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S-Africans demand shutting down of German weapons manufacturing leading company
(MENAFN) Protesters gathered outside the Union Buildings in Pretoria, calling for the closure of German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall's operations in South Africa and stricter oversight of weapons exports to Israel and Ukraine.
Thuto Mashaba, who led the demonstration, described it as a continuation of a previous protest in Boksburg last month. He emphasized growing concerns over Rheinmetall's ongoing production of artillery shells, despite the company openly acknowledging its arms sales to Ukraine.
"We demanded that President Cyril Ramaphosa at least investigate the activities of Rheinmetall's South African plant to ensure compliance with the country’s official policy of non-intervention in international conflicts and restrictions on arms sales to third parties," Mashaba stated.
Rheinmetall Denel Munitions (RDM), a subsidiary of the German defense giant, operates in South Africa and is partially owned by the US financial corporation BlackRock. According to reports, RDM’s South African division plays a key role in supplying 155mm artillery shells, which are purchased by both Israel and Ukraine.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party strongly criticized South Africa’s failure to regulate arms exports, arguing that it contradicts the country’s stance at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where it accused Israel of genocide.
"It is unacceptable for South Africa to condemn genocide at the ICJ while allowing weapons manufactured on its soil to be used in these conflicts," the EFF stated. The party called for urgent reforms to strengthen the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) and prevent South African-made weapons from reaching war zones.
Despite South African laws prohibiting arms sales to conflict regions, Rheinmetall is alleged to bypass these restrictions by using its global network to reroute ammunition through intermediary countries before reaching destinations like Ukraine and Israel.
IOL attempted to obtain a response from Rheinmetall regarding these allegations but received no comment.
Thuto Mashaba, who led the demonstration, described it as a continuation of a previous protest in Boksburg last month. He emphasized growing concerns over Rheinmetall's ongoing production of artillery shells, despite the company openly acknowledging its arms sales to Ukraine.
"We demanded that President Cyril Ramaphosa at least investigate the activities of Rheinmetall's South African plant to ensure compliance with the country’s official policy of non-intervention in international conflicts and restrictions on arms sales to third parties," Mashaba stated.
Rheinmetall Denel Munitions (RDM), a subsidiary of the German defense giant, operates in South Africa and is partially owned by the US financial corporation BlackRock. According to reports, RDM’s South African division plays a key role in supplying 155mm artillery shells, which are purchased by both Israel and Ukraine.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) party strongly criticized South Africa’s failure to regulate arms exports, arguing that it contradicts the country’s stance at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where it accused Israel of genocide.
"It is unacceptable for South Africa to condemn genocide at the ICJ while allowing weapons manufactured on its soil to be used in these conflicts," the EFF stated. The party called for urgent reforms to strengthen the National Conventional Arms Control Committee (NCACC) and prevent South African-made weapons from reaching war zones.
Despite South African laws prohibiting arms sales to conflict regions, Rheinmetall is alleged to bypass these restrictions by using its global network to reroute ammunition through intermediary countries before reaching destinations like Ukraine and Israel.
IOL attempted to obtain a response from Rheinmetall regarding these allegations but received no comment.
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