A Solidarity Initiative
AfriForum congratulated members of the now disbanded Scorpions unit on the role they played in ensuring the conviction and sentencing of the former Police Commissioner, Jackie Selebi. Selebi was sentenced to15 years’ imprisonment today.
Continue reading ‘Selebi sentence: Congratulations, but are similar cases likely to follow?’
Reinstatement of specialist units needed to apprehend violent criminals – Solidarity
Solidarity member ambushed, executed on his way to work
The trade union Solidarity today again emphasized that the specialist units such as the former Murder and Robbery Unit of the South African Police Service need to be reinstated so that violent criminals such as those responsible for the cold-blooded murder this morning of a Solidarity member, Mr Koos Daffeu, can be apprehended.
AfriForum says the recent arrest of seven rhino poaching suspects, all from Vietnam, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, once again is proof that good border control is essential.
Continue reading ‘Government should discuss rhino poaching with other countries’
According to AfriForum, the disbanding of specialist police units is partly to blame for the increase in rhino poaching. The former Endangered Species Protection Unit was disbanded together with the other police special units. According to media reports, 126 rhinos have already been slaughtered this year. That is six more than the total number of 120 rhinos poached during 2009.
Continue reading ‘Disbanding of specialist units partly to blame for increased rhino poaching’
Lock Pepe up, demands Solidarity Helping Hand who launched a campaign today in order to mobilise thousands of South Africans to prevent a serial rapist and murderer from being released on bail again.
Alleged rapist Jakobus September, known as Pepe, will appear in the Riversdal Magistrate’s Court on 28 June on yet another charge of rape. Pepe and his 17-year-old co-accused are facing four charges of rape and a charge of attempted murder. Hundreds of angry residents protested outside the Riversdal Magistrate’s Court on 9 June. Helping Hand has addressed a grievance to Magistrate Prinsloo Oosthuizen, in which a possible bail application is opposed.
All South Africans can protest against Pepe’s possible bail application on 28 June and the granting of bail to him on the website www.helpinghandfund.co.za. A list of South Africans who oppose the bail application will be handed over to the Magistrate on this day. People who do not have access to e-mail can SMS the word “Pepe” to 34388 to protest against the possible bail application. (An SMS costs R2.)
The two accused allegedly raped an 18-year-old girl four times, threw a 55 kg rock on her head and left her for dead on 29 May. The girl, a bright pupil from Langenhoven High School in Riversdal, offered the two accused a lift in her car. When she stopped, the two men overpowered her, dragged her out of the car and took her to a reed marsh where she was raped repeatedly.
In 2005 Pepe allegedly raped and murdered an 11-year-old girl in Riversdal. The girl was raped and strangled on a farm. No case has been brought against Pepe because of a lack of evidence. The case is still under investigation. In 2007 a 20-year-old woman was raped and left for dead in Stilbaai. Pepe was found guilty of assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, but because of a lack of evidence rape could not be proven. Pepe served only 18 months of his three-year sentence. In February this year, Pepe was also charged with stock theft and slaughter.
“How many children must be raped and murdered before this man is removed from society?” asks Dr Danie Langner, Executive Director of Helping Hand. “If Pepe had been found guilty of rape and murder in 2005 and served a proper sentence, two young women would not have suffered the trauma of being raped,” he adds.
According to Langner, Helping Hand is inundated by complaints about rapists who practically get off scot-free from their offences.
“South Africa is not child friendly. The government is letting the children down by not reinstituting the child protection units. It is time that the community take a stand and ensure that criminals like Pepe are locked up,” says Langner.
The Solidarity Movement wishes to thank each and every person who was involved in organising the national protest action against crime held on 19 May for their support and participation. Communities joined forces on this day and voiced their disapproval of crime in more than 300 locations across South Africa.
As mentioned in the memorandum, the protest action was not the end of our campaign against crime, but merely the beginning. We, as citizens, have a social responsibility to get involved in community safety actions.
The Solidarity Movement consists of, among others, community-driven organisations like AfriForum, Helping Hand and the trade union Solidarity. It was decided that AfriForum will drive the next phase campaign against crime.
As part of the strategy against crime, communities must be empowered to organise safety initiatives. The aim of this phase is to –
• enable crosspollination between communities’ safety initiatives; and
• to develop an outline of best practices and methods of community safety.
We request you to share information on the working methods and infrastructure of safety initiatives in your community with us. Tell us which safety actions in your community are effective, what challenges you face and who the community leaders are. Please provide all the details concerning the community initiatives.
