A jailed former president and COVID-19: Why people are rioting and looting in South Africa
More than 70 people have died and major infrastructure has been damaged after days of rioting and looting in parts of South Africa.
The widespread disorder has affected thousands of businesses as people have been filling up their cars and trucks with stolen food and other goods in two of the country’s nine provinces – KwaZulu-Natal, where Durban is located, and Gauteng, which includes Johannesburg.
Here we take a look at the events that have led to South Africa dealing with some of its worst unrest since the end of white minority rule in 1994.
The rioting broke out after former president Jacob Zuma was jailed
The former president is sent to jail
The unrest broke out after ex-president Jacob Zuma handed himself over to start a 15-month prison sentence for contempt of court last week.
The 79-year-old’s supporters believe the former leader is the victim of a political witch-hunt and have burned tyres and blocked roads in his home province of KwaZulu-Natal.
Support for Zuma stems partly from his image as a man of the people during his nine years in power until 2018.
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‘Out of control’ looting at South African warehouses
Some see his jailing as an attack on the nation’s largest ethnic group, the Zulu.
Many wealthy and middle-class South Africans were overjoyed when Zuma was ousted after multiple sleaze and graft allegations, but he still retains loyal followings in KwaZulu-Natal and some poor, rural areas.
His support among the population mirrors a division within the governing African National Congress (ANC), where a pro-Zuma faction opposes his successor President Cyril Ramaphosa.
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Fires and looting of Durban warehouses
Widespread poverty and inequality
The hardship that persists 27 years after the end of apartheid in 1994 is a major reason why hundreds of shops and dozens of malls have been stripped bare.
Statistics agency data show roughly half of the country’s 35 million adults live below the poverty line and that young people are disproportionately affected by unemployment.
South Africa has one of the highest levels of inequality in the world according to the commonly-used Gini index, with a “dual economy” catering to a small, mostly white elite, and large, mainly black majority.
Moves by the ANC, which has governed since the start of democratic rule, to redistribute land and wealth have progressed slowly.
COVID-19
The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated poverty, with a recent survey showing a sharp increase in hunger.
Official unemployment hit a record high above 32% in the first three months of 2021.
Although the government increased social grants to cushion the pandemic, it cannot afford to match the costly furlough schemes of wealthier nations.
Businesses have had their properties ransacked in parts of the nation
Criminal elements
South African police have said some criminals have been taking advantage of anger over Zuma’s imprisonment by stealing and damaging property.
So far more than 1,200 people have been arrested as the chaos in the country has left at least 72 people dead.
Many of the deaths were caused by chaotic stampedes as thousands of people have stolen food, electric appliances, alcohol and clothing from stores, police said.
People have been looting stores in the poverty-stricken country
Inflammatory messages
People linked with Zuma, including his own daughter Duduzile, are fanning the violence with inflammatory comments and social media posts, security officials say.
Mzwanele Manyi, a spokesman for Zuma’s charitable foundation, attributed some early acts of violence to “righteous anger”.
Manyi told the Reuters news agency that the violence could have been avoided and that the manner in which Zuma was jailed reminded people of the apartheid days.
Meanwhile, an account bearing Duduzile’s name has repeatedly posted images and videos of protests and violence on Twitter with the rallying cry “Amandla!” (Power!) used during the liberation struggle.
The ANC has said it is concerned by the tweets and that party member Duduzile will have to explain herself.
World
Warming world nearing ‘point of no return’, says Pope Francis ahead of COP28 climate change conference
Pope Francis has appealed to world leaders to address climate change before it’s too late, warning the planet is nearing a “point of no return”.
In a new document – Praise God – released ahead of the COP28 climate change conference next month, the pope highlighted the transition to renewable energy from fossil fuels was not progressing fast enough.
It combines science, diplomacy, and theology to advocate a change to clean energy.
The pontiff stressed on the “irreversible” damage under way to the planet and its people, adding that the world’s poor and most vulnerable were paying the highest price.
“We are now unable to halt the enormous damage we have caused. We barely have time to prevent even more tragic damage,” Pope Francis said.
The 86-year-old advocated for changes to the “irresponsible lifestyle connected with the Western model” which he claimed would have a long-term impact on the globe’s condition.
The text is an update to his landmark 2015 papal letter “Praise Be” – written before the start of the Paris climate conference as a prod to world leaders to act – and focusses on caring for the natural environment, people and underlining the relationship between God, humans, and Earth.
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The pontiff felt the update was necessary because responses to the emergency had “not been adequate” citing a “collapsing” world reaching “breaking point”.
In the 2015 Paris Agreement, leaders vowed to limit the rise of global temperatures to below 2C above pre-industrial times while pursuing means to limit the increase to 1.5C.
The pope lamented the target, claiming it would reach 3C soon, while citing numerous natural disasters and extreme weather globally.
“Even if we do not reach this point of no return, it is certain that the consequences would be disastrous and precipitous measures would have to be taken, at enormous cost and with grave and intolerable economic and social effects,” he said.
And he cited data showing that increased emissions and the corresponding rise in global temperatures have accelerated since the Industrial Revolution, and particularly in the last 50 years.
A series of pronounced heatwaves, floods and storms have enveloped the globe over the past year with thousands of deaths worldwide.
One of the many floods to inundate part of a country this year. This is in Libya. Pic: AP
And supercomputer climate models have warned extreme global warming will likely wipe all mammals – including humans – off the face of the Earth in 250 million years, as temperatures could spiral to 70C (158F) leaving the planet barren.
Authorities in Abu Dhabi are investigating reports of cats being abandoned in the desert, with dozens said to have died.
Rescue groups and volunteers have shared images of pets dumped in remote parts of the desert, where temperatures can reach nearly 40C.
Described by the International Organisation for Animal Protection (OIPA) as “unimaginable and unacceptable suffering”, the Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) is now investigating.
“DMT immediately began investigations after receiving the report and will take all relevant administrative and legal measures available,” the department said in a statement on Wednesday.
The department added “all necessary measures” are being taken to identify any individuals and just how the incidents have come about, which “contradicts civilised morals and values”.
Pic: OIPA
“DMT has also underscored that it values the sentiments of the public and communities and recognises the contributions of volunteers in responding to this incident.”
The public is encouraged to keep sharing details with the department.
Images shared on social media appear to show cats lying still in the sand, with dozens found, according to OIPA.
The charity says its rescuers have found about 60 dead pets in “different stages of decomposition”, with some on the sand and others just below the surface.
The group recently uncovered a “horrific scene” of more than 100 cats and some dogs “cruelly dumped in the desert”, they added.
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“Animals have died enduring unimaginable and unacceptable suffering,” the charity said.
“Another 87 cats and a dog were luckily found alive but in critical conditions. All very weak and dehydrated, they have been transferred to vet clinics for health care.”
To “worsen the cruelty”, OIPA claims almost all the cats they found had been microchipped and neutered – some as recently as two weeks ago, as stitches were still visible.
It’s not clear who dumped the cats.
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