South Africa's top cop pays attention to Tshwane's violent land protest

24 May 2016 - 19:43 By Khulekani Magubane

Acting Police Commissioner Khomotso Phahlane says that the unrest in Hamanskraal of the City of Tshwane is receiving attention from the South African Police Service. A community in the Hamanskraal areas is resisting their eviction from land the local authorities says is being occupied illegally. However protesting residents have denied this claim.Two men murdered in Hammanskraal are not Red Ants - COOThe Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality has cracked down heavily on land invasion since Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema called on his supporters to occupy land around the country during his party's first elective conference in 2014.Two people were reported dead on Monday as a result of the violence. The Red Ants were sent in to remove informal dwellings and violence broke out on Monday.Phahlane said on Tuesday police had been deployed and would monitor the situation. "Violence erupted yesterday in Hamanskraal. There was an eviction under way which we can say went wrong. Buses were torched and two people were killed in the process.They were attacked by the community‚" Phahlane said. Meanwhile at the Gauteng Provincial Legislature‚ MEC for Human Settlements‚ Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Paul Mashatile said he was waiting for a report from the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality on the Hamanskraal protest.He said that the SAPS would maintain their visibility in the area and provide updates on the protest action as new developments arise. "We as the SAPS have done the necessary bit in terms of deployment. We have continued our visibility in the area but I am currently not in a position to give you the latest updates‚" he said...

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