Terrible experience with Ekurhuleni Metro Police

<p> </p> <p>I am writing to file a complaint about the conduct of two of the Ekurhuleni Metro Police. The female officer's name is: Matjila, ML. I did not get the name of her male colleague. On Sep.22nd, at approximately 6PM my friend and I were pulled over just off of Van Riebeeck close to the Edenvale police station. I was informed without a greeting, in an aggressive tone, that I had turned *******ly and would be fined R500. When I asked the officer to explain the violation further and also to get her name and to get clarity at the police station or I would contest the fine, she became increasingly aggressive. I gave her my identity documents which were a New York State US issued license and my passport, and at this point she demanded a traffic register. When I explained that I did not know what that was and that it was a car hired from the airport she said that it did not matter and that I needed to pay the fine immediately since I did not have a register for them to track me. I called the car rental company and asked if the fine could be forwarded to them, but the officer continued to argue with the car rental company representative. I was then told by the representative to just do whatever the officer said so that they would let me go regardless of whether it was correct protocol or not. The officer refused to return my passport and license to me until I followed them to the station, and when I expressed my hesitation since I had a flight to catch, I was told that my friend could pay the fine for me, that I was being disrespectful but ultimately someone needed to pay the fine before I could leave.</p> <p>In essence, while I admit and apologise for any traffic violation committed or for acting defensively, the conduct of both officers was overly aggressive, dismissive and opaque about the legality of forcing me to pay a fine on the spot. Rather than helping me to understand what I had done wrong or trying to listen to why I felt uncomfortable and intimidated, the officers only responded with aggression and asserted their authority, "rightness", and singleminded pursuit of me paying the fine immediately. I believe that incidences such as these unfortunately contribute to the negative public perception of police in the Gauteng area. More and better should be expected of public officials. On a more systemic level, this is not the first negative interaction that I have had with police in the area who have harassed me to check my identification documents on more than one occasion, which I believe is based on my race, as I am of Chinese-American descent. Several friends who look "foreign" have had similar experiences in Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni . This type of racial profiling and xenophobic behaviour is intolerable and should be addressed within the police force immediately.</p> <p>I have great respect for the police as public defenders who uphold the law, protect and serve the public and believe that accountability when officers behave inappropriately can help improve trust between civilians and the police. Thank you.</p> <p>Respectfully,<br />Sophia Pan</p>