Military ombud’s office handling complaints against SANDF

After three people were killed within the first five days of the lockdown, the office of the military ombud is assuring South Africans the office will remain open to assist those aggrieved by the actions of soldiers in the execution of their duties.

The Institute for Security Studies (ISS) said the Covid-19 lockdowns had reportedly increased domestic violence across the world but in South Africa, where family violence was rampant, abuses by security personnel risked aggravating violence in the home.

“This is because police whipping, slapping, kicking and humiliating people tells citizens that violence is a legitimate expression of authority and a means to solve problems,” said Andrew Faull, a senior ISS researcher.

He said that just five days into the lockdown, by 31 March, police had reportedly killed three people, the same number as Covid-19 at that time.

“South Africa’s lockdown began on 27 March with a large presence of soldiers and police staffing roadblocks and patrolling streets across the country. Their task is to enforce new regulations under the country’s Disaster Management Act,” said Faull.

He also noted that South Africans were suffering as a result of the lockdown, especially in poor and overpopulated townships such as Alexandra in Johannesburg, where people faced the brunt of the police brutality daily.

One resident, Thomas Baphela, said it was hard to stay cooped up in a shack the whole day without food or money.

“I can’t sit at home the whole day. I have to go out and look for money otherwise my family does not eat,” he said.

The ISS said that on top of socioeconomic hardship, people routinely experienced abuse by police officials during the lockdown, which could lead to some form of rebellion.

“This could take the form of lockdown boycotts and isolated attacks on government workers, to widescale unrest and a rejection of the state,” said Faull.

He said soldiers and police were entitled to use minimal force to make arrests, but not to exceed the limits by being overly aggressive.

“But the kinds of force being seen far exceed this. Rather, it appears extreme, punitive and random. Nothing good can come of it,” Faull added.

The Military Ombud, Lieutenant-General Vusumuzi Masondo, said those who wanted to lodge a complaint should provide a description of the incident, including date, time and place, name/s of soldier/s involved (visible on name tags on uniforms), names and contact particulars of witnesses and recordings of incident (either video or voice, if available).

“Members of the public have 90 days to lodge a complaint with the office,” added Masondo.