E-mail your name, town, suburb and a description to rooi@solidariteit.co.za. The data will be processed and published on the website www.crimeprotest.co.za. The information will help us to put our heads together and to enable every community to become part of the solution to crime.
Kind regards,
Nantes Kelder
Head: Community Safety
AfriForum
Tel: 086-10-200-30
Fax: 012-664 1281
Due to the large number of Police (SAPS) that will be required to actually police the event, the criminals and the security advisors are aware that the World Cup period is going to be like another holiday period for the criminal fraternity. The SAPS will be concentrating on the areas most frequented by visitors/tourists. These will be at the Football stadiums, the Fan parks, ORT airport, hotels in the cities and the routes to the stadiums. This leaves the criminals to have a free run at the suburbs! The criminals are fully aware of this too. They understand that the reaction time for SAPS to get to an incident will be long – if they come at all.
The crimes that will increase are home invasions, driveway robberies and carjacking at your home. Read ADT Alert.
Three hundred and twelve towns and cities across South Africa will tomorrow take part in the largest protest action against crime ever in South Africa. The Solidarity Movement (Solidarity, AfriForum and Solidarity Helping Hand) have announced a national day of protest against crime on 19 May to protest against the horrendous crime situation in the country.
Solidarity has also called on South Africans who cannot attend a local protest action to wear red tomorrow.
The national day of protest against crime will unite South Africans in more than 300 towns and cities across the country when a memorandum is handed over to local police stations. In the memorandum, South Africans will officially protest against the bloody crime situation in South Africa and demand that action be taken by the SAPS and government in this regard.
The single largest gathering of the day will take place in Pretoria. Thousands of residents of Pretoria will get together in the city and make an urgent appeal to the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the government to intervene and bring an end to the terrible bloodshed in the city, province and country.
“Crime in Pretoria and in the rest of the province is completely out of control. Gauteng has the dubious title of crime capital of the country, and that is why we will get together in the capital of South Africa, in the province with the highest level of crime in the country, to protest against crime en masse,” explained Dr. Dirk Hermann, deputy general secretary of Solidarity. Smaller, similar events will also be held in several towns and cities across all provinces.
The gathering in Pretoria will be held at the Harlequins Club, in Totius Street in Groenkloof (see attached map). The event will kick off at 10:00 with performances by well-known artists, including Mean Mr Mustard, Bobby van Jaarsveld, Beeskraal, Freddy Nest, Robbie Klay, Adam Tas, Andries Botha, Sunette Bridges, MarNet and Hennie Smit.
The highlight of the event in Pretoria will be between 12:00 en 14:00 when protest teams depart from the gathering to hand over memorandums to 27 police stations in Pretoria. From 12:30, victims of crime and their families will hold a wreath-laying ceremony to commemorate their loved ones. At 13:00, a memorandum will be handed over to the SAPS at the gathering.
The media are invited to attend the event in Pretoria:
Date: Wednesday, 19 May 2010
Time: Highlight between 12:00 and 14:00
Place: Harlequins Club, Totius Street, Groenkloof
Map to Harlequins
Another map to Harlequins
Three hundred and seven towns are finalising the last arrangements for the largest protest action against crime ever in South Africa. The Solidarity Movement (Solidarity, AfriForum and Helping Hand) has announced a national day of protest against crime on 19 May.
Memorandums will be handed over to the South African Police Service in both small towns and cities, from the Western Cape to the north. In rural areas, several businesses will close their doors and various schools will take part in some of the marches or learners will wear red. It is expected that thousands of South Africans across South Africa will wear red on the day.
“South Africa must never allow crime to become a normal part of society. In order to demonstrate that it is abnormal, we need to protest. However, won’t just protest. We also want to use the action to call on communities to get involved in community safety initiatives in conjunction with the South African Police Service. If we are successful, South Africa will be a safer place after 19 May,” said Dirk Hermann, deputy general secretary of Solidarity.
The first action in the anti-crime campaign took place in Hartbeespoort on Saturday, when hundreds of people gathered at a crime protest concert featuring well-known local artists. The singer Dozi will join victims of crime on 19 May for the handing over of a memorandum to the local police station. In several towns in Northern Natal, schools from both traditionally black and white neighbourhoods will take part in protest actions. An undertaker will even form part of the procession. In Newcastle, the day of protest will conclude with a dance.
More than 60 towns in the Western Cape will take part in the action. Memorandums will be handed over to, among others, the police stations in Bellville, Franschoek, Gordons Bay, Kirstenbosch, Swellendam and Wynberg.
