Mass strike brings South Africa to a halt
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Tens of thousands of workers staged marches in towns across South Africa yesterday, protesting against job losses in a general strike that could cost billions of pounds in lost trade.
The one-day strike was organised by the umbrella Congress of South African Unions (Cosatu), which is demanding an end to mounting job losses. Cosatu estimates one million jobs were lost in the past decade. The manufacturing industry was hit by the lowering of trade protection barriers after the country rejoined world trade bodies in 1994.
The protests were largely peaceful, marred only by a clash outside Durban, where police fired tear gas to disperse a mob of people who were stoning cars. Joel Netshitenzhe, a government spokesman, said mass action could not create jobs. Kgalema Motlanthe of the African National Congress said the strike was a last resort after talks with the National Economic Development and Labour Council had failed to address concerns.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments