Conflicting accounts: Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma alleges police brutality as KZN SAPS defend force used at Umbilo protest

Ask AI 1minPolice use rubber rounds and stun grenades to disperse March and March protesters in Durban.

March and March leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma has condemned what she describes as police brutality against ordinary South Africans, saying she is emotionally drained by the violence and suffering witnessed in communities.

Speaking to the media, Ngobese-Zuma said police were turning against the very people they are supposed to protect, and questioned why police officers were fighting the very communities they are meant to serve and protect.

She said she was tired of witnessing the suffering of South Africans participating in demonstrations.

Ngobese-Zuma was speaking following an incident involving police and protesters who have been staging a sit-in outside the Home Affairs offices for the past month.

Police have given a different account of the confrontation in Umbilo on Tuesday afternoon.

According to a statement from the KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner’s office, Public Order Police officers used “minimum proportional force” to disperse a group of people marching on Che Guevara Road in Umbilo just after 3pm.

The group moved away from the gazebos they camp under opposite the Home Affairs offices in Umbilo, and most were carrying sticks, while some were concealing their faces with masks and other items.

Officers stopped the marchers and reminded them about an interim court order which prohibited marches after 3pm, the carrying of dangerous weapons and wearing of masks during marches.

Police said the marchers, who did not have marshals controlling them as required by law, became violent and threw stones at police, who then used stun grenades and rubber bullets to manage the crowd and restore public order.

No injuries were reported to police, who have begun an investigation into the possible contravention of the interim court order and assault on police officers.

March and March attorney Xolani Zuma, who was with Ngobese-Zuma, said he had asked police not to provoke protesters, and had also asked the protesters not to attack police.

Zuma said their fight is not with the police, and asked protesters to respect the court order.