Johannesburg – Police Minister Bheki Cele was urged to clarify that he was not apologetic for the arrest of Muslin worshippers gathering illegally as this led to rising conflict with other religious denominations.
complaints arose when the public asked why he would apologise to the Muslim community whereas arrests were made had been made on Christian worshippers and traditional followers for gathering against lockdown rules and no apologies were made for that.
The minister clarified that no religious denomination is above the law and that Muslims were not receiving preferential treatment.
“If they or any other religious group host another gathering, police will arrest them again without being blasphemous in executing their duties. This cuts across all gatherings, be they religious, cultural or otherwise,” the office of the minister said in a statement.
The arrest of the 24 Muslim worshippers was captured on video by another police officer, and it went viral on social media. In the video police officers can be heard making remarks about “Muhammad”.
Cele merely apologised for the manner in which the Islamic religion was disrespected during the arrest.
