Lerato Mbhiza
As the 15th BRICS Summit got underway at the Sandton Convention Centre, the Ukrainian Association of South Africa (UAZA) staged a protest outside the venue saying It’s not possible to promote human rights, peace and stability, without condemning Russia’s war crimes in Ukraine, military aggression and nuclear-threats.
The group calling itself the Right to Protest Project is a collaboration between Amnesty International South Africa, the Ukrainian Association of South Africa and the Helen Suzman Foundation called on President Ramaphosa to follow the pillars of the foreign policy described and to clearly condemn the Russian war.
The protesters also said they would challenge a decision to restrict demonstrations aimed at the BRICS Summit to Innesfree Park in Sandton.
Earlier this week Police Minister Bheki Cele had warned that lawlessness won’t be allowed near the summit and said those who broke the rules or tried to interfere with the summit or delegates will face the full might of the law.
The organisation’s Omuhle Ntshingila said it was concerned that the decision to move the protests away from the Summit venue by law enforcement authorities delegitimise the Regulations Gathering Act and their constitutional right to protest”.
“Protest is about visibility. Protestors have the right to be visible in the area they wish to protest in and also to the people whom they wish to protest to, of course reasonably and peacefully.
“We don’t think there was enough consultation done by JMPD and public order policing on the distance of protesters on where they can stand and how they can navigate their protest during the BRICS Summit.”
INSIDE POLITICS
