Sanctity of human life means little to criminals
IN THE lives of many, a defining moment arrives. It sneaks up because you’re not expecting it. That’s what happened to the families of hijacking victims Sadia Sukhraj, 9, and father-of-two Kelly Chetty.
You never know sorrow or pain until such a personal encounter. If you are reading this, how would you feel if Sadia had been your baby girl or Chetty your doting dad or husband?
It seems the sanctity of human life is no more. Every goodbye to your loved ones could be your last and every meal with your family your last. How can we live knowing that when we leave for work in the morning , we may never return?
Recently, a clip went viral on social media when two black parolees bragged about how they murder and rob for a living. They said that if they didn’t get money, they would put the baby in the microwave oven and roast it, or slice the wife’s throat.
This is today’s South Africa, which is besieged by hard-core criminals who are holding the country hostage. These callous killers crave instilling fear and menace, punctuated by long periods of planning and hiding, spurred on by the high they will get from their next hit.
Predictable larcenies that feed a life of addiction continue unabated. So, too, do farm murders and patricide. Here, I’m thinking of Henri van Breda. What kind of beast carves his family up like a holiday roast?
With a general election coming up, it is the season for political assassinations. Hostels have become breeding grounds for death and cash-in-transit heists have gained popularity.
These criminal elements are enemies of God – responsible for the most unnatural, abominable acts ever conceived.
Violent crime is now a part of our daily lives. About 19 000 people were murdered in South Africa between April 2016 and April 2017.
If you are lucky, you get to live another day.
Our government is helpless, their silence deafening.
Our politicians continue to distribute meaningless reassurances, like cheap boiled sweets at a children’s party.
The recent mass protest at the Chatsworth police station played out like a mob of French peasants baying for the blood of Marie Antoinette.
It seems the will of the people was tested. No amount of rubber bullets and tear gas could kill the spirit of the crowd.
So what are the answers to our problems ? Should we increase our efforts at social cohesion to foster racial harmony? Should we revamp the police force with incorrigible and ultra-competent crime investigators?
Maybe we should engage a healthier reward system for the vigilante public – a vital source of information.
How about a water-tight witness protection programme with all the perks of a new life?
Bail and parole should never be granted to repeat offenders.
Police Minister Bheki Cele recently openly lamented the arrest of a criminal granted bail 41 times.
Maybe more power should be delegated to private security companies. Prem Balaram’s Rusa has the knack of arriving at crime scenes before the SAPS.
The role of bona fide private investigators should be recognised. Durban’s Brad Nathanson seems to be achieving much success in this field, often sifting out leads where the police have failed.
Above all, foreigners seeking asylum and work here must be stringently vetted, including criminal profiling.
Last but not least, bring back the death penalty for rape and murder. It would go a long way towards serving as a deterrent and would bring closure to bereaved families.
While many will say that untimely deaths are just a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time or part of God’s plans, we all need to be vigilant or we, too, could soon be cooling off in a coroner’s fridge.
While we work to make the world what we want, we have to deal with the world as it is.
KEVIN GOVENDER
Shallcross