Tobacco body accuses cops of ‘unlawful raids, manhandling workers’

Picture for illustration. A man is stopped in the street by South African Police Service officers in Hillbrow, Johannesburg, on Saturday during a joint operation between the Saps and the South African National Defence Force to enforce a national lockdown to help curb the spread of the coronavirus. Picture: AFP

The Fair-trade Independent Tobacco Association has released a strongly worded statement, condemning SAPS members for allegedly threatening, manhandling and handcuffing workers at two of its member factories.Fita did not say where the alleged abuses took place, but said it was “investigating the matters, including reviewing CCTV footage and obtaining witness statements and will register the necessary complaints against those responsible”.

“Just as worrying is the fact that it is well known that the State recently raided a multinational tobacco manufacturer in a manner very different to how today’s incidents have played out. It clearly smacks of different treatment for multinationals vis-a-vis local manufacturers reminiscent of conduct by law enforcement agents which was the subject of complaints by FITA members in years gone by.

“In the course of this, some employees of the affected FITA members were inter alia threatened, handcuffed and man-handled, and some had their personal belongings removed from their persons in the most heavy-handed ways imaginable. In addition, following the above-mentioned conduct by members of the SAPS, no charges or arrests flowed from these unsolicited actions.

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