Ammi
02-03-2013, 08:04 AM
Eight South African police officers have been arrested after a global outcry over the death of a Mozambican taxi driver who was handcuffed to the back of a police van and dragged along a street.
The officers were initially suspended from duty while the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) looked into the incident. They were later arrested.
Mido Macia, 27, a taxi driver and Mozambican national, was tied to the back of a police van and dragged along a street in Daveyton, on the southern outskirts of Johannesburg, on Tuesday.
Video footage of the incident was recorded by a bystander and broadcast on television and the internet. It has thrown an unwelcome spotlight on the South African police who are accused of incompetence, brutality and corruption.
It has also raised fresh concerns over the treatment of foreign nationals in the country. Dozens of foreigners fled attacks in 2008-09 in an outbreak of violent xenophobia.
Cameron Jacobs, the South Africa director of Human Rights Watch, said: "This is not the first time that we've seen acts of brutality or excessive force. It's also deeply concerning that this incident involved a foreign national. This may have played a part as, after all, this is something we have seen before in this country. Clearly, if you are 'different' you are more likely to be stopped by the police."
It appears the row broke out after Macia, who had lived in the country for 10 years, was accused of parking his minibus taxi on the wrong side of the road and blocking traffic. Police arrived and tried to bundle him into their van.
The police chief Riah Phiyega thanked people for revealing the "callous and unacceptable behaviour" of the officers, and said the police service "regretted and condemned the incident".
She said the force supported the principle that the "police be policed", adding: "We are equally outraged by what has happened … [this is] why we're taking steps we are."
The IPID said a second postmortem examination might be carried out on Macia's body. "The second autopsy is being considered. There have been so many allegations of assault, so this is just to confirm what happened," a spokesperson said.
President Jacob Zuma has condemned the incident as "horrific" and "unacceptable".
A small crowd, mostly women, gathered on Friday morning on Friday outside the police station where Macia died in the holding cells. Detainees there were quoted by the Daily Sun newspaper as saying the police had beaten him again in the cells. The police said he was set upon by other prisoners.
South Africa's police force was already under intense scrutiny after officers shot dead 34 miners during a strike last August. Its credibility was also dented when it emerged that the lead detective in the murder case against the athlete Oscar Pistorius was himself accused of attempted murder.
The police service said it would give its full support to the IPID as it looked into Macia's death. "We fully support the principle of police being policed and we shall be transparent about the outcome of the investigation," it said.
Justin Ndlovu, chair of the Benoni Taxi Association, told the BBC he had known Macia and last saw him last week. "He was a very humble guy; he leaves behind one child in South Africa," he said. "His brother died last year and he had become the guardian of his brother's wife and three children [also living in South Africa]."
The officers were initially suspended from duty while the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) looked into the incident. They were later arrested.
Mido Macia, 27, a taxi driver and Mozambican national, was tied to the back of a police van and dragged along a street in Daveyton, on the southern outskirts of Johannesburg, on Tuesday.
Video footage of the incident was recorded by a bystander and broadcast on television and the internet. It has thrown an unwelcome spotlight on the South African police who are accused of incompetence, brutality and corruption.
It has also raised fresh concerns over the treatment of foreign nationals in the country. Dozens of foreigners fled attacks in 2008-09 in an outbreak of violent xenophobia.
Cameron Jacobs, the South Africa director of Human Rights Watch, said: "This is not the first time that we've seen acts of brutality or excessive force. It's also deeply concerning that this incident involved a foreign national. This may have played a part as, after all, this is something we have seen before in this country. Clearly, if you are 'different' you are more likely to be stopped by the police."
It appears the row broke out after Macia, who had lived in the country for 10 years, was accused of parking his minibus taxi on the wrong side of the road and blocking traffic. Police arrived and tried to bundle him into their van.
The police chief Riah Phiyega thanked people for revealing the "callous and unacceptable behaviour" of the officers, and said the police service "regretted and condemned the incident".
She said the force supported the principle that the "police be policed", adding: "We are equally outraged by what has happened … [this is] why we're taking steps we are."
The IPID said a second postmortem examination might be carried out on Macia's body. "The second autopsy is being considered. There have been so many allegations of assault, so this is just to confirm what happened," a spokesperson said.
President Jacob Zuma has condemned the incident as "horrific" and "unacceptable".
A small crowd, mostly women, gathered on Friday morning on Friday outside the police station where Macia died in the holding cells. Detainees there were quoted by the Daily Sun newspaper as saying the police had beaten him again in the cells. The police said he was set upon by other prisoners.
South Africa's police force was already under intense scrutiny after officers shot dead 34 miners during a strike last August. Its credibility was also dented when it emerged that the lead detective in the murder case against the athlete Oscar Pistorius was himself accused of attempted murder.
The police service said it would give its full support to the IPID as it looked into Macia's death. "We fully support the principle of police being policed and we shall be transparent about the outcome of the investigation," it said.
Justin Ndlovu, chair of the Benoni Taxi Association, told the BBC he had known Macia and last saw him last week. "He was a very humble guy; he leaves behind one child in South Africa," he said. "His brother died last year and he had become the guardian of his brother's wife and three children [also living in South Africa]."