Researchers also point to an incorrect prioritising of crime categories and neglect of poor communities 23 May 2021 - 17:48 By Gill Gifford
The vigilante attack in which nine young men were abducted, beaten and set alight by an angry mob in Zandspruit is “a long overdue wake-up call to all involved” and illustrates the dire state of policing in SA.
Policing expert Dr Johan Burger of the Institute for Security Studies believes “these kinds of atrocities” are the result of high crime levels, and the danger the country is facing if strong action by the police is not taken “is far too big to contemplate”.
Crime has increased with easing of lockdown
By Tshepiso Tshabalala
Share
Four provinces have emerged in the SAPS quarterly report as crime hotspots in the country. The report, which was released on May 14, has KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Gauteng and the Western Cape in the lead in terms of crimes reported at police stations.
The top 30 police stations with the highest reported murder cases were in these provinces, though these stations only make up 2.7% of the country’s police stations. In total they contributed 22.5% of the national murder rate of about 4 976 cases. About 9 518 rape cases were reported at these stations.
The research conducted by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) indicated that there were fewer criminal offences during stricter lockdown levels, but crime rates increased as lockdown regulations were eased.
âNo one deserves such a brutal and horrible deathâ: Zandspruitâs mob justice bloodbath
By Manyane Manyane
Share
Johannesburg - Gory images of the remains of eight men lying with their hands tied behind their backs with rope while their bodies are charred beyond recognition have once more highlighted the horrors of vigilantism or mob justice in some townships and informal settlements.
The eight victims found in an open field in Honeydew informal settlement, known as Zandspruit, Joburg this week will drastically increase the 903 number of people already murdered as a result of vigilantism in the last year in South Africa, according to the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) figures supplied by the head of justice and violence Gareth Newham.
Murders were reduced during lockdown but now on the rise, seminar hears 21 May 2021 - 07:00 A researcher says lockdown regulations from April last year resulted in reduced murders and other crimes, but these crimes are now on the increase. File photo. Image: ELVIS NTOMBELA
The murder rate showed a decrease at the start of the Covid-19 lockdown, but increased slightly when restrictions were relaxed from January this year.
This is according to crime hub manager at the Institute for Security Studies, Lizette Lancaster, at a seminar entitled “crime trends in the time of Covid-19 on Thursday afternoon.
Her presentation was on four crime statistics and focused on violent crimes and the fact that there had been no significant reduction in the violent crime levels during the Covid-19 period.
Boko Haram Terrorists Merge With Bandits in Nigeria
That alliance threatens to worsen the violence afflicting this West African nation.
“The Greenfield [University] abduction is unique because for the first time we saw a cooperation between some bandits and Boko Haram elements, which confirm that Boko Haram are encroaching into the field,” kidnapping mediator Sheikh Ahmad Gumi told Channels TV on May 16. Gumi, a former captain in the Nigerian army, is the senior cleric of a mosque in the state capital of Kaduna city, a two-hour drive north of the federal capital of Abuja.
The abduction of 22 students from Greenfield University on April 17 remains in a state of negotiation; five of the students have been slain and one released amid negotiations with some of the parents; Boko Haram and the bandits are demanding a ransom of approximately $280,000 for the remaining 16 Greenfield students. Meanwhile, Gumi said that Boko Haram terrorists attempted to take over negotiations related