The arrest of former president Jacob Zuma has provoked a rage among his supporters. As a result, they have been protesting. The pro-Zuma protesters have left a mess since their demonstrations in mid-July. Robbery and looting are rife in the country.

According to the latest death toll declared by the government on Thursday 22 July, a total of 337 people were killed in the riot, with 61 more reported dead on Wednesday 21 July.

According to the figure released by the local police, the protests left 79 people dead in the Johannesburg area. In the eastern province of Kwazulu-Natal, 258 people lost their lives. Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said that part of the increase was due to injured people succumbing to their injuries.

Bodies found in destroyed infrastructure

On the one hand, bodies were found in burnt-out buildings, warehouses and industrial areas around the port of Durban. These areas had just begun to be cleared.

On the other side, a police officer also said this week that several bodies of looters had recently been found in fires or killed by falling stock in the suburb of Pinetown.

The riots have been going on since 9 July in Kwazulu-Natal, the day after Jacob Zuma was arrested. He was sentenced to 15 months in prison at the end of June after refusing to appear before an anti-corruption commission in February.

The protests quickly turned violent, with looting and arson, outrage over the economy and inequality in a country that has not been fixed by democracy for thirty years since the end of the new apartheid.

Santie

Photo Credit : Le Devoir

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