Increasing violence diminishes protesters’ often legitimate grievances
SA will not crack down in the way India did, but increasing violence could legitimise a hard-line police response
There was about positive news with respect to service delivery protests in SA in the latter half of past year. The Municipal IQ municipal hotspots monitor measured protests as falling behind a record set in 2018, and tumbling in number after May’s general elections. While 2018 recorded 237 major protests staged across municipalities for nonperformance, there were 8% fewer protests in 2019 (218).
Past year did not end well for protesters globally, with decisive crackdowns taking place against Hong Kong and Indian protesters in particular. A key question is whether this trend will resonate with the SA state’s view of protests. What might prompt and harden the use of force against protesters?..
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