Gun Free SA welcomes firearm destruction
THE SAPS’s Crime Stop, in partnership with Scaw Metals, has destroyed 22 999 firearms in a mass smelting operation to eradicate illegal and non-operational guns and guns involved in crime.
Speaking to the media yesterday before the mountain of metal was added to the smelting plant, acting national police commissioner General Khomotso Phahlane said the destruction of the arms was important for two reasons: “We need to reduce the availability of guns in our culture and we need to reduce the proliferation of illegal firearms.”
He said the end goal was to make South Africa safer and send a clear message to criminals that the possession of illegal firearms would not be tolerated.
The pile included weapons from the Western Cape, Eastern Cape, North West, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape and the Free State.
Phahlane said arms from the remaining provinces (including Gauteng) were still being verified and would be destroyed early next year. The weapons included rifles, pistols, revolvers and shotguns.
Adele Kirsten, spokesperson for Gun Free SA, an NPO