South African Police Services Officers Question Diepsloot Residents and Check for Citizen Identification

• A video of a lady being questioned by the SAPS about her citizenship in Diepsloot was posted online
• The police were suspicious of a man's Tsonga dialect and his aunt explained to them that he is a citizen
• Peeps were livid about the actions of the SAPS officers and equated their behaviour to that of police in the apartheid era

A video that showed members of the South African Police Services questioning a middle-aged lady was posted on Facebook.

In the video, a police officer is seen standing next to a man in civies while engaged in conversation with a woman. The police officer asks the lady where her ID book is and that of the gentleman in their company.

Unsatisfied with the reply he got, he went on to ask what an elbow is called in her native language. According to the SABC, the police officers were not convinced that the Diepsloot community member was South African after hearing his xiTsonga dialect.

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Peeps on Facebook were quick to share their views on the informal interrogation. Many felt that it was unfair and uncalled-for. They equated the ongoing sweep by the SAPS in Diepsloot to what used to happen during apartheid.

Here are some of the responses from the public:

Larry Matlala said:

"South African Citizens don't need to carry their ID Documents but foreign Nationals are required by law to do so. Unless I'm mistaken. As a Foreigner, if anything happens we need to know how to contact your family or anything but a South African even your fingerprints can work. This thing must nit be twisted to seem as if we're implementing Apartheid laws. Nooooo."

Noble Son MrCool said:

"When colonists oppresest our forefathers and forcefully made them carrying an ID mondatory everywhere they go it was called apartheid..today the very same people, "black people to be precise" who suffered under apartheid regime they impose the very same pain that was imposed to our forefathers..you guys tend to forget easily, the enemy is watching and smiling while you inflict injuries to your own."

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Calvovo Calvin said:

"You cant be fooled by these ongoing police, they are the ones who take money from border gates and When they see cameras, they pretend as if they indeed want passports."

Martin Kampamba said:

"Even South Africans themselves are not safe in their country."

Blessing Mhondera said:

"This is wrong remember there kids who where born with 1 foreign parent and 1 local they travel and may speak both languages of their parents but somehow their language won’t be as fluent as someone born with both local parents we can’t judge by language this is wrong and disgusting."

Diepsloot unrest: Over 50 people arrested amid protests against foreigners, 2 nabbed for domestic violence

In related news, Briefly News reported that more than 50 people have been arrested by the South African Police Service in Diepsloot since the violent protests erupted in the township this week.

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SAPS National spokesperson Athlenda Mathe says the large number of the people that have been apprehended are being detained for being in South Africa without legal documentation.

Mathe explained that 28 people were arrested overnight(Thursday, 7 April). Two men were arrested on domestic violence allegations and sexual assault while the rest were arrested for being in South Africa illegally, according to SABC News.

Mather further adds that on Wednesday night and Thursday morning 26 people were arrested and the majority were also illegal immigrants. The total number of people who have been arrested is now 54.

Source: Briefly News