One of the largest protest gatherings will be held at the Harlequins Club in Pretoria. The gathering will also include a protest concert. A huge protest painting by the artist Salomi Prinsloo will also be unveiled. Protest teams will depart from the venue to hand over memorandums to 27 police stations. Victims of crime and their next of kin will also get the opportunity to lay wreaths in memory of the victims.
In Lenasia, a church service will be held and in Diepsloot the protest will focus on the shortage of police stations. In Port Elizabeth, an anti-crime gathering will be held at the Kensley sports grounds. During the event, victims of crime will share their stories and the singer Jacques de Koning, who lives in the area, will perform.
On the Kwazulu-Natal South Coast, memorandums will be handed over in several towns – from Hibberdene to Port Edward. There will also be protests in Durban and Richards Bay.
In several towns victims of crime will hand over the memorandums themselves. In Louis Trichardt, the memorandum will be handed over by Andre and Petro van den Bergh, who were shot during a robbery in their house while they were sleeping, and in Midvaal the memorandum will be handed over by Charl van der Westhuizen, whose uncle and aunt were brutally murdered. At the Utrecht police station, a memorandum will be handed over by Hilda Els and her son. Hilda’s husband was followed, hijacked and brutally murdered.
Natasha Keyser will hand over the memorandum in Bloemfontein. Natasha and her friend were overpowered by four men who wanted to hijack their car. Keyser’s friend was forced into the boot of the car, after which she was raped. In Soweto, Maria Rasello, whose daughter was raped, assaulted and murdered will hand over the memorandum.
In Hoedspruit, Henriëtte van Staden, whose husband was shot through his bedroom window while he was lying on the bed, will hand over the memorandum. The murderers fired two shots at her husband and one shot at her. Following the incident, Henriëtte had a nervous breakdown. During a previous burglary, Van Staden was shot in the leg.
According to Solidarity, this action will probably set a South African record for the most protest memorandums in one day in South Africa. “The reaction of the community to the call for a day of protest against crime shows how angry people are about crime.”
For complete details, visit www.crimeprotest.co.za.
Many thousands of South Africans are demanding, by means of a memorandum in which they are registering their protest against the current crime situation in the country, that private expenses for crime prevention should be tax deductible. The Solidarity Movement (Solidarity, AfriForum and Solidarity Helping Hand) will host a national day of protest against crime this coming Wednesday, 19 May. On the day, a memorandum containing 36 points about this and other relevant demands regarding crime will be handed over to the South African Police Service (SAPS).
On Wednesday, South Africans will hand over memorandums against crime at more than 300 police stations in every corner of the country. The memorandum is addressed to the SAPS, the South African government and South African businesses.
According to Dr. Dirk Hermann, deputy general secretary of Solidarity, a study conducted by the Solidarity Research Institute (SRI), has shown that crime has far-reaching implications for South Africans. “With the signing of this memorandum this week, South African have officially protested against, among other things, the fact that they have to pay taxes, but still have to employ private security companies to ensure their safety because the state does not have the ability to protect its citizens,” he explained. “This practice amounts to double taxation and South Africans cannot keep on coughing up for the government’s inefficiency in this regard.”
According to the study, the maintenance of South African criminal justice system – i.e. the departments of safety and security, justice and constitutional development and correctional services – costs taxpayers millions each year. “What is, however, shocking is the inefficiency of this system measured against the funds that are allocated to it in the budget each year,” Hermann emphasized.
The Solidarity Movement will now further investigate the issue of tax exemption for security-related products and services during a conference to be held later this year. The findings emanating from this will be used in a presentation to the parliamentary portfolio committee.
The memorandum also protests against various other burning crime issues about which South Africans are also fed up, according to Hermann. “With the handing over of this memorandum, South Africans are now making it clear that they are convinced that crime has spun out of control, that it has become South Africa’s single largest problem and that it is threatening the success of the upcoming Soccer World Cup as well as economic progress and job security,” he said.
South Africans are demanding, among other things, in the memorandum that the government should make available more resources focused on training in the SAPS. In addition, it is demanded that the SAPS should lift its moratorium on the appointment of reservists and that businesses should assist the community in conducting crime prevention campaigns.
“However, the memorandum is not only a means of protesting,” Hermann said. “It is also a commitment from the community to get actively involved in solving the crime problem and to make real efforts to improve the safety of South Africans because without the input from South Africans, the battle against crime will fail.”
If you are going to wear a red shirt on Wednesday 19 May in support of the protest, SMS the word RED to 35960. (SMS costs R3).
*Attached is the complete memorandum of the Solidarity Movement to be handed over to police stations across South Africa on Wednesday.
*Also find attached the study by the SRI about the cost of crime in South Africa.