Anti-immigration protests continued to cause tension in Durban on Friday, with police using tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets as large crowds marched through parts of the city.
The unrest followed violent demonstrations on Thursday, when more than 10 vehicles were burnt in the Durban central business district. On Friday, a house and other property were set alight in the Berea area, while police maintained a heavy presence in several locations.
KwaZulu-Natal police said public order management tactics were being used when crowds became disorderly. Police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda said officers would continue intervening when the situation escalated and would use what they described as the minimum legal force necessary to restore order.
The protests were linked to anger over immigration and the government’s handling of asylum policy. The Department of Home Affairs withdrew its controversial asylum directive on Friday, but the announcement did little to calm residents who believed the government had acted too late.
Fires reported in Berea
At about 5.30pm, a house was set alight in the Berea area. Firefighters attended the scene as police monitored the situation.
It was believed that protesters had targeted the house because of allegations that it was being used for prostitution and drugs. Those claims had not been confirmed.
A motorbike was also set alight nearby on Clark Road in Berea. The fires added to a tense afternoon in which protesters were accused of throwing stones at cars and windows.
Vaughan Reid, chairman of the Umbilo Community Policing Forum, described the situation as volatile. He said protesters had been stoning cars and windows in the area.
At about 5.54pm, a second-hand tyre shop operating on vacant land was also set alight. Firefighters were at the scene dealing with the blaze.
The circumstances surrounding the fires remained under investigation. Police had not confirmed whether the incidents were connected, how many people were involved or whether any arrests had been made in relation to the property damage.
Police use public-order tactics
By 9pm, KwaZulu-Natal police had deployed public-order management resources, including tear gas, stun grenades and rubber bullets, as crowds continued marching through Durban.
The deployment came amid heightened tensions following Thursday’s protests, when more than 10 vehicles were burnt in the city centre. Police said their role was to prevent further violence, protect people and property and disperse crowds when necessary.
Netshiunda said police would intervene when the situation escalated. The use of force is expected to be assessed against the legal requirements governing public-order policing, including the need for officers to use the minimum force necessary.
Acting National Police Minister Firoz Cachalia conducted a walkabout in the Durban central business district earlier on Friday as authorities assessed the unrest and the response by law-enforcement agencies.
Police have appealed to protesters to remain peaceful and warned against using demonstrations as a cover for criminal activity. The reported offences included arson, looting, property damage and assault.
Four arrests in Johannesburg
The unrest was not limited to KwaZulu-Natal. Four people were arrested after anti-immigration protests in Johannesburg’s CBD, where demonstrators marched from the Constitutional Court and chanted slogans against foreign nationals and President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Gauteng police commissioner Lieutenant-General Tommy Mthombeni confirmed the arrests on Friday. He said the suspects were allegedly among those leading the demonstration and encouraging other participants to commit offences.
“We managed to crack the whip, arresting four people. As I’m speaking to you, they are behind our vans,” he told the media.
Mthombeni said police believed the suspects had been involved in unlawful activities that amounted to incitement to violence. The arrests followed escalating tensions near the KwaMai-Mai precinct, where police fired rubber bullets while attempting to disperse protesters.
The crowd had dispersed by the time Mthombeni addressed the media, but he said officers remained on high alert and were prepared to respond if further demonstrations took place.
The provincial police chief warned participants not to use protests as cover for crimes against people or property.
“When we arrest these people, you’ll face the music alone… You misbehave, you loot, you damage the properties of the city. I am saying that they are forewarned and they must not start with us,” Mthombeni said.
Car set alight near Constitutional Court
Another car was set alight outside the Constitutional Court on Friday by protesters. The incident added to the damage reported during demonstrations in Johannesburg and Durban.
Police have not announced the total value of damage caused by the protests. They also have not confirmed whether the four arrested suspects would face charges of incitement, public violence, malicious damage to property or other offences.
The demonstrations unfolded amid a wider public dispute over immigration, asylum applications and the government’s management of foreign nationals in South Africa. The withdrawal of the Home Affairs directive was expected to address some concerns, but anger remained in parts of the country.
Authorities now face the challenge of protecting the right to peaceful protest while preventing violence, intimidation, arson and attacks on people or property. The protests remained volatile in Durban, while police in Johannesburg warned that further arrests would follow if demonstrators broke the law.