Ramaphosa in unity call amid wreckage of unrest
JOHANNESBURG. – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has joined post-riot clean-up efforts as his government warned against vigilantism and sought to avert racial conflict following days of unrest.
The country was gripped by more than a week of chaos in which more than 200 people were killed as looters ransacked shopping centres and rioters torched key industrial infrastructure and blocked trade routes.
The violence was the worst in post-apartheid South Africa and was sparked after former President Jacob Zuma was sentenced to 15 months in jail on July 8 for snubbing a corruption inquiry. The protests widened into grievances over longstanding poverty and inequality.
His trial for corruption in a separate case is due to resume on Monday.
On Sunday, Ramaphosa, who has faced criticism over the response to the violence, told a crowd outside a mall in the Soweto township: “We all admit there were lapses … we will gather ourselves and do a proper review.”
“People want to defend what we have in the form of democracy, our constitution and economy.”
He also called for unity: “We must emerge after this much, much stronger and much more capable than we were before this incident happened.”
Ramaphosa was on a visit to the township in his capacity as ANC president as part of the party’s Mandela Day programme.
He helped clean up three malls affected by the violence and looting that gripped the country.
Ndofaya Mall, Jabulani Mall and Maponya Mall were largely affected when some Soweto residents forced
entry into stores located in the malls and began looting goods.
The president again repeated earlier admissions that the state had not acted as soon as it should have to stop the unrest. He said it was a lesson learnt for the future.
“We have learnt important lessons. That we must tighten up our security forces and we must ensure the defence of our democracy is firmly in the hands of our people.
“The people who organised this were so well organised, they came with guns and grinders and they came to attack our democracy,” he said.
Ramaphosa is under mounting pressure as only one of the suspected masterminds of what officials have called an attempted “insurrection” has been arrested.
When asked if he would shake up his ministers responsible for security he said: “We are reviewing the situation, yes.“
Ramaphosa said the next step was to rebuild. He expressed concern for people who would now be jobless due to the closure of stores.
“Now the next step for us is to rebuild. We must rebuild from an economic point of view and find a way of supporting the workers and the businesses,” Ramaphosa said.
Access to basic necessities like food has become a pressing issue in the areas affected by looting, arson and violence as many stores were destroyed while others remain closed.
Many in the worst-hit KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) province are now going hungry. – Al Jazeera/AFP.