SACP STATEMENT ON POLICE BRUTALITY

The SACP is disgusted by the actions of the SAPS where an innocent protester was beaten and shot to death in Ficksburg.

In our democracy it is actually shocking that police still use live ammunition against protesters. This intolerance of the police signals a growing crisis in the attitude of our policing service. A punitive doctrine instead of a preventative doctrine is extremely worrying and must be dealt with. Effective policing does not amount to the use of apartheid era tactics.

For months now the SACP has observed the irrational response of police to working class protests. The SACP calls on government to address this issue with the urgency it deserves. The SACP calls for a full investigation by the ICD into this barbaric act by the police. The investigation must ask the critical question as to why protesters were not stunned by other means. Furthermore the investigation must go to heart of whether SAPS has proper and effective crowd control measures.

We must guard against constitutional rights of citizens being suppressed through the suppressive tools of the state if our democracy is to have meaning to ordinary folks.

The SACP further calls on communities to resist the temptation to destroy property whenever they have legitimate grievances to put across. Such actions only serve to shift focus from the legitimate demands of communities

Our condolences to the family, friends and relatives of the deceased. In his memory the residents of Meqheleng Township must lead local development and change their conditions for better.

Statement issued by the SACP, April 14 2011

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