South Africa: Technology university turned violent

THE Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) yesterday (Wednesday) turned into a war zone as police battled with protesting students.

However, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) has expressed grave concern over the manner in which the police handled the matter, turning the otherwise peaceful demonstration into a violent event.

COSATU spokesperson for Gauteng Province, Siphiwe Mgcina, condemned the actions in strongest terms.

“The federation has for some time been calling on police to refrain from using maximum and aggressive force in dealing with peaceful demonstration whether in our communities during service delivery protest or at the student campuses.
“We think that it is time the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the authorities prioritise training of our officers on how best to handle public order policing particular at this moment as the World Cup 2010 in the horizon. We can’t accept the situation where our police officers behave and handle public order policing in ways that are reminiscent of the apartheid era of the 1980s,” said Mqcina.

Kgomotso Mzwakhe