SA Police fire rubber bullets at shoppers who defied lockdown order

Several South African were forcefully dispersed with rubber bullets on Saturday by police officers for defying the coronavirus lockdown order given by the president.

AS of March 28, the country has recorded a total of 1,170 coronavirus cases with just one death, according to Worldometer.

President Cyril Ramaphosa initiated the lockdown to curb the spread of the deadly virus that has killed over 28,000 people out of 617,288 infections across the world.

An AFP photographer said revealed that between 200 and 300 people gathered outside a popular grocery store, Shoprite, early Saturday in Yeoville, a crime-prone area in Johannesburg’s gritty central business district on day two of a nationwide lockdown.

Police arrived in 10 patrol vehicles and started firing rubber bullets towards the shoppers.

Startled shoppers trampled on each other and a woman with a baby on her back fell to the ground.

Later the police used whips to get the shoppers to observe social distancing rules.

(AFP)