Metro cops warn March and March protesters to behave
Businesses along the march route remained closed
March and March campaign members were seen cleaning the dirt on the streets of Durban on Friday. This followed days of sporadic protests in which people whom the protesters identified as being immigrants were attacked. Photo: Tsoanelo Sefoloko
Members of the March and March took to the streets of Durban on Friday as part of their week-long clean-up campaign.
A group of about 20 people walked around with refuse bags, picking up litter. Campaigners began walking and cleaning from about 11am after a lengthy meeting with metro officers. Most stores along their route, mainly Bertha Mkhize Street, remained closed. Metro Police lined most of the road keeping a close eye on participants.
When GroundUp attended the campaign on Tuesday and Wednesday tensions flared. Some participants stuck to cleaning the area, but many smaller groups broke away to search for and apprehend people they claimed were illegal immigrants. Some of these interactions turned violent, with some people getting shoved and hit.
Participants also went into stores and demanded to see vendor permits, in some cases forcing the owners to close their stores.
Friday’s campaign remained peaceful. According to metro police spokesperson Victor Zungu, SAPS and Metro Police met with March and March organisers to warn that they would only be allowed to clean, as they had previously told the authorities.
Campaigners refused to comment to GroundUp following an order from March and March leaders who were disgruntled with the way the campaign had been reported on.
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