Members of community organisations and trade unions in Cape Town gathered on Tuesday to demonstrate against American President George Bush's visit to South Africa.
A small group of protesters used the opportunity to attack Bush's administration for trying to control small and developing countries.
Organisations, including the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), Anti-War Coalition, African Christian Democratic Party and the Police and Prison Civil Rights Union (Popcru) demonstrated in front of the United States embassy on Tuesday.
In their demands the organisations called for an immediate end to America's economic blockade of Cuba.
Tony Ehrenreich of Cosatu said: "We are disgusted at the US government's 44-year-long economic blockade, which continues to hold the Cuban people to ransom for their unwavering support of their revolution and their socialist political and economic system.
He criticised US economic policies and interests that pushed governments to adopt economic policies that were good for the US, rather than for their own countries.
South African Communist Party provincial secretary Lawrence Maduma said Bush was not coming to represent the poor, but as a "capitalist" and to project America as a superpower.
"The working class in America and Iraq are suffering. If he was interested in the working class, he would have started in his own country. He still owes the world an explanation for why he killed innocent Iraqis," he said.
Shaheed Mahomed of the Anti-War Coalition referred to Bush's visit as a "hoax" and called for its cancellation. He expressed disappointment with the South African government for welcoming the visit.
"The invasion of Iraq shows that the US monopolies have no respect for the lives of Iraqis, nor of US soldiers."
Mahomed criticised the South African Anti-Terrorism Bill, which he said threatened human rights.
Memorandums were submitted to the embassy's administration officer, Jackie Adams.