3 Photos: S.Africa: Ten vehicles set alight in two days of Cape Town taxi protests – My Comments
Who are we? Boers or Afrikaners? Answer from Dr Mike Du Toit
I had someone write to me about the topic of Boers versus Afrikaners. I decided to approach Dr Mike Du Toit, who was the leader of the Boeremag, and who is a professional academic who is very well versed in our history to answer this. Dr Du Toit not only knows our history in South Africa but also our history in Europe. This was his answer.
[This stuff never stops. This is a country with lots of unhappy people and they are breaking things all the time as a sign of their unhappiness. They are destroying infrastructure, etc. Jan]
The City of Cape Town and the police are monitoring a protest related to the impounding of taxis, following stone throwing and the setting alight of private and government vehicles in Nyanga.
Seven vehicles were set alight on Wednesday in Nyanga, including vehicles belonging to the municipality. This brings the number torched to 10 over two days.
The action is the continuation of a protest which started last week, during which three Golden Arrow buses and a company bakkie were damaged, reported GroundUp.
Transport and Public Works MEC, Daylin Mitchell, has called an urgent meeting with the SA National Taxi Council for Thursday after meeting officials earlier on Wednesday to assess the situation, according to a statement from his office. “Several busses, government vehicles and private vehicles have been set alight and stoned by irate taxi operators since the unrest was reported last week, ” he said, adding that commuter safety was his “top priority”.
Warrant Officer Joseph Swartbooi from the SAPS Western Cape media centre told Daily Maverick: “The protest action is a response to an integrated taxi operation that was conducted in the Nyanga precinct, where vehicles were impounded for operating without permits.”
Swartbooi said the protest was ongoing and an integrated law enforcement operation presence was on the scene. No suspects had been arrested.
Police investigate the scene where seven vehicles were allegedly set alight by Nyanga taxi drivers on Wednesday morning. Photo: Xabiso Mkhabela
Mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith said on Wednesday morning the Golden Arrow buses had to be moved to the side of the road to safeguard them. He said he had joined City enforcement along with the SAPS in an operation to “stabilise the public transport situation in Nyanga and to protect the buses from intimidation and attack”.
“During peak-hour traffic one or more Avanza vehicles moved about petrol-bombing private vehicles and it appears that as many as seven were torched this morning – two belonging to the City and five private vehicles.”
Smith said this “absolutely cowardly and criminal behaviour is reprehensible” and put the lives of commuters and others at risk.
One of the vehicles petrol-bombed during a taxi protest in Nyanga on Wednesday. Photo: Xabiso Mkhabela
“The criminal action of torching one of the private vehicles in turn caused an informal residence adjacent to Klipfontein Road to catch light… the fire department responded and the vehicles were doused,” he said.
In total, there have been 10 cars burnt, after three cars were torched on Tuesday, according to GroundUp.
The City confirmed all roads were open in the area, but visibility is being maintained.
Anderson Seyamo, spokesperson for the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association, the dominant taxi operator in the Nyanga area and , said they were operating as normal. “I don’t know why they’re involving us,” he said. DM
Zimbabwe: 10,000 Blacks starved to death after White Farmers were chased out
2004: The Black Government denied that Blacks were starving to death. Here a Black Bishop gave some statistics. In here you‘ll read about nasty events that were hidden from the world.
