ANC Johannesburg branch secretary Thabang Setona has been sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment for assaulting a woman during a march at the party's headquarters early last year.
Matona was found guilty of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. The Johannesburg magistrate's court suspended the sentence for five years.
He was captured, both on video and in photos, kicking 52-year-old Olivia Makete during a Black First Land First (BLF) march to Luthuli House in February last year.
Setona and other ANC officials attacked Makete, who was not part of the march but was in the CBD to register a complaint about lack of electricity and water in a newly formed informal settlement in Orange Farm, south of Johannesburg.
She suffered several injuries and struggled to walk after being kicked in the rib cage area and hit with a stick.
The police have confirmed that Setona, 36, will spend a year in prison.
"[The] good conviction is the result of diligent work done by an investigating officer. We hope this sentence will scare away would-be offenders from committing the same crime. No person has a right to assault another person," read a statement from the Johannesburg Central police station.
- SowetanLIVE
Editor's Note: In a previous version of this article it was not stated that the sentence had been suspended. The article and headline has been updated to reflect this fact.
Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package. 