The confrontation between police and traders on the streets of Johannesburg last week reveals the best, and worst, of policing in South Africa.

Last week’s incident in Jeppe Street in the Johannesburg CBD, in which a large group of traders attacked a SAPS and Metro Police contingent, has created consternation for two reasons.

On the one hand, many people were disturbed by the level of lawlessness and apparent open contempt for authority, evoked by images of a large crowd surging towards police vehicles, throwing bricks, and other projectiles (the police claim that these included petrol bombs, though these are not visible on any of the online videos).

Gauteng Community Safety MEC Faith Mazibuko issued a statement condemning “criminal elements hellbent on undermining the rule of law in this country and making this country ungovernable.”

There is also concern about the fact, shown very clearly in some footage, that police vehicles were retreating in the face of the advancing crowd. For some this was evidence of intensifying chaos, of police losing control, and of impending anarchy. As eNCA presenter Vuyo Mvoko expressed it, this seemed to imply that the police are “inappropriately restrained” and members of the public are increasingly free…