Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, who is a member of parliament, was released on warning β which is similar to bail without money needing to be put down β while her case was moved to a higher court to continue in March. Her lawyer said she did make social media posts on what was then known as Twitter related to the riots in July but denied they incited violence. The riots, which were sparked by Jacob Zuma being sent to prison for contempt of court for refusing to testify at an inquiry into widespread government corruption during the time he was president from , were some of the worst civil unrest South Africa has seen since the end of the apartheid system of white minority rule in For more than a week, angry mobs engaged in widespread looting of shops and warehouses, arson and destruction of property and more than 5, people were arrested.
The disorder and violence caught authorities unprepared and left South Africa uneasy after three largely peaceful decades since apartheid ended. Zuma-Sambudla, 42, was accused of urging protesters to cause more damage during the riots as a sign of support for her father. Police said she handed herself in at a police station in the eastern city of Durban on Thursday morning. The investigation into her involvement in the riots was conducted by a special police unit that deals with serious and organized crime, known as the Hawks.
The unit had taken so long to gather evidence because of the complexities of the case and the need for social media specialists, prosecutors said. Thandi Mbambo said. Prosecutors said Zuma-Sambudla faces charges of incitement to commit terrorism and incitement to commit public violence under a law that deals with threats to the state.
While Jacob Zuma's arrest was believed to be the only catalyst for the riots, a later investigation found that they were also partly spurred by frustration and poverty at a time South Africa was under harsh lockdowns because of the COVID pandemic. The prosecution of Zuma-Sambudla is likely to stoke political tensions in South Africa amid an ongoing feud between Zuma and Ramaphosa.
South African media reported a strong police presence at the courthouse in Durban β where Zuma has large support β and a police helicopter hovered overhead. Zuma, 82, was also in court, while supporters of a new political party he now leads after his expulsion from the African National Congress gathered outside. His MK Party said the charges against Zuma-Sambudla, a senior party official, were politically motivated to try and weaken what is now South Africa's main opposition.
