Press Update

5th December 2007

1pm

CAPE TOWN – The eight Joe Slovo informal settlement residents who were charged with public violence a few months ago appeared in Bishop Lavis magistrates court this morning. The case was postponed until the 14th December 2007.

Mzwanele Zulu, spokesperson for the Joe Slovo Task Team says “we don’t even know why this case has been delayed. This is a very unfair case to begin with since it was well documented that it was the police who committed public violence against us by shooting us at an illegally unacceptable close range with rubber coated metal bullets and dragging old women along the ground and injuring them. All of this was photographed and captured on video”.

Zulu added that the arrests were even more illegitimate because the police targetted activists only, whereas the entire community was involved in the peaceful protest.

Zulu himself was only arrested two days later when he went to the police station to inform the cops that the residents would be holding a meeting and that the police should not attack the meeting with teargas. The Joe Slovo Task Team is not sure how this request constituted public violence.

For comment, call Mzwanele Zulu on 076 3852369