Police crowd-management tactics are spelled out in SAPS National Instruction 4 of 2014. Find it online <here>.
These are meant to emphasise the importance of conflict resolution and de-escalation as much as possible, and
restrict the use of force against protesters.
Negotiation and defensive measures
When conflict or potential conflict arises, the police's first responsibility is to attempt to negotiate or use
defensive (i.e. non-violent) measures.
Using force - what steps must I follow?
Police can only use force against protesters when attempts to negotiate have failed, and it is necessary to prevent
injury, death or property destruction.
But before you resort to force, you must follow several steps:
If there is a serious safety risk, and attempts to negotiate a solution have failed, police must first put “defensive measures” in place.
Police must then give a public warning in at least two official languages that action will be taken against protesters if the defensive measures fail.
When you Police must then bring forward the ‘reserve’ section of the police who are responsible for “offensive measures”. According to the regulations, this should be used as a deterrent against further violence – in other words, you should be able to see that the police are preparing to use force.
Police must then give a second public warning in at least two official languages for people to disperse peacefully, giving a reasonable time frame.
Most importantly: You are only trained and authorised to use the minimum possible force which is required to de-escalate conflict or acheive a lawful objective.
It must be proportionate to the situation.
What weapons can the police use and when?
According to SAPS National Instruction 4, all Public Order Police must be equipped with a shield, a tonfa (baton),
pepper spray, stun grenades, a shotgun (rubber bullets), and a 9mm sidearm (live ammo).
Pepper spray and tear gas: may not be used unless specifically ordered by the operational commander.
May not be used at all in confined spaces or in a stadium.
Rubber bullets (fired from a shotgun): may only be used to disperse a crowd “in extreme circumstances,
if less forceful methods have proven ineffective”.
Sharp ammunition (i.e. live ammo):may not be used
in crowd management.
Stun grenades: Police training manuals state this must never be thrown directly at protesters,
and must be rolled to avoid injury.
Can people take photos of the police?
Yes, they can! Although SAPS members often stop people from taking photos or videos of them, there is no legal restriction on recording police activities. You can read more <here>.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Integer nec odio. Praesent libero. Sed cursus
ante dapibus diam. Sed nisi. Nulla quis sem at nibh elementum imperdiet. Duis sagittis ipsum. Praesent
mauris. Fusce nec tellus sed augue semper porta. Mauris massa. Vestibulum lacinia arcu eget nulla.
The Choice
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Integer nec odio. Praesent libero. Sed cursus
ante dapibus diam.
Sed nisi. Nulla quis sem at nibh elementum imperdiet. Duis sagittis ipsum.
Praesent mauris. Fusce nec tellus sed augue semper porta. Mauris massa. Vestibulum lacinia arcu eget nulla.
Mauris ipsum. Nulla metus metus, ullamcorper vel, tincclassunt sed, euismod in, nibh. Quisque volutpat
condimentum velit. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos
himenaeos. Nam nec ante. Sed lacinia, urna non tincclassunt mattis, tortor neque adipiscing diam, a
cursus ipsum ante quis turpis.