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Outrage erupts over video of deputy president’s security officers stomping on man

Published:Thursday | July 6, 2023 | 12:07 AM
South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile (centre) walks out following a meeting of the ANC’s national executive committee, in Johannesburg, South Africa, in December 2022. Mashatile’s office said Tuesday that a video showing armed police assaultin
Jerome Delay
South African Deputy President Paul Mashatile (centre) walks out following a meeting of the ANC’s national executive committee, in Johannesburg, South Africa, in December 2022. Mashatile’s office said Tuesday that a video showing armed police assaulting a man on a freeway until he lay motionless were part of the security team protecting Mashatile.

CAPE TOWN (AP):

A group of armed plainclothes officers assigned to protect South Africa’s deputy president were caught on video dragging a man out of a car and then stomping on his head until he lies motionless, sparking outrage and drawing more attention to the country’s problems with police brutality.

The officers are part of the police security team protecting South Africa Deputy President Paul Mashatile, his office confirmed on Tuesday. There are no indications that Mashatile was present during the incident. His spokesperson didn’t immediately respond to phone calls seeking further comment.

The video of the weekend incident shows the officers, some of them holding rifles, dragging the man across the road on a major highway in Johannesburg and then kicking him and stomping on his head and body. The man appears to be kicked unconscious and lies motionless on his back after the attack. The officers are also seen kicking another man, who holds his hands over his head to protect himself.

The police protection unit is known in South Africa as the “blue light brigade” and has a reputation for using unnecessary force. The unit’s officers are often criticised for driving fast down highways and reacting with force if other drivers don’t immediately recognise the small blue lights and sirens in their vehicles and move out of the way.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate, which handles cases of misconduct by police, said it had opened an investigation into the alleged assault of the driver of the car and his passengers by police officers.

Mashatile’s office said in a statement that he “abhors any unnecessary use of force, particularly against unarmed civilians”.

It didn’t say if Mashatile had been part of a convoy of vehicles travelling on the highway in the lead-up to the incident.

The video was recorded by a person in another car not involved in the incident and posted to Twitter.

After the incident, the officers, who are part of a larger dedicated police unit tasked with protecting South African politicians and other VIPs, got into two black SUVs and drove away.