Police had their hands full when more than a hundred angry people started rioting near Pietermaritz street in Pietermaritzburg this evening.
Although we cannot guarantee the fact, it most certainly resembled recent Xenophobic attacks that have been occurring around the country in the last months. ER24 paramedics who were on the scene, said that the crowd was large and angry. Initially the paramedics treated three Ethiopian males, who had sustained minor superficial stab wounds to their necks and backs. It also appeared that they did not want any medical treatment, but wanted to rather return to the angry mob to continue fighting for their rights. After the paramedics spoke to the men, they reluctantly agreed to be taken to hospital for further assessment. Their wounds were bandaged and they were loaded into the ambulance.
Before the ambulance left the scene, paramedics were sent another patient. This time a South African woman, who had sustained minor injury to her elbow after rocks had allegedly been thrown at her. She too was patched up and loaded into the ambulance for transport to hospital.
One of the Ethiopian men said that a fight had started in the community when his brother’s car had been vandalised for no apparent reason, and this had sparked the bigger crown of people getting involved, and things turned more violent.
The local Police as well as K9 units were on scene to attempt to calm and disperse the angry crowd.
Vanessa Jackson
ER24
