S. Africa president says violence culprits sought insurrection
President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday said those behind a week-long spree of violence and pillaging that has shocked South Africa were seeking a “popular insurrection”, as the death toll from the unrest reached 212.
Ramaphosa also acknowledged in a televised address that “we were poorly prepared” for the disorder but vowed that “we will find those who instigated this violence”.
“Those behind these acts have sought to provoke a popular insurrection amongst our people. We will spare no effort in bringing those individuals to justice,” he added.
A minister in Ramaphosa’s office, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, had earlier told reporters the investigations “are at a very advanced stage”.
One of the suspected instigators had been arrested and 11 were under surveillance, she said.
Shopping malls and warehouses have been ransacked in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province and Johannesburg, stoking fears of shortages and inflicting a devastating blow to the already battered economy.
Ramaphosa said that business owners had told him it would take them “a few months” to restore normal operations following the destruction.
Of the 212 people killed, 180 died in KZN, according to government
figures. Some were shot, and others died in looting stampedes.
Ntshavheni said the situation in the affected regions was “gradually and firmly returning to normality”.
The unrest followed protests triggered by the imprisonment of ex-president Jacob Zuma, who
was handed a 15-month jail term for snubbing a corruption investigation.
Zuma, whose home province is KZN, commands support among loyalists in the ruling African National Congress, who portray him as a champion of the poor.