Police Brutality has been common in many countries lately. The citizens of any nation elect a president so that he may rule and protect them. The people develop trust and confidence in the president’s government and justice system. They know that the government will provide all essential services to them. However, what is happening around is not what the people expect. There is some hatred developed among the police, government, and citizens. During this pandemic, many African states rolled out measures to help curb the spread of coronavirus. Among these measures are dawn-dusk curfew and lockdown whereby the police help to enforce them.
The disturbing thing is that these police officers are using excessive force to implement the measures. They do not treat citizens with love and care as they expect. Some citizens have experienced the wrath of the police officers. There are several complaints from countries such as Kenya, whereby a police officer beats and whips a citizen mercilessly. In a region like Mathare in Kenya, a police officer would shoot a resident because he is past curfew time by 3 minutes only.
Police Brutality In The United States
Racism has been an issue in the US for a very long time. Recently, Derek Chauvin, a white police officer, killed George Floyd, an African-American. He pressed his knee against George Floyd and could not let him breathe. Protests arose in most countries inhabited by the black people demanding speedy justice for the death of the African-American. Late this week, the court charged Derek and police officers who were involved with the murder.
Police Cruelty In South Africa
Inhumaneness in SA started way back during the apartheid rule. There was a lot of racial discrimination during this time. The whites, who were the minority in SA, wanted to dominate the black South Africans. There was a rule that prohibited marriage and sexual relationships between black and white. Furthermore, no black was to possess any kind of land. Nelson Mandela, who was in prison, helped to fight the apartheid until to the end.
It is unfortunate to see an African discriminating against a fellow African and even being cruel to him. In this case, South African police tend to practice neocolonialism in SA. We see many citizens complaining of police brutality. It started when the president imposed a ban on alcohol consumption. Police officers would treat people with cruelty and even beat them to death. We see further cruelty when the military is trying to enforce the lockdown measure using excessive force.
Protesters In South Africa React To Police Brutality.
Earlier this week, demonstrators gathered around the SA parliament in Cape Town to protest against cruelty. Different protesters had different opinions about the situation.
“The black solidarity campaign wants to form a procedure of movement-building. The end state will be the creation of an anti-neo-colonial and anti-imperialist movement. We have got to begin somewhere, some people in the world are far ahead of us. But just because some people are far ahead of us, it does not mean we can’t start. It’s better late than never.”
Protesters paid tribute to Collins Khosa who was a South African citizen. The police officers beat the man to death in efforts of enforcing the national lockdown. It is about time the police need to stop all this violence and embrace citizens with love and care.
More:
- Police Brutality On Kenyan Citizens
- South Africa President Condemns Police Brutality at Anti-racism Gatherings
