March and March mobiliser Siphelele “Magolide” Shinga has been granted R1,000 bail.
The Durban Magistrate’s Court released Shinga, 40, and his 31-year-old Malizo Dzanibe on R1,000 bail each on Monday.
Movement mobiliser Wandile Nsibande, accused number one, remains in custody until Friday, 16 October.
The three face charges including public violence.
The state accused Shinga, accused number two, of leading the violence and using a wooden stick to attack police officers.
“In fact, accused number two carried a dangerous weapon himself, which he used to assault the police,” the prosecutor told the court.
The state said video footage showed Shinga forcefully shutting down businesses owned by foreign nationals and striking police officers who were standing in formation to protect people and property.
But the court did not view the footage.
“Unfortunately, we left the equipment to view it today,” the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor described the alleged assault as a serious attack on law enforcement.
“It is a huge indictment for a civilian to strike out at a police officer who is doing their job,” the prosecutor said.
The state argued that police had made several attempts to disperse the protesters, but the accused displayed “a belligerent disregard for police and law enforcement”.
“Section 17 of the Constitution protects peaceful and unarmed protest. It does not protect violence. It does not protect intimidation, destruction of property, or deliberate defiance of lawful authority. This case is about the rule of law,” the prosecutor said.
The prosecutor also accused the men of setting an example for their followers by allegedly encouraging unlawful conduct.
“When leaders encourage unlawful conduct to defy the police, this is the state of unrest that results in South Africa,” the prosecutor said.
The state further complained about the accused’s conduct in court, with the magistrate also reprimanding Shinga for making gestures.
“I will reiterate, let us stop making gestures,” the magistrate said.
The prosecution opposed bail, arguing that the accused were likely to reoffend and that their release could undermine public confidence in the justice system.
The magistrate rejected the state’s arguments, noting that neither man had a criminal record or previous brushes with the law.
He cautioned against using the strength of the state’s case as a reason to keep accused people in custody before trial.
“The court cannot overemphasise the strength of the state case to such an extent that it refuses bail as a form of anticipatory punishment,” he said.
The magistrate found no evidence that the two men would abscond, commit further offences or interfere with witnesses.
Shinga’s lawyer, told the court that his client worked as an occupational staff nurse at a Psychiatric Hospital, where he had been employed for more than five years.
He earns R15,000 a month and has four children, the court heard.
Shinga’s legal representative said that Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma would pay Shinga’s bail.
The second accused, who was represented by Mr Zulu. He is unemployed and has six children and survives on piece jobs.
As part of the bail conditions, the two men may not intimidate or confront government officials or foreign nationals.
The state had also asked the court to prohibit them from going within 500 metres of any Home Affairs office.
But the defence objected to the proposed restriction, arguing that it would unfairly limit their access to government services.
“These people are South Africans. They’ve got a lot of things that they need to do at Home Affairs. They cannot be restrained from going to Home Affairs. They’ve got the right to use South African resources,” the lawyer said.
The case returns to court on Friday, 16 October.
Shinga was arrested on Saturday after police accused him of threatening to shut down the MTN8 final at Moses Mabhida Stadium.
The arrest comes amid escalating unrest in Durban, where 14 vehicles were torched, two houses set alight and shops looted last week. The South African National Defence Force has since been deployed to the city.
The protests followed a Constitutional Court ruling in July that asylum seekers could not be turned away solely because of procedural issues or illegal entry.
