TSHWANE, October 10 (ANA) – Acting national police chief, Lieutenant General Khomotso Phahlane on Monday lamented the levels of violence and vandalism accompanying the ongoing #FeesMustFall protests at South African universities.
“The Dangerous Weapons Act of 2013 and the Regulations of Gatherings Act of 1993 provide for the rights of citizens to gather peacefully, but to do so without bearing dangerous weapons, inflicting harm on others or damaging property or infrastructure,†Phahlane told a media briefing in Pretoria after violence spilled over from the University of the Witwatersrand campus to the streets of Johannesburg.
“In order to ensure peace and stability and to protect the life and property of people in South Africa, the SA Police Service will enforce these acts decisively,†he said.
Phahlane called on student leaders, protesting students and all interested parties to act with the utmost restraint and calm.
“We also request academics to be true academics and not make inflammatory remarks that could tend to exacerbate the situation. We thank the students at the universities which have maintained a calm presence during the course of today,†said Phahlane.
“The SAPS members on duty today and over the past weeks are commended on their discipline and commitment. Theirs is not an easy task. They have been called upon to protect lives and property in the middle of a dispute that is not of their making.â€
The police chief said criminality, intimidation and attacks on police officers have taken place at some universities, leaving the police officers with no option but to respond with “a degree of force†in order to stabilise the situation.
However, he said, at this stage there was no need to declare a state of emergency.
– African News Agency (ANA)
