South African Police Resort to Apartheid-Era Torture Tactics Three Decades Post-Apartheid

Tue Oct 21 2025 03:36:21 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

A shocking investigation reveals that South African police continue to employ notorious torture methods akin to those used during apartheid, despite the country's constitutional commitment to human rights.

An analysis by The New York Times has uncovered that, over 30 years after apartheid ended, police in South Africa still utilize suffocation techniques, known as tubing, when interrogating suspects. This revelation raises serious concerns over the commitment of the government, formed by liberation leaders, to protect human rights.

During the harsh days of apartheid, South Africa's police force, primarily composed of white officers, inflicted terror upon Black communities using various brutal interrogation techniques, including suffocation with plastic bags. Following the end of apartheid, the country adopted a constitution that firmly prohibits such inhumane practices and embraced international agreements aimed at preventing torture.

However, a recent investigation by The New York Times, conducted in collaboration with Viewfinder—a South African nonprofit organization focused on journalism related to police misconduct—has revealed a troubling continuity of these practices. From 2012 to 2023, an astonishing average of three torture complaints were filed weekly, alleging that police used the suffocation method known as tubing during suspect interrogations.

This alarming trend starkly contradicts ideals upheld by a government once heralded as a champion of freedom, led by veterans of the African National Congress (ANC) who fought for the rights of all South Africans. Khulu Mbatha, a long-time ANC activist, expressed his dismay upon learning about the findings, recalling the leadership's promise in 1994: “No soul should be subjected to that.”

As South Africa grapples with one of the world's highest murder rates, the country now faces an urgent question: how to balance the need for effective policing with the protection of human rights. The persistence of abusive practices within its police force serves as a poignant reminder of how far the nation has yet to journey in eradicating the remnants of its oppressive past.