Unite in the war against crime

WHEN the good folk of Chatsworth rise in anger and take to the streets in enraged protests – with placards aloft, their voices raised and tyres ready for burning – you know you’ve struck a rock.

This has been a relatively docile community over many decades, ever since the early residents were bulldozed from their original homes and forced to resettle in an area specially designated for Indians under apartheid.

That was a highly disruptive and emotionally devastating time for thousands of families, but, through sheer sacrifice and painstaking resilience, the people adapted to their new surroundings and after several decades, have succeeded in building Chatsworth into a bustling and vibrant community.

Frustrations however began to set in recently when crime levels in the area rocketed to unprecedented levels and residents found themselves under siege by violent criminals.

The frequency and the brutality of almost daily assaults, robberies, home invasions and hijackings became just too much to bear and the tipping point came with the tragic death of 9-year-old Shallcross schoolgirl Sadia Sukhraj when she was shot dead in a hijacking last week while on her way to school.

The reaction to Sadia’s death was spontaneous. The people of the sprawling township had had enough of violence and crime and more than 1 000 took to the streets, marching to the Chatsworth Central police station demanding immediate police action against criminals.

What they least expected – and certainly did not deserve – was the reaction of the police who, in scenes unprecedented in Chatsworth, fired rubber bullets and stun guns at the protesters.

Relative calm has since been restored in the area, but the anger continues to simmer.

The people are determined to put an end to the endemic crime wave but must realise they cannot accomplish this on their own. Nor can the police make much headway without the support and co-operation of the community.

It is precisely for this reason that community leaders and the police should start talking to each other urgently about a broad strategy to take back their streets.

It is reassuring that the community has received a pledge of support from Police Minister Bheki Cele, who says every effort will be made to prevent, combat and investigate crime wherever it exists, including the allocation of resources to raise police visibility.

Let’s take the minister at his word and work closely with local police to accomplish this urgent mission together.