Strikes Threaten Schools in South Africa

Industrial action is spreading in South Africa, with nationwide protests and labor strikes showing no sign of ending soon. Production in the mining sector has already been affected as a result of the widespread protests, and demonstrations have also spread to include construction workers and teachers. In the Northern Cape province, some school children have missed about five months of classes because many teachers are on strike, and those who are not stay away out of fear and intimidation. Julius Malema , the expelled leader of the ruling African National Congress' Youth League (ANCYL), has also been accused of inciting the poor and working class to protest. Many South Africans say the ANC has not done enough for the poor since the end of white minority rule in 1994. Al Jazeera's Haru Mutasa reports from Kathu in the Northern Cape.