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State of emergency a last resort, says state security minister

Details

southafricalogoBL Premium reports that ministers responsible for law enforcement agencies said on Tuesday that the government would impose a state of emergency, something that hasn’t happened since the height of the protests against the apartheid government in the 1980s, only as a last resort.

State security minister Ayanda Dlodlo wouldn’t confirm whether or not such a move was getting serious consideration, but also did not dismiss it. “What you are hearing is not wrong, but only as a last resort. We need to give it some time. Intelligence-driven operations are yielding results,” Dlodlo said, insisting that “the situation could have been much worse”. South Africans have looked on in horror as parts of the country have been paralysed by looting and violence, initially sparked by the arrest of former president Jacob Zuma for defying a court order. According to the law, the state may only enact a state of emergency if the welfare of a nation is so threatened — by among others war, insurrection and disorder — that such a step is deemed “necessary to restore peace and order”. While it has at times been confused with the state of disaster that’s been imposed to manage the Covid-19 outbreak since March 2020, a state of emergency would go much further, giving the president the authority to pass regulations suspending some provisions in the bill of rights. Meantime, the SA National Defence Force deployment of 2,500 is expected to be “enhanced overnight” and all police leave has been cancelled. Police minister Bheki Cele, who has faced intense criticism for being largely absent as the country burnt, said “intelligence operations” had foiled acts of sabotage, including “the burning of a hospital, with patients inside”. There have apparently been multiple failed attempts to sabotage power stations, with only one succeeding in the form of a substation in the Durban area.

  • Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Hajra Omarjee at BusinessLive (paywall access only)


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