Gun violence has long been a social problem in our country, fed by a fondness for solving problems with aggressive, antisocial behaviour. Conversely, there are those who believe only a firearm can keep one safe from armed robberies, kidnappings, murders and other acts of violence that make South Africa a dangerous place to live.
Lax policing and the pervasiveness of conspicuous luxury consumption in a country said to be the most unequal in the world provide a cocktail in which criminality thrives.
Eradicating the worst excesses of a society awash in guns ... demands intelligence-gathering, monitoring and a willingness to resist the bribes of gang bosses
The impunity with which criminals act — captured daily on home CCTV cameras — has encouraged the emergence of a criminal gun culture. Troops of heavily armed “bodyguards” in suburban shopping malls and at nightclubs have become a status symbol of which none should be proud.
Given the proliferation of guns — many in the hands of criminals — the next-best course of action is tighter control. As we report on our pages today, gun control in South Africa has been steadily declining for years, evidenced by the diminishing success of the police.
Guns as an item are often the target of criminal attacks; figures for 2023/24 show that 8,452 civilian and security company firearms were lost or stolen, while the police lost 741. Among the biggest losers in this alarming picture, however, are women and children — who, while gangs of men run rampant, are at the mercy of trigger-happy criminals.
Eradicating the worst excesses of a society awash in guns requires a police force that dedicates considerable resources — both human and physical — to exercising control over the trade in illegal weapons. This demands intelligence-gathering, monitoring and a willingness to resist the bribes of gang bosses.
Gun violence needs to be approached as a high-priority issue — not shrugged off as an inevitable consequence of a crime-ridden society.
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