africa’s road to ruin or salvation?, Moeletsi Mbeki, Open Democracy, 31 March 2011
  112. Mucking out the Durban City Hall, Richard Pithouse,SACSIS, 22 March 2011
  113. Uganda Transit Camp, Durban: A report from the frontlines of the struggle for democracy, Jared Sacks, Daily Maverick, 13 February 2013
  114. 1 2 ANC’s tinkering won’t make democracy work, Steven Friedman, Business Day, 4 May 2011
  115. The poor should also have a voice on corruption, Steven Friedman, Business Day, 26 March 2014
  116. ANC faces fury over candidate selection, Sabelo Ndlangisa, Sizwe sama Sende and Cedric Mboyisa, City Press, 2011
  117. Turmoil in party shows limitations of ‘democratic centralism’, John Kane-Berman, Business Day, March 2011
  118. ANC List Sparks Fury, Sibongile Mashaba, Sowetan, March 2011
  119. ANC lacks internal democracy, William Gumede, Pambazuka, 20/22/2001
  120. What the State's Response to the Anger of Protesting Communities Is Not Telling Us, by Ibrahim Steyn, 2009
  121. Zamdela: A failure of the public consultation process, Khadija Patel, Daily Maverick, 31 January 2013
  122. Free State of municipal chaos and lip service delivery, by Paul Berkowitz, The Daily Maverick, 7 February 2013
  123. Cities Need to Plan with the Poor, Not for the Poor, by Felicity Kitchin, SACSIS, 6 February 2013
  124. 'Blacklisted' farmworker urges politicians to listen, Ben Fogel, Mail & Guardian, 15 February 2013
  125. A self-written history of Mandela Park: Kwanele! Enough Is Genoeg!, Mandela Park Backyarders
  126. March on the Sydenham Police Station: Press Release & Memorandum, Abahlali baseMjondolo, 2007
  127. Ficksburg killing sparks riot, Deon de Lange, Pretoria News, 15 April 2011
  128. 87 Arrested during protests in Sasolburg, Money Web, 21 January 2012
  129. Protest Sparked By Attempt to Cut Illegal Electricity Connections, Nombulelo Damba, All Africa, 2011
  130. ‘We are being deprived’, NIYANTA SINGH, Sunday Tribune, 2011
  131. Tembisa protests and the shadow of things to come, by Phillip de Wet, The Daily Maverick, 21 September 2011
  132. Why SA is burning: Power to the people still a pipe dream, Phillip de Wet, Mail & Guardian, 23 March 2012
  133. 1 2 Ratanda residents rekindle Heidelberg protests, Phillip de Wet, Mail & Guardian, 20 March 2012
  134. Dead kid sparks riot, AMUKELANI CHAUKE, The Times,1 August 2012
  135. The Enduring Rationality of Revolt, Richard Pithouse
  136. [http://www.witness.co.za/index.php?showcontent&global[_id The Witness]=25560 No mercy, no grants, says Mkhize], Nalini Naidoo, Sharlene Packree and Sapa, The Witness, 2009
  137. "The Thoroughly Democratic Logic of Refusing to Vote". SACSIS., Richard Pithouse
  138. The revolt of South Africa’s untouchables, Pedro Alexis Tabensky, Pambazuka, March 2011
  139. Give ANC a sign - but without boycott, Fred Khumalo, Sunday Times, March 2011
  140. The self-limiting politics of the SA people, Mandy de Waal, The Daily Maverick, 17 October 2012
  141. Enkanini: there’ll be no voting here, By Daneel Knoetze, Cape Argus, 17 February 2014
  142. Hotspot voters dump ANC, by Sizwe sama Yende, Lucas Ledwaba, Dumisane Lubisi and Cedric Mboyisa, City Press, 24 April 2011
  143. An Anatomy of Dissent and Repression: The Criminal Justice System and the 2011 Thembelihle Protest", Socio-Economic Rights Institute, 2014
  144. Charge three senior cops with murder -- ICD, Bate Felix, City Press, 5 June 2009
  145. Dissent Can Still Get You Killed, Richard Pithouse, The Witness, 16 June 2006
  146. Two student protesters killed by police in Durban, South Africa, Trevor Johnson, World Socialist Website, 2001
  147. 1 2 Independent Report into Political Violence Against Landless People's Movement, Jared Sacks, International Alliance of Inhabitants, 2010
  148. Most feel let down by their municipality, Brendan Boyle, The Times, 5 March 2011
  149. Tatane's Death Underlines Need for Government to Deliver by Andile Mngxitama, Sowetan, 19 April 2011
  150. Only police chiefs can end it, David Bruce, Sunday Times,24 April 2011
  151. Police violence in Ficksburg is not anything new, Steven Friedman, Business Day, 20 April 2011
  152. Murdered by the Ruling Classes, by Shawn Hattingh, Anarkismo, 21 April 2011
  153. Police brutality and service delivery protests, by Mphutlane wa Bofelo, Pambazuka News, 21 April 2011
  154. We condemn the murder of Andries Tatane and the securitisation of South African politics, Democratic Left Front, 21 April 2011
  155. Protester's death not an isolated case, ILHAM RAWOOT AND GLYNNIS UNDERHILL, Mail & Guardian, 15 April
  156. The Road to Marikana: Abuses of Force During Public Order Policing Operations, David Bruce, SACSIS, 12 October 2012
  157. A collection of articles and statements on police brutality
  158. The Flames of Phaphamani, by Pedro Alexis Tabensky, LibCom
  159. Profile of a town on fire, Kwanele Sosibo, Mail & Guardian, March 2011
  160. Worries emerge over freedom of expression in South Africa, Jane Duncan, 2010
  161. Activists decry talk of 'third force' at Marikana, by Niren Tolsi, Mail & Guardian, 2012
  162. The murder fields of Marikana. The cold murder fields of Marikana, Greg Marinovich, The Daily Maverick
  163. Engage citizens to stem rise in violent protests, Karene Heese & Kevin Allen, Business Day, 22 June 2012
  164. A revolution’s dreams betrayed, Malaika wa Azania, Sunday Independent, 30 March 2014
  165. Our councillors are vulnerable - ANC, Dominic Mahlangu, The Times, 25 June 2012
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