Today, over 2000 DA supporters marched in Tshwane against gender-based violence and for safer communities, now!
The women of South Africa should not have to change the way they live, work, walk or move through their communities because of violent crime. The people of South Africa don’t need “advice” on how to avoid crime; they need government ACTION to tackle crime.
Today the DA demanded action against the continued scourge of gender-based violence and murders in Gauteng.
12 funeral vans led us to Kgoši Mampuru II Correctional Centre, to mark the 12 murders that take place every single day in Gauteng.
Violent criminals must face the full consequences of their crimes. That is not happening, because of DNA backlogs, police and judicial services being under-capacitated, and broken basic service delivery like streetlights and overgrown public spaces – which make for criminal breeding grounds.
We ended our march at Kgoši Mampuru II Correctional Center, where murderers and perpetrators of GBV belong. The prison is a symbolic place where the criminals on our streets should be instead.
Our criminal justice system must work better so that violent criminals are removed from our communities and put inside prisons like Kgoši Mampuru.
The DA’s message to the Police and National Prosecuting Authority is simple: Catch. Convict. Clean Up.
This cannot wait.
To make communities safer, we demand:
-More boots on the ground, with stronger and more decentralised municipal policing powers.
-Greater investigative and intelligence capabilities for capable municipalities.
-An end to the DNA evidence crisis, which continues to undermine investigations and justice.
-Better lighting and safer public spaces, particularly in areas where women and vulnerable residents feel unsafe.
-Smart-policing technology and better reporting systems to improve prevention and response.
-Stronger cooperation between SAPS, municipal police, Community Policing Forums, neighbourhood watches and private security.
-Better case-building and cooperation with prosecutors, so that arrests result in successful prosecutions and convictions.
All of this requires lifestyle audits of senior police and functional SAPS telephone lines. These are basics that must be addressed.
For too long, women have been told to change their behaviour to avoid becoming victims of crime. Carry a phone differently. Don’t walk alone. Don’t go out at night. Change your route. Stay home.
That is not good enough.
The responsibility for preventing violent crime cannot be placed on victims. Government must create safer communities, law enforcement must catch perpetrators, prosecutors must build strong cases, and the justice system must deliver consequences.
The DA is doing everything we can, in government and opposition, to make South Africa safer. Just yesterday, Cape Town launched a new SWAT Unit; the National Department of Home Affairs continues to strengthen our border security; the Western Cape government continues to plug the gaps in SAPS with thousands of L.E.A.P officers.
The DA brought and led an urgent Parliamentary Debate on the spate of femicide in Gauteng. And we will continue to fight for communities where women can move freely and safely — and where violent criminals know that their actions will have consequences.
Action, not advice.
Catch. Convict. Clean Up.