Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

South Africa unrest: People lost work; investors afraid

South Africa unrest: People lost work; investors afraid

PEOPLE have lost jobs and investors are withdrawing money following the unrest that has ripped through South Africa last week, reported The Times.

Fingers are pointed at the African National Congress (ANC), now in power for 27 years, the report added.


Last week looting and destruction rolled across its economic heartland of Gauteng (including Johannesburg and Pretoria) and KwaZulu-Natal, which includes the country’s two biggest ports, Durban and Richards Bay.

Around 120 people have died, many hundreds are injured and hundreds of shopping malls, supermarkets, warehouses and factories have been burnt down. Armed vigilantes guard many suburbs.

President Cyril Ramaphosa recently claimed that the situation was stabilising and calm has been restored to most of the affected areas. But not many people are convinced.

According to reports, the police has arrested over 2,500 people suspected to be involved in inciting violence.

The explosion of violence followed the jailing of former president Jacob Zuma for his flagrant contempt of court after he had refused to co-operate with the inquiry into the looting of the state under his presidency.

"The campaign began with the hijacking and burning of lorries. The police, scared and ineffective, watched but did nothing. Next came the looting and burning of a few shops. Again the police did nothing," The Times report said.

"Most of the looters were unconcerned about Zuma’s fate: they simply realised that opportunity was staring them in the face. They flocked to the shopping malls and began to loot them. Quickly the spree spread to Johannesburg, home to many more Zulus, though many others joined in. Most of the looters were poor, on foot and took away their loot in supermarket trolleys, but some arrived in cars, sometimes very expensive cars."

When the ANC was first elected in 1994 under the leadership of Nelson Mandela its posters promised 'Jobs'. In 1995, the average number of unemployed according to official figures was 1,698,000. That figure has grown steadily to surpass 11.4 million, the report added.

The 11.4 million unemployed have, on average, two or three dependants, so we are talking of households comprising 30 million people — half the population.

According to The Times report, the government’s offer of an extra£900 million for already well-paid public service workers came only days before the unrest and was a blatant provocation to the unemployed.

Surveys show that South Africa’s Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) legislation is regarded by foreign investors as the biggest single obstacle to investing in the country.

The mining industry, for example, lost thousands of jobs under the new rule. The government is trying to force a Mining Charter, demanding ever-higher quotas, though the mining companies refuse to sign it.

Indian population

Most of South Africa’s Indian population live in or around Durban and they still have strong memories of the 1949 riots in which Zulus killed hundreds of Indians.

The Times report added: "This time the Indians saw trouble coming when others didn’t and the Indian township of Phoenix (where Gandhi once lived) was armed to the teeth. When looters arrived to pillage their shops and homes the Indians resisted fiercely and 20 people were killed. But the little Indian settlements to the north of Durban were more vulnerable.

"Verulam was all but destroyed and the Indian community there, having lost all its shops, retreated to the Indian suburb of Everest Heights and forbade Africans to set foot there. Vigilantes with guns, knives and axes patrol the streets. Africans who attacked one home were hacked with axes, the pictures circulating on social media."

As a result of the unrest, the Covid vaccination programme has stopped and the frantic mixing of maskless looters is bound to produce a fresh spike.

According to the report, the ANC is more divided than ever and the already weak economy has taken a massive blow. Real incomes will continue to fall.

The ineptitude, cronyism and corruption of the party and its refusal to avail itself of white skills and experience have fatally weakened its ability to govern and it is steering South Africa steadily towards the status of a failed state, the report added.

More For You

wasim bashir

Bashir retired from the force while under investigation but will still face misconduct proceedings. (Photo credit: West Yorkshire Police)

Former West Yorkshire Police officer jailed for misconduct

A FORMER West Yorkshire Police officer has been sentenced to two years and three months in prison after being convicted of misconduct in a public office.

Wasim Bashir, 55, who worked as a detective constable in Bradford District, was found guilty of one count of misconduct in a public office for forming a sexual relationship with a female victim of crime. He was sentenced at Sheffield Crown Court on Friday, 29 August.

Keep ReadingShow less
Epping protests

Protesters calling for the closure of The Bell Hotel, which was housing asylum seekers, gather outside the council offices in Epping on August 8, 2025. (Photo: Getty Images)

Over a dozen councils plan legal action despite Home Office court win

Highlights:

  • Court of Appeal has overturned injunction blocking use of Epping hotel for asylum seekers.
  • Judges say human rights obligations outweigh local safety concerns.
  • At least 13 councils preparing legal action despite ruling.
  • Protests outside the Bell Hotel lead to arrests and police injuries.

MORE than a dozen councils are moving ahead with legal challenges against the use of hotels for asylum seekers despite the Home Office winning an appeal in the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
India-Canada-iStock

India and Canada have appointed new envoys in a step to restore diplomatic ties strained since 2023. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Envoys appointed as India, Canada move to restore diplomatic ties

INDIA and Canada on Thursday announced the appointment of new envoys to each other’s capitals, in a step aimed at restoring strained ties following the killing of a Sikh separatist in 2023.

India has named senior diplomat Dinesh K Patnaik as the next high commissioner to Ottawa, while Canada appointed Christopher Cooter as its new envoy to New Delhi.

Keep ReadingShow less
Rajitha Senaratne arrested

Security officers escort Sri Lankan former fisheries minister, Rajitha Senaratne (C), outside a court in Colombo on August 29, 2025. (Photo by ISHARA S. KODIKARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Getty Images

Rajitha Senaratne detained as Sri Lanka intensifies anti-corruption drive

SRI LANKAN former government minister surrendered himself to a court on Friday (29) after two months on the run, the latest high profile detention in a sweeping anti-corruption crackdown.

Anti-graft units have ramped up their investigations since president Anura Kumara Dissanayake came to power in September on a promise to fight corruption.

Keep ReadingShow less
protests-uk-getty
Protesters from the group Save Our Future & Our Kids Future demonstrate against uncontrolled immigration outside the Cladhan Hotel on August 16, 2025 in Falkirk, Scotland. (Photo: Getty Images)
Getty Images

Government wins appeal over housing asylum seekers in hotel

Highlights:

  • UK appeals court overturns ruling blocking hotel use for asylum seekers
  • Judges call earlier High Court decision “seriously flawed”
  • 138 asylum seekers will not need to be relocated by September 12
  • Full hearing scheduled at the Court of Appeal in October

A UK appeals court has overturned a lower court order that had temporarily blocked the use of a hotel in Epping, northeast of London, to house asylum seekers.

Keep ReadingShow less