RECOMMENDATIONS

WE recommend as follows:

◆ The Human Rights Commission initiates or facilitates a much more thorough investigation into various identified aspects of the unrest. The commission should use its power to subpoena to compel specific evidence from the SAPS and other State institutions. For example, the head of the Phoenix Mortuary should testify and produce all records relating to deceased persons brought to the mortuary in the period July 8-31, 2021. All other mortuary heads should provide similar records.

◆ The president of the Republic of South Africa should, within a set time frame, report on the outcomes of his efforts to understand the failure of the Intelligence, Police and Defence Departments to avoid and or effectively deal with the unrest. More importantly, the president should report on the steps taken to improve capacity, enforce accountability and consequence management, and ensure that there will not be a recurrence of the state’s failure evident during the July 2021 unrest. Accountability and consequence management must apply to all without exception and especially Members of the Executive and administrative heads of particular institutions.

◆ The primary cause of the unrest was the planned and co-ordinated instigation by persons who did so in pursuit of a political agenda. Such persons must be speedily identified and prosecuted.

◆ Call on relevant authorities to ensure that the Code of Conduct for Community Policing Forums (CPF) is strengthened and popularised and enforced through, inter alia, widespread training of members of CPFs.