Soweto residents fear hunger more than soldiers

Despite the harrowing reports of police and military brutality during the national lockdown – and the looming deployment of tens of thousands more troops to South Africa’s streets – hunger is still the number one concern for Soweto residents.

Zodwa Tshabalala tried to force a smile but she could not stop the tears rolling down her cheeks on Thursday morning.

“What are we going to eat?” the 56-year-old mother of three said from her front yard, her voice heavy with desperation. A domestic worker, Tshabalala has not earned any money since the start of the national lockdown.

Her employers had a “no work no pay” policy, she explained.

President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday announced “a massive social relief and economic support package of R500 billion” and, as part of this, a “special Covid-19 Social Relief of Distress grant” for unemployed people who received no other state funding. He also announced “a technology-based solution to roll out food assistance at scale through vouchers and cash transfers” as well as that in the meantime, 250,000 food parcels would be distributed around the country over the course of the following two weeks.

Tshabalala – and many others – have yet to receive any sort of relief.

She dabbed at her eyes with the sleeve of the pink nightgown she had bundled herself into before braving the early morning cold to take out the rubbish. Then she looked out at the already bustling street.

It was swarming with police and soldiers. Some were stopping vehicles; others were trying to corral the crowds. Others, still, were handing out pamphlets offering information on how to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

Police officers can be seen clearing the Red Bull Meats butchery after it was discovered that it was selling expired meats and condiments, 23 April 2020, at Bara Taxi Rank in Soweto, during a patrol in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic. Picture: Michel Bega

A man in the Naledi-Zola area of the township died at the weekend, allegedly after a vicious assault at the hands of police enforcing the lockdown.

“I’m scared of them,” Tshabalala said, “They’re supposed to be protecting us”.

She was scared, too, of contracting the virus. But she was more scared of going hungry – and of her children going hungry.

“The hardest thing about this lockdown is that we haven’t got food. I can manage not going out. But we haven’t got food,” she said.

Construction worker Xolani Ntini echoed Tshabalala’s sentiments. The 42-year-old had also not been able to work during the lockdown.

“My boss promised me that he would give me something but I’m still waiting,” he said while waiting in line outside a local grocery store that had reached its lockdown capacity.

A member of the Gauteng Traffic Police checks a taxi, 23 April 2020, at Bara Taxi Rank in Soweto, in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic. Picture: Michel Bega

“I needed one or two things but it’s difficult, you can barely afford to buy food. To stay at home is not a problem but to stay at home without food is difficult,” he said.

With schools closed, Ntini’s two young children were home all day now and this placed additional pressure on him. “When the kids are around, they want this and they want that,” he said.

Ntini expressed his own concerns about the “lockdown brutality”. He did not know what to make of the news earlier this week that the president was deploying an additional 73,180 members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to the streets.

“I don’t know if they are coming to do their jobs or to fight with us,” he said.

The SANDF’s Captain (SAN) Thembinkosi Ernest Mhlonyane, though, said South Africans should not fear soldiers.

A member of South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is seen during a patrol, 23 April 2020, at Bara Taxi Rank in Soweto, in an effort to curb the spread of the coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic. The SANDF worked alongside the Johannesburg Metro Police and the South African Police Service. Picture: Michel Bega

“We are their national defence force,” he said. “They must embrace us. We are protecting them and their families. These soldiers are putting their lives on the line for the country.”

Gauteng police commissioner Elias Mawela slammed “rogue law enforcement members” who were “delegitimising the security forces”.

“There’s no way that we can condone lawlessness by our own,” Mawela said. He said around ten police officers in the province had been arrested for alleged abuses of power since the start of the lockdown.

“The constitution is clear, everybody is equal before the law,” he said. “Those abusing their powers and disregarding the laws of the country will be treated like any other criminal – we’ll arrest them.”

Mawela said fear of the police is not what they want.

“I want the community to respect us,” he said, “And respect is earned”.

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