OCALA, Fla. — An Ocala woman is concerned about her loved ones in South Africa as violence and destruction take over parts of the country.
What You Need To Know
- Riots erupted in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal
- The riots were instigated purportedly by supporters of former South African President Jacob Zuma, who began serving a prison sentence for contempt of court
- Kim Van Der Walt, an Ocala resident, says her South African family has not left their home since the riot started; concerns now about food shortages
- At least 215 people died in the rioting; more than 2,500 were arrested
- RELATED:
The violence erupted last week in KwaZulu-Natal, hometown of former president Jacob Zuma, who began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court, for refusing to testify at an inquiry investigating possible corruption while he was president.
Born and raised in South Africa, it’s horrifying and sad for Kim Van Der Walt to see the destruction and violence in her home country.
“It’s heartbreaking. This is a beautiful country and it’s got so much to offer and in the blink of an eye — everything’s changed,” said Van Der Walt.
All over the province of KwaZulu-Natal, there are burned-out stores and debris scattered about the streets from looters and rioters. So far, dozens of people have been killed during the unrest.
Now living in Ocala, most concerning for Kim is her parents, sister, in-laws and many friends who live in that area.
“You start worrying something is going to happen to someone that’s very dear to you while it’s all going on. Yeah, it’s pretty scary,” said Van Der Walt.
Kim said her family hasn’t left the house in days and there are shortages of life’s necessities, which includes food.
“There’s concern whether they’re going to be able to get enough food to survive for however long it takes — it’s a worry,” said Van Der Walt.
Francois Rodgers is the leader of the Democratic Alliance in Kwazulu-Natal, which is the opposition to the ruling party.
“We’ve seen over the past six days absolute anarchy in the province of KwaZulu-Natal,” said Rodgers.
He said the scale of destruction in the province is unreal.
“Our government, either they didn’t want to deal with the crisis or they didn’t have the necessary capabilities to deal with the crisis, and the police were absolutely outnumbered on the ground,” said Rodgers.
He said now the government is sending in thousands of troops to try and quell the unrest. And with more boots on the ground, Rodgers said he's already seen a difference in the situation's severity.
Rodgers said an impending crisis for the area is food insecurity. He said the unrest has cut off the supply chain and it’s critical they quickly get it back up and running before people go hungry.
“They are in dire straights there. They do need help,” said Van Der Walt.