South Africa’s Tshwane Protest Cause Chaos

Protesters took to the streets in the city of Tshwane, South Africa, early Thursday morning, according to various reports posted on social media.

Traffic was brought to a standstill in some areas, while other roads were left empty as protesters blocked access with burning rubble and rocks.

A poster promoting a “Total shutdown” of Tshwane was shared widely on social media, with the slogan “the DA/EFF administration must go” and a list of reasons for the protest, which according to the poster are “corruption in Tshwane”, “lack of service delivery”, “massive job losses”, “racism of politicians and officials”, an “unfair billing system”, and “arbitrary taxi fines and impounding”.

Today’s protests were however not the first protests to erupt in South Africa over recent weeks. Total Shutdown action was first witnessed in the Western Cape and recently in Alexandra and Johannesburg.

Cape Town’s biggest township, Khayelitsha, is also reported to be undergoing a shutdown, with burning tyres and rocks blocking roads.

Total Shutdown is a protest movement designed to disrupt daily routine in an attempt to bring attention to a wide array of socioeconomic issues. The protests usually involve the barricading of major roadways and mass marches.