A South African court granted 22 people accused of instigating deadly violence on bail. The riots last year, saw more than 40,000 businesses ransacked, homes torched and facilities vandalised.
The charges against the July rioters include looting and public violence that took place in parts of KwaZulu-Natal in July 2021.
More than 300 people were killed in the unrest that erupted after South Africa’s former president, Jacob Zuma, was jailed for contempt of court.
Suspects who have been charged with conspiracy to commit public violence, incitement to commit public violence and incitement to commit arson where granted bail at just over $180.
Among the bail conditions for the July rioters, was a warning not to post any information about the case on social media.
The suspects were arrested after investigators carried out an extensive perusal of their online posts.
While more than 5,000 people have been arrested in connection with last year’s violence, authorities have been under pressure because of low number of prosecutions.
In July, the government said that around 50 cases had resulted in guilty verdicts, with thousands resolved through non-prosecution.
South Africa is still trying to recover from the economic choke estimated at close to $4 Billion.
At the time South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa condemned the violence as an “attempted insurrection”. The case will resume on August 26.
