Pictures: Jacques Nelles
Protest actions flared up across Pretoria early on Thursday morning, reports Pretoria East Rekord.
Rekord received reports of protests in Hammanskraal, Hercules, Daspoort, Booysens, and Shosanguve.
Pictures: Jacques Nelles
One resident, Christiaan Smit, described the situation in Booysens as “absolutely chaotic”.
Pictures: Jacques Nelles
Daspoort resident Christiaan Smit told Pretoria Moot Rekord that all roads leading into Hercules were still closed. Earlier today, he described the Booysens area as “absolutely frantic”. The situation seems to have calmed down for now, Smit added, but gunshots can still be heard.
Pictures: Jacques Nelles
“It’s still a mess and again we are trapped in our houses, we don’t know exactly what’s going on,” he said.
A journalist on the scene in Pretoria West has said that police have run out of rubber bullets to disperse crowds.
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“Protesters arrived on the corner of Van der Hoff Road and Attie Street at around 4am this morning,” said Smit.
“They started barricading the road and burning tyres. Police then arrived and shots were fired at the protesters. I couldn’t see what happened because I had fled into my home.”
Smit advised residents to stay in their houses.
“We have received SMSes from the schools, saying we should keep our children at home. Right now we are just waiting for things to calm down so we can get to work.”
Overnight looting has also plagued the area amid protest action.
The Nederduitsch Hervormde Kerk was set alight by angry protesters. Image: Jacques Nelles
Pictures: Jacques Nelles
During his State of the City address, Tshwane mayor Stevens Mokgalapa says that although he understands protesters’ frustrations regarding service delivery issues, resorting to criminality and violence will not be tolerated.
Hammanskraal police spokesperson Sergeant Margaret Molane confirmed protests had affected parts of the area.
“At this stage, police are still monitoring the situation,” said Molane.
She could, however, not confirm the reason for the protests, or how many protesters were involved.
Tshwane metro police spokesperson senior superintendent Isaac Mahamba could not be reached for comment.
Deputy President David Mabuza was scheduled to embark on a door-to-door campaign in one of the affected areas, Hammanskraal, today.
No fatalities have been reported.
Updates to follow as more information is made available.
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