Is SAPS intimidating the Social Justice Coalition?

The Inquiry opens today. Angy Peter is a human-rights activist who works at the Social Justice Coalition (SJC). She has been arrested twice without a warrant, both times on trumped-up charges. SJC members view these arrests as harassment, as Angy is set to testify against the Police.

Last week it appears SAPS were at it again. The SJC is one of the key organisations that campaigned for the Inquiry. On Friday they held a Partners Forum, a closed meeting attended by various NGOs and Khayelitsha residents. Hosted at Ikamva Labantu, between 100 and 150 people attended the meeting. The meeting was to brief the residents of Khayelitsha on the Inquiry.

As the meeting was set to start SAPS riot police arrived in full force. The Public Order Police (P.O.P.) arrived with four cars and an armoured Casspir.

They told SJC organisers that they had been informed that Helen Zille would be attending this meeting and that there ‘would be trouble’. It is unclear where they got this information or how they found out about the private meeting. The Partners Forum is a regular invite-only event scheduled by the SJC.

“Helen Zille was not invited to attend the meeting”, said Dustin Kramer of the SJC. Nor did she attend.

After meeting with organisers of Friday’s event, the majority of the police left. One unit stayed behind, parked in a Casspir two blocks away. While the evening proceeded without incident, meeting attendants felt that SAPS members were sent out to intimidate those supporting the Inquiry.

GroundUp contacted the officer in charge of the operation to ask for comment. He requested that we call back the next day (i.e. later today).

Adam Armstrong is covering the Commission of Inquiry into policing in Khayelitsha for GroundUp.