Durban - Social media played a considerable role in perpetuating the violence and thieving that went on for eight days in July last year and some alleged instigators were never charged.
Former president Jacob Zuma’s daughter, Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, was counted among those who celebrated and encouraged the violence through social media while the ANC and EFF were highly criticised for allegedly fuelling racial intolerance by popularising the hashtag #PhoenixMassacre on their online platforms.
This week KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi agreed that social media fuelled the criminality.
He said when he recommended that it be temporarily shut down, to thwart the plans of looters and criminals, his superiors did not respond.
The looting, violence and arson led to the deaths of more than 300 people and the province was left at least R20 billion poorer, with an estimated 150 000 people jobless.
Mkhwanazi told another publication that he wanted a state of emergency declared at the time, in order for specific communication towers to be shut down.
He said cutting WhatsApp group chats and Twitter in specific areas, where some of the planning and incitement happened, would have brought them under control and prevented some of the destruction.
Mkhwanazi singled out Zuma-Sambudla, saying he would have taken her to court. The Digital Forensics Research Lab found that Zuma-Sombudla’s account received most of the engagement by posting images that celebrated the violence.
Jean le Roux, research associate at the Digital Forensics Research Lab, said the former president’s daughter was taking photographs and videos of the looting and arson, captioning them “Amandla” and “we see you” with attached fist emojis.
“What this does is create the impression that there is support for violence, almost an urging to continue and that the people who are doing that are being appreciated.” He said when the looting started, most social media accounts were celebrating after the fact.
Planning and co-ordination were not done publicly but through social media posts via WhatsApp and Telegram channels.
The true impact of social media on the violence seen in both KZN and Gauteng will never be completely known, as measuring how many people saw the posts was impossible.
A probe into the unrest by a team of experts appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa found the use of social media by various networks to instigate the violence and to organise themselves to commit violence was extensive.
Twitter, WhatsApp, Facebook and other media were an easy way of spreading news about what was happening or about to happen.
“In organising to defend themselves, communities and even businesses used the same methods,” read the report. “It was fast, inexpensive and efficient.
One problem is that social media is also a way of spreading false information, rumours, and sowing panic.”
The report stated that the ringleaders of the violence remained faceless to the public, and made no attempts to come forward and claim responsibility for the acts of violence.
The SA Bureau of Standards (SABS) now provides guidance on the use of social media during an emergency or crisis.
The standard underwent a public enquiry process, which was adopted and published as a South African National Standard in June. Jodi Scholtz, the SABS’s lead administrator, said social media had the potential to deliver information to large groups of people quickly; however, there was also the risk that if it is not managed correctly, it could cause more harm.
“Coupled with the risk of fake news and misinformation, there has been an increased use of social media channels in the last few years,” she said. “With the recent floods in KZN, the July 2021 riots and national state of disaster during Covid-19, the sharing of authentic information can save lives.”
SUNDAY TRIBUNE