Jobs protest shuts N1 in De Doorns

Protesters used tyres and rocks to close the N1 in De Doorns‚ in the Western Cape‚ on Thursday. 

The protest was believed to be about the high rate of joblessness in the farmlands beneath the Western Cape's highest mountain range.

Police dispersed protesters and removed rubble before reopening the highway. By mid-morning the only remaining signs of the protest were scattered rocks by the roadside and scorch marks on the tarmac.

The De Doorns township straddles the country's main highway for transporting goods between Cape Town and Gauteng.

A municipal worker sweeping rubble next to the road said the protesters “come at night”‚ indicating that Thursday’s protests were not the last.