Protests turn violent in South Africas North West province

Residents clashed with police in South Africa’s North West province on Tuesday (April 25) where protests in Coligny and Lichtenburg turned violent.

The two towns coordinated demonstrations on Monday (April 24) as community members protested issues on housing, wage disputes and jobs. There were no reports of violence that day.

On Tuesday, Coligny residents also began protesting the death of a black boy who fell off a moving vehicle driven by white farm workers last Thursday (April 20). The protest sparked violence in which businesses were looted and four houses, three trucks and a tractor were burnt. Police fired rubber bullets at crowds.

A North West police spokesperson told Reuters the two white farmers, aged 26-years old and 33-years old, were arrested on Tuesday.

In Lichtenburg, located 35km (22 miles) northwest of Coligny, demonstrations also turned violent on Tuesday as shops were looted and an armoured police vehicle was attacked with petrol bombs. The mayor of the Ditsobotla Municipality, in the North West province, condemned the violence, saying that grievances could not be an excuse for hooliganism and crime.