Misrepresented video circulating Durban, South Africa, questioned for factual accuracy
In recent times, a viral video has circulated on various platforms, portraying scenes of chaos and looting in Durban, South Africa. The video has been amplified by figures like Alex Jones and Elon Musk, suggesting that these events are a direct consequence of post-apartheid governance and the end of "White Oppression." However, a closer look at the facts reveals a different story.
The video, it turns out, is not a recent recording. A reverse image search reveals that it had already circulated on X and Facebook in 2021. The footage captures a moment during a period of unrest in South Africa, but it is not a reflection of the current situation.
The unrest was sparked by a specific event: the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma. Zuma had been sentenced to 15 months in prison for failing to comply with a Constitutional Court order to testify before a commission investigating corruption during his presidency. His arrest and the subsequent protests, riots, and looting resulted in over 300 deaths, primarily in KwaZulu-Natal (including Durban).
Dhanaraj Thakur, a researcher at the Center for Democracy and Technology, warns that such narratives don't spread by accident and don't target just one country. He sees this as part of a larger campaign with many different actors sharing similar kinds of messages.
Juliet Nanfuka, a digital rights researcher at the Collaboration on International ICT Policy in East and Southern Africa (CIPESA), has expressed concern about the undercurrent of racial tensions and glorification of the apartheid system in such disinformation. She notes a big pushback in the comments following the viral video, with South Africans and non-South Africans trying to correct the narrative.
The 2021 unrest has been exploited by several accounts known for spreading discriminatory content and disinformation. Similar narratives against people of color and religious minorities living in Europe have been seen by fact-checkers last year.
Keegan Leech, a fact-checker at Africa Check, stated that it is easy to misrepresent South Africa because many international audiences don't know much about the country. He urges for a deeper understanding of the complex mix of factors that led to the unrest, including political grievances, economic hardship, high youth unemployment, political disillusionment particularly with the ruling African National Congress (ANC), and criminal opportunism.
In the US context, the post is about the politics around immigration, and the idea that certain groups are supposedly incapable of governing or managing public services. The viral post presents Durban as a cautionary tale, warning Western countries of potential chaos if they undergo comparable political or social changes.
However, it's crucial to remember that the unrest in 2021 was not a result of a simplistic narrative of "White Oppression" ending, but a complex mix of factors unique to South Africa's post-apartheid challenges. The false claim about recent lootings being a direct consequence of post-apartheid governance and the end of "White Oppression" is rooted in a deliberate misrepresentation of events.
In conclusion, the false claim distorts a complex socio-political crisis rooted in South Africa’s ongoing struggles with governance, corruption, economic disparity, and political factionalism, turning it into a misleading, simplistic narrative exploited by conspiracy-promoting personalities. The unrest captured in the viral footage relates specifically to 2021, not current events, and must be understood within the full historical and social context of South Africa’s post-apartheid challenges.
- The viral video, originally from 2021, depicting chaos and looting in Durban, South Africa, has been circulating on various international platforms, including social-media and general-news outlets.2.tech guru Elon Musk and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones have been among those amplifying the video, suggesting that the events portrayed are a direct consequence of post-apartheid governance and the end of "White Oppression."
- However, the footage was not a recent recording, as a reverse image search revealed it had already circulated on X and Facebook in 2021.
- The unrest depicted in the video was sparked by the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma for failing to comply with a Constitutional court order to testify before a commission investigating corruption during his presidency.
- The subsequent protests, riots, and looting resulted in over 300 deaths, primarily in KwaZulu-Natal (including Durban).
- Researchers Dhanaraj Thakur and Juliet Nanfuka have expressed concern about the racial tensions and the glorification of the apartheid system in such disinformation, noting that similar narratives targeting people of color and religious minorities living in Europe have been prevalent in previous fact-checks.
- In the US context, the post is about the politics around immigration, using Durban as a cautionary tale warning Western countries of potential chaos if they undergo comparable political or social changes, but this oversimplified narrative distorts the complex socio-political challenges that South Africa continues to face post-apartheid.
