President Cyril Ramaphosa will in his State of Nation Address on Thursday outline government’s response to the findings and recommendations made in the report into the July unrest by an expert panel.

On Monday Ramaphosa authorised the release of the report to the public.

The unrest took place in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal after former President Jacob Zuma was sentenced to 15 months in jail on July 8 for snubbing the State capture inquiry. The protests widened into grievances over longstanding poverty and inequality. The unrest resulted in the deaths of about 340 people. 

The panel was appointed by Ramaphosa in August and consists of Professor Sandy Africa as chairperson, as well as Advocate Mojanku Gumbi and Silumko Sokupa.

The panel was tasked to lead a thorough and critical review of the security services’ preparedness for the July events and was mandated to examine all aspects of the security response and to make recommendations on how to strengthen security capabilities.

Last Friday Ramaphosa tabled the report at a meeting of the National Security Council.

The Presidency said the Council welcomed the report and its insights.