Organisers and participants of planned marches and demonstrations in Durban during the SADC Summit have been warned that while peaceful protest is protected, criminality, intimidation and attempts to disrupt the international gathering will not be tolerated.
National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (NATJOINTS) chairperson Lieutenant General Tebello Mosikili said on Tuesday that authorities were aware of a number of planned demonstrations during the 46th Ordinary SADC Summit.
Speaking during a media briefing on Tuesday, she acknowledged that most marches held across South Africa in recent months had been peaceful but a small number had involved criminality and lawlessness.
Mosikili urged protesters to exercise their constitutional rights responsibly and comply with the law and conditions governing their demonstrations.
“You have a right to protest peacefully and lawfully,” she said. “You do not have a right to commit criminal acts, intimidate others, damage property or disrupt a major international event.”
The warning comes as Durban prepares to host 12 Heads of State and Government for the 46th Ordinary Summit of the Southern African Development Community.
NATJOINTS has deployed specialised units and what it describes as maximum available resources as part of the security operation, including public order policing, intelligence, crime prevention and traffic management.
Mosikili said the security forces would respond “decisively, proportionately and within the law” to threats to public safety and security.
She said disruption of the summit would not be permitted.
“Anyone who crosses the line from lawful protest into criminality or threatens the safety and security of others will face the consequences of the law,” she said.
A Zimbabwean foreign national was arrested after allegedly attempting to obtain accreditation for the summit while presenting himself as a performing artist.
According to Mosikili, the individual claimed that his documentation and supporting documents had been stolen but was unable to produce valid documentation while trying to secure accreditation as an artist for the event.
The incident prompted a further warning from authorities that access to the summit would be tightly controlled. “No accreditation, no access,” Mosikili said.
NATJOINTS warned that accreditation issued to one person cannot be exchanged, lent, borrowed or shared with another individual.
Anyone found doing so will be removed from the controlled area and could face legal action. – SAnews.gov.za
