Public protests in South Africa continue to set divisions between members of society, drawing attention to the interaction between law enforcement, protesters and government regulation.
Professor of University of Johannesburg department of journalism, film and television and author Jane Duncan launched her book Protest Nation: the Right to protest in South Africa, at the South African Human Right Commission on 9 November. The book launch was attended by members of the media who came to learn more about Duncan’s second offering after her first book, The Rise of Securocrates: The Case of South Africa.
Duncan said she initially conducted research on the Marikana massacre in 2012 based on a pilot project, which involved getting into Rustenburg municipal records about them being notified about planned protests. She then decided to use the pilot project to research how other protests in South Africa occur and how they are regulated. Her research ended before the Fees Must Fall movement began but has relevance to the current outcomes of the movement.
“There is a growing tendency to limit the right to protest using methods that are not legal or lawful.We discovered these findings based on research conducted broadly on 11 municipalities in our country. Protests have become ridiculed based on a number of factors such as state non-responses, general closure of democratic state and escalation in policing.” said Duncan.
She added that her book is not only focused on students but can be read by anyone who has a general concern about protest activity, the role of law enforcement and how the government regulates protests.
“We need to understand who is in control when it comes to protests in order to understand the root of the problem. It is important for society to defend it’s right to protest and be encouraged not to react in such a violent manner,” concluded Duncan.
Protest Nation: the Right to protest in South Africa is available at all retail stores, sold from R385.
