The story of Nathaniel Julius is sad. The 16-year-old boy, who had Down’s Syndrome, was only going outside to buy biscuits when he was shot dead in Johannesburg’s Eldorado Park suburb by three South African police officers.
Julius’ family said he was shot because he was not answering the officers’ questions, but he could not do so due to his disability. However, officers initially said Julius was in the crossfire of a shootout between officers and a local gangster.
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) chose to arrest the officers after “careful consideration of evidence at hand.” The officers will be charged with murder, possession of prohibited ammunition, and “possibly defeating the ends of justice,” said the police watchdog.
Two of the officers, who have been identified as Sergeant SS Ndyalvane and Constable C Whiteboy, were denied bail this week after appearing before the court on Monday. But the case has since been postponed pending further investigation.
After the death of Julius last week, the streets have filled with hundreds of local residents, leading to more violent clashes with police.
The BBC News Daily reports that officers used rubber bullets and stun grenades to disperse the crowd of protesters who have thrown stones and blockaded streets with burning barricades.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has appealed for calm amid the chaos.
But this seems to be an ongoing problem in South Africa, as oftentimes, the police are accused of using excessive force. Security forces have also been accused of killing at least 10 people this year alone as they try to enforce a lockdown imposed by the threat of the spread of the coronavirus.
“There is no evidence of any provocation, and it’s difficult to understand why live ammunition could be used in a community such as this,” Archbishop Malusi Mpumlwana, head of the South African Council of Churches, told local media outside the Julius household.
“We can’t say Black Lives Matter in the United States if we don’t say it in South Africa,” he added.
The story of Nathaniel Julius has echoed around the world, spreading outrage. Even in the United States, where police brutality has been a continuous headlining topic for the past several months.
Sadly, Julius community wants answers and justice, but South Africans are used to being failed by the justice system, despite the number of protests or protesters, or how many times the gruesome stories of violence make local and international news.
