S/AFRICA: President Zuma brands protesters ”racists”

South African President Jacob Zuma has branded protesters calling for his resignation “racists”, saying they held placards that were derogatory about black people. Thousands of people took to the streets after he sacked the finance minister. The latest protests were organised by the opposition Democratic Alliance which some see as white dominated. In his first […]

South African President Jacob Zuma has branded protesters calling for his resignation “racists”, saying they held placards that were derogatory about black people.

Thousands of people took to the streets after he sacked the finance minister.

The latest protests were organised by the opposition Democratic Alliance which some see as white dominated.

In his first public response to the protests, Zuma said they “demonstrated that racism is real” in South Africa.

“Many placards and posters displayed beliefs that we thought had been buried in 1994, with some posters depicting black people as baboons,” the president said.

“It is clear that some of our white compatriots regard black people as being lesser human beings or sub-human.”

A mixed racial profile of people attended the rallies. Police said about 60,000 people took part in the marches in the major cities.