A total of 24 vehicles have been set alight in Soweto and Durban amid violent protests over the handling of asylum applications and a Constitutional Court ruling.
Lieutenant-General Puleng Dimpane, the police's acting national commissioner, confirmed on Thursday evening (8 October) that 10 vehicles were set alight in Soweto and 14 in Durban. Three foreign nationals were arrested in KwaZulu-Natal.
Dimpane warned that persons involved in violence and the destruction of property will be arrested and prosecuted where sufficient evidence exists. Public order policing has been reinforced in hotspots and intelligence is being gathered to identify possible threats.
She appealed to communities to remain calm and not take the law into their own hands. Although people have the right to protest peacefully, this does not justify violence, intimidation or arson.
The Constitutional Court declared certain provisions of the Refugees Act invalid because procedural requirements prevented some people from applying for asylum. However, the ruling does not legitimise illegal immigration, and asylum applications must still be assessed in accordance with the law.
The government is investigating the ruling's implications, but remains bound by it.
Print here and here to read more.
This article is an automatic English translation of a Nuusflits article originally published in Afrikaans. Read the Afrikaans original.
