[News] Police fire on S African protests

[Anti-Imperialist News]

Police fire on S African protests

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/africa/2009/10/2009101316543054590.html
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
21:56 Mecca time, 18:56 GMT

South African police have fired tear gas and rubber bullets at 
demonstrators protesting against poor living conditions during a 
rally in the country's northeast.

Riot police opened fire on Tuesday to disperse protesters who had 
torched a municipal office in the eastern town of Belfast, the 
Associated Press news agency said, quoting Captain Leonard Hlathi, a 
police spokesman.

Two police officers were injured by stone-throwing demonstrators, the 
spokesman said.

Police also clashed with demonstrators in several other northeastern 
towns, where protesters are calling for better sanitation, 
electricity and housing in impoverished townships.

In the town of Standerton, southeast of Johannesburg, burnt tyres and 
rubbish filled the streets, and several people were reported injured 
in the protest.

Meanwhile, towns and shops were closed after thousands marched on the 
municipal offices in the nearby township of Sakhile.

Pressure on Zuma

The six-month-old government of Jacob Zuma, the country's president, 
is under pressure to deliver on campaign promises and improve basic 
services such as water and electricity in South Africa.

Zuma has promised to ease inequalities in the country, but he has 
said the government has fallen short in meeting demands for better 
basic services.

His government has set up a special hotline to deal with complaints, 
but a spokesman for the president says he will not meet protesters.

But Sipho Seepe, a political columnist writing with the Mail and 
Guardian newspaper, said the people are not angry at Zuma.

"They are angry at the local officials," Sepe told Al Jazeera.

"So we must not give the impression that this is a revolt against the 
government of Jacob Zuma.

'Heightened expectations'

"What we have are more heightened expectations that came as a result 
of the last elections that we had.  The protests are taking place at 
the local level," Sepe said.

"What the people see is that the local government officials represent 
the past regime, a regime that was arrogant and aloof. They do not 
see these leaders at the local level as part of the new regime."

However, Hassan Isilow, a journalist in Cape Town, said Zuma should 
not have made such promises for easing the economic inequalities in 
the country.

"Regrettably the president has not delivered on any of these 
promises," Isilow told Al Jazeera.

"The problem is the country is grappling with a recession, but the 
local people want a better living condition regardless of the 
economic situation of the country," he said.

"People have argued that the country has a lot of resources ... but 
there's a high level of corruption within the ruling ANC where top 
officials within the government and the municipalities have 
misappropriated funds.

"The local people believe that, had it not been for corruption, then 
service delivery would not have been a problem."




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