Johannesburg – As mop-up operations are in full swing across some parts of KZN following the violent looting of shops under the pretense of the campaign #Free Zuma protest, student communities in Durban have appealed for help alleging that police were now targeting them.
Students who spoke to Sunday World on Friday said they were under siege from police who have resorted to raiding student residences in the ongoing operation of reclaiming back the looted items.
“A number of student residences around the Durban CBD have been affected. Police are assaulting students and collecting their food. They claim that it was looted from the shops. Student laptops bought with NSFAS vouchers have been unlawfully confiscated. This is because students are considered as soft targets by police,” said Mpilo Zondi, one of the affected students.
Freedom Khuluse, A student leader with the South African Student Congress (Sasco) said the operation of reclaiming back items and property suspected of being looted was doomed from the start.
“As student leaders, we are gravely worried about what is happening to innocent students. We believe that this operation was never well planned, it was just a desperate attempt from police to be seen to be doing something. Because you cannot use the unavailability of the proof of purchase for an item to conclude that it was stolen,” said Khuluse.
Police in the province have launched a door-to-door operation in an attempt to recover the looted items. More than 98 people have been reportedly killed in the accompanying violence and hundreds of businesses affected by the looting and about 960 people have been arrested.
Also read:
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Twitter brands Ramaphosa’s Durban visit a ‘publicity stunt’
Government meets with top company CEOs to chart the way forward
President Ramaphosa finally makes appearance on the ground since looting began
Mop up operations commence in Gauteng
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