ANC struggles to rein in its rabble-rousing youth chief

South African police fired stun grenades, water cannons and rubber bullets yesterday at thousands of stone-throwing supporters of Julius Malema, the leader of the ANC’s youth league, who was appearing at a disciplinary hearing accused of bringing the party into disrepute.

After the day of sporadic violence, which saw Malema supporters burning the African National Congress flag and calling for the removal of president Jacob Zuma, ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe announced the hearing was being moved to a secret location to avoid further disruption to what is the country’s economic capital.

Mr Mantashe said the violence was the worst the ANC HQ had seen since 1994 when several people were killed during a march on the building by supporters of the Zulu-based Inkatha Freedom Party.

Earlier yesterday, Malema, 30, urged his followers to be peaceful after they had burned the green, black and gold ANC flag and T-shirts carrying images of Zuma and other party leaders.

Malema told supporters they should show restraint, respect the ANC leadership and not burn party flags and hurl rocks. “We must exercise restraint,” he said. He also said journalists should not be harmed. “You must know who is the enemy,” he said before he was drowned out by youth league members shouting: “Zuma is the enemy”.

The hearing follows the youth league’s calls for the overthrow of the government of neighbouring Botswana, accusing president Ian Khama of co-operating with “imperialists” and undermining “the African agenda.”

Analysts say the disciplinary hearing is a pretext to help ANC leaders get rid of populists such as Malema, who has demanded nationalisation of South Africa’s mines and appropriation of white-owned farm land for black peasants, an agenda many say is designed to benefit Malema and his cronies.

If found guilty of sowing discord in party ranks at the hearing – his second disciplinary hearing in just over a year – the youth leader could be suspended from the party for several years.

The disciplinary panel is led by senior ANC member Derek Hanekom and includes mines minister Susan Shabangu, who opposes nationalisation.

ANC guerrillas have also condemned the violence.

“We who have fought against apartheid take a stand that we shall never allow our country to slip into the dark days of war,” the Umkhonto we Sizwe veterans groups said.

“Zuma must go!” the protesters chanted, angry over the disciplining of Malema and Zuma’s failure to fulfil election promises to address growing inequality and poverty in South Africa, which despite being an economic powerhouse has massive unemployment among young people.

The support of Malema and his youth league was instrumental in getting Zuma elected party president in December 2007, dumping Thabo Mbeki. Protesting youth leaguers threatened to do the same to Mr Zuma at the 2012 ANC congress.

“In 2012 we are voting Mbalula,” they chanted, referring to former youth league president and sports minister Fikile Mbalula. Whoever wins the party presidency gets to run for president. Seventeen years after winning the fight against apartheid, the ANC dominates politics.

The South African Communist Party, an ally of the ANC, said the protesters were trying to blackmail Mr Zuma and condemned “those who are clandestinely supporting this agenda”.

ANC spokesman Jackson Mtethu accused youth league leaders of mobilising the protesters and said they “should also take full responsibility for the [resulting] violence, criminality and ill-discipline.”