Concerns Raised About the Involvement of the Military in Policing Operations in South Africa

This briefing by the Institute for Security Studies examines the legal and constitutional concerns surrounding the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) in support of the South African Police Service (SAPS) during the 2011/2012 festive season policing operations.

• The deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) during the 2011/2012 festive season policing operations reportedly involved incidents of excessive force and inappropriate military presence. Examples include a soldier beating a shop owner with a rifle butt during a joint operation in Johannesburg, the use of armoured vehicles to monitor a small protest at Khayelitsha District Hospital, and soldiers participating in the burning of a marijuana plantation in Soweto.
• The use of the military for routine policing operations contradicts the White Paper on Defence, which stipulates that the SANDF should only support the SAPS in "the most exceptional circumstances," such as a state of national defence or a total breakdown of public order. The document notes that military personnel are not trained or equipped for policing, which can lead to repression and a loss of public legitimacy.
• There are concerns that the 2011/2012 festive season deployment violated the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. Section 201 requires the President to authorize the employment of the defence force in cooperation with police and to promptly inform Parliament of the reasons, location, number of people involved, and the expected period. The briefing highlights that 'President’s Minute No 374/2011' was signed on 12 December 2011, despite the employment having begun on 1 November 2011.
• Section 20(1) of the Defence Act (No. 42 of 2002) grants SANDF members the same powers and duties as SAPS members (excluding crime investigation) when employed in cooperation with police. The briefing argues these policing powers are unnecessary and potentially dangerous without proper training, suggesting that section 20 should be amended to limit the military to support-only powers.

APA

Burger, J. (n.d.). Concerns Raised About the Involvement of the Military in Policing Operations in South Africa. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/concerns-raised-about-the-involvement-of-the-military-in-policing-operations-in-south-africa

Chicago

Burger, Johan. Concerns Raised About the Involvement of the Military in Policing Operations in South Africa. Institute for Security Studies, n.d. https://issafrica.org/iss-today/concerns-raised-about-the-involvement-of-the-military-in-policing-operations-in-south-africa.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Burger |first1=Johan |title=Concerns Raised About the Involvement of the Military in Policing Operations in South Africa |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |url=https://issafrica.org/iss-today/concerns-raised-about-the-involvement-of-the-military-in-policing-operations-in-south-africa |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{burgerndconcerns, author = {Burger, Johan}, title = {{Concerns Raised About the Involvement of the Military in Policing Operations in South Africa}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.org/iss-today/concerns-raised-about-the-involvement-of-the-military-in-policing-operations-in-south-africa}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }