The horrific turn of events involving Olympic and Para Olympic star Oscar Pistorious this week, has thrown the issue of gun crime in South Africa back into the spot light. It is a stark reminder of the current situation, despite the South African government’s effort to limit private fire arm ownership. The country still lives with a huge problem with up to 6 million guns known to be held by members of the public – or 12% of the population.
Anti-gun groups say that domestic shootings remain an inevitable outcome of allowing gun ownership. “For many South Africans having a gun in the home is about protecting them against the stranger intruder; but data both in South Africa and elsewhere, shows that you are four times more likely to have a gun used against you than to be able to use it successfully in self-defence,” said Adèle Kirsten, spokeswoman for the anti-gun group Gun Free South Africa (GFSA).
Murders of women by their partners are a particular problem in South Africa. An estimated 3 women a day are shot dead by their partners. A clear demonstration of how destructive having so many weapons freely available can be.
Despite a reported 28% downturn in criminality and a 55% drop in murder rates, it would appear that the public are reluctant to buy in to these figures, and are opting to have their own drastic contingency plans.
Following a victims of crime survey, 6 out of 10 South African households feared burglary more than any other crime. This has resulted in escalating numbers of individuals and whole communities investing in the employment of private security firms to protect their homes and families. This is a sad reflection of the lack of faith in official law enforcement agencies, who are dogged with reputations for corruption and internal criminal activity.
This will be a devastating blow to the South African government, having successfully hosted the 2010 football World Cup with very few problems regarding criminal activity. The news of one of their highest profile sports stars hitting the headlines will be a massive step backwards in their campaign to promote the countries progression.
