South Africans demand closure of German arms manufacturing giant

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Protests have been organized in Pretoria against Rheinmetall over weapon sales to Israel and Ukraine

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A group of demonstrators braved the rainy weather to picket outside the Union Buildings in Pretoria demanding the closure of the Rheinmetall in South Africa and more control over arms sales to Israel and Ukraine.

According to Thuto Mashaba, who led the protest this week, stated this was a continuation of the picket in Boksburg last month, which protested Rheinmetall’s supply of weapons to Israel and Ukraine.

Although the German armaments firm has publicly acknowledged that it supplies weapons to Ukraine, he underlined that activists are extremely concerned that it is still producing artillery shells.

”We demanded that President Cyril Ramaphosa at the very least check the activities of the Rheinmetall plant for compliance with South Africa’s official policy of not intervening in international conflicts or supplying arms to third countries,” Mashaba said.

BlackRock, a US financial corporation, holds the majority of shares in Rheinmetall Denel Munitions (RDM), a multinational arms manufacturer headquartered in Germany with operations in South Africa.

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According to the company’s recent report, the German military’s inventories are being reduced as a result of massive armament sales to Israel and Ukraine.

RDM’s South African division is a major supplier of 155mm ammunition. Israel and Ukraine both purchase weaponry from Rheinmetall’s South African facility.

The US Department of Defense recently announced that South Africa is a member of the Ukraine Defence Contact Support Group (UDCG).

Notwithstanding South African regulations that forbid gun manufacturers from delivering their goods to areas of conflict, this activity is taking place.

In a recent statement, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) said for the war in the Ukraine where artillery stockpile shortages have been replenished by South African sales.

”As a consequence of our dismal lack of arms control and failure to adhere to our domestic law and regulations, as well as international arms control regulations, we are guilty of enabling genocide.

“The EFF demands that the South African government must, as a matter of urgency, reform our weak, and administratively inept approach to weapons exports, and strengthen the capacity of the NCACC to fulfil its legal mandate,” the EFF said.

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The red berets said it is simply untenable for South Africa to state in the ICJ that Israel is committing genocide, while weapons manufactured in South Africa supply Israel with the means to commit genocide.

It is currently alleged that Rheinmetall circumvents South Africa’s stringent export regulations by using its international network to divert ammunition from the factory to conflict areas after it is formally sold to Germany or other nations.

IOL tried to get a comment from Rheinmetall but to no avail.

First published by IOL