Joburg officials to give video of assault to cops
Action follows vicious attack on woman at protest
JOHANNESBURG officials will hand footage showing clashes outside Luthuli House to the police‚ mayor Herman Mashaba said yesterday. Two women were attacked outside the ANC headquarters during a standoff between pro- and anti-Zuma protesters on Monday.
One man‚ believed to be ANC branch secretary Thabiso Setona‚ was seen kicking a woman on the ground.
He later handed himself over to police.
The confrontation erupted during demonstrations led by Black First Land First in support of President Jacob Zuma.
Chaos erupted after an opposing group joined the affray.
“I was particularly shocked to see photos believed to be that of the ANC branch secretary in the Inner City‚ Thabiso Setona‚ assaulting an elderly woman during the protest‚” Mashaba said
“Residents identified him and contacted me with information.
“As such, we will be submitting the information to the South African Police Service for further investigation.”
Gauteng Community Safety MEC Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane said: “I condemn with contempt the assault of women during a protest action outside Chief Albert Luthuli’s House.
“I am very concerned about the rising number of assault cases‚ especially against women.
“I am deeply concerned about such barbaric behaviour‚ more especially meted out by a person of his [Setona’s] stature, who is expected to champion the rights of women in the province‚ particularly within his constituency.”
She said it was unfortunate the incident had occurred while bystanders and police looked on.
“It is a constitutional right for members of our communities to organise themselves and engage in a peaceful protest, but once that right is violated it becomes a crime.
“No one has a right to abuse women‚ irrespective of contrasting political views‚” she said.
“Members of the public have avenues they can explore to raise their concerns instead of resorting to violence and abuse of women.
“I have instructed the law enforcement agencies to investigate this case accordingly and ensure that justice is served.”
The Commission for Gender Equality said it was shocked by the assault.
“The commission is also shocked that nobody came to the assistance of a powerless and helpless woman who was being assaulted even while lying on the ground‚” the rights body said.
“The CGE is equally worried that there was lack of police action to either stop the beating or apprehend the perpetrator of this heinous crime.”
It said the assault was a troubling sign of society.
“The beating clearly shows we are a society that has normalised violence against the most vulnerable people of our society.” – TimesLIVE
I condemn with contempt the assault of women during a protest action