The wave of violence caused great horror in South Africa.
On Sunday there was a very special occasion to take stock of the young Cape Democracy.
Johannesburg - After days of violence in parts of the country, South Africa celebrated so-called "Mandela Day" on Sunday in a gloomy mood.
The day commemorates the birthday of the first black President of the Cape Republic, Nelson Mandela, of his work of reconciliation after the abolition of racist apartheid and was officially recognized by the United Nations.
The headlines in the Sunday newspapers in the Cape ranged from “South Africa's broken heart” (“Sunday Times”) to “Spiral of violence, crime derail Mandela's dream of reconciliation” (“Sunday Independent”).
Security situation largely stabilized
Since the security situation is largely stabilized after the mobilization of 25,000 soldiers, clean-up work with numerous volunteers began in the affected provinces.
The social cohesion of the nation was repeatedly invoked on social media, which President Cyril Ramaphosa had repeatedly emphasized in a TV speech to the nation.
According to him, an unspecified group of twelve had tried to stir up and coordinate a kind of collective madness of looting and violence.
One of them has been arrested and the others are still being searched for.
Ramaphosa even spoke of an "uprising" in his speech.
The aim of the unnamed backers was to destabilize the economy.
He warned that their networks were not yet destroyed.
The government was ill-prepared for the destruction and acts of sabotage, he admitted.
212 people were killed
In the coastal province of KwaZulu-Natal and the metropolitan area around the cities of Johannesburg and Pretoria (Gauteng province), according to official information, 212 people were killed.
More than 2,550 people were arrested.
"We have lost our innocence, racism is raising its ugly face again," said Sello Hatang of the Mandela Foundation in a TV interview. The extreme inequality and poverty in the country represented a ticking time bomb. "We are a violent democracy, we can do that better," he said. Those who disregard Mandela's values should be held accountable. Each individual now has to ask himself difficult questions. This year, “Mandela Day” also commemorates the adoption of the state constitution 25 years ago, which is considered one of the most progressive in the world. It then came into force on February 4, 1997.
The protests were initially directed against the imprisonment of ex-President Jacob Zuma from KwaZulu-Natal, who was sentenced to 15 months for disregarding justice. The protest was quickly followed by large-scale riots. dpa
