Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma says she has received court papers from the Minister of Police seeking to prevent her and her group from organising or participating in marches, pickets and motorcades.
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In a social media post, Jacinta said the legal action also seeks to prevent them from staging protests and visiting a Department of Home Affairs office.
The development comes ahead of a court appearance scheduled for Friday, where Jacinta has called on supporters to stand behind them as they challenge the matter.
Sharing the news, she said they had received court papers outlining the restrictions being sought against their planned protest activities.
“We just received court papers from the Minister of Police with instructions that we must be interdicted from marching and we must not be allowed to organise a march, picket, motorcade or stage any of them,” she said.
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Calls on supporters to attend court
Jacinta said they would be in court on Friday and appealed to supporters, whom she referred to as patriots, to attend the proceedings.
She accused the Minister of Police and the President of abusing their power and using the courts to undermine their democratic right to protest.
Jacinta’s comments highlight the dispute over the planned protest activities and the restrictions she says are being sought through the legal process.
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Right to protest at the centre of dispute
The matter raises questions about the right to assemble and demonstrate, as well as the legal processes that may be used to regulate public protests.
In South Africa, the right to assemble, demonstrate, picket and present petitions peacefully and unarmed is protected under Section 17 of the Constitution. The exercise of this right is subject to the requirement that gatherings be peaceful and unarmed.
However, the precise scope of the restrictions sought against Jacinta and her group will depend on the court papers and the relief requested by the Minister of Police.
At the time of publication, the full court application, the government’s reasons for seeking the interdict and the Minister of Police’s response to Jacinta’s allegations had not been provided.
The court proceedings on Friday are expected to provide further clarity on the matter.
Featured image: Instagram/@jacintangobese
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