Government warns of zero tolerance for people behaving badly on social media ahead of elections

The government on Sunday warned it would be keeping a close eye on social media and would not hesitate to take action against any person who dares to post threats and instigate violence ahead of the national elections next month. 

In a joint press conference presented by ministers from the justice, crime [prevention, and security cluster, defence and military veterans minister Thandi Modise said: “Sharing false, unverified information, rumours or threats online or in person can have serious consequences.

“It can incite violence, confuse voters and undermine the democratic process. Individuals who use social media and electronic platforms to send threatening messages, incite violence or cause harm to others will be charged

“When an individual creates a video or shares a post to the public and where the post contains words, speech or conduct that may encourage others to commit public violence, the aforementioned post will make one guilty of the offence of inciting public violence and police will not hesitate to track the person down and hold you accountable.” 

Modise also called on political leaders to show caution with the type of messages they conveyed to their supporters on public platforms.

“Do not make inflammatory or threatening statements as you will be breaking the law and may also encourage others to carry out criminal activities,” she said.

She also called on the public to exercise caution as they shared information, saying they should be extra vigilant in sharing posts which may be fake news. She urged the public to report any inflammatory statements to law enforcement. 

Officials said with just 30 days left before the general elections, they were on track to ensure there were no disruptions on the day.

“As the JCPS cluster leadership, we want to send a clear message to the public that no incitement to violence, lawlessness, destruction of infrastructure, or barricading of roads will be tolerated. Anyone who participates in any form of criminal activity will be dealt with,” said Modise.

She and police minister Bheki Cele said while communities were allowed to take to the streets in protest to voice their grievances, these would only be allowed to happen within the confines of the law and should not infringe on the rights of other citizens.

No-one was allowed to intimidate or block someone from exercising their rights to vote, they said. Cele said police were out in full force, monitoring the different police districts. Out of 23,000 policing districts, 500 were regarded as high risk. These were mainly in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape with a few in Mpumalanga and the Free State. 

A protocol has been established between the police, courts and National Prosecuting Authority to prioritise all election-related crimes.

“Prosecutors stand ready to prosecute offences such as electoral fraud and corruption, removing or defacing political party and campaign posters, interfering with the duties of the electoral officials, forcing anyone to vote,” said Modise.

“We urge members of the public to report any crime related to elections to the nearest police station or IEC offices.” 

Home affairs minister Aaron Motsoaledi said since the beginning of April, they had received 105,000 new ID applications and of these, 30,00 had already been collected. 

All home affairs offices would remain open for as long as polling stations are open on voting day. They would be able to provide temporary identification certificates to people who may find themselves without their IDs on the day of elections. 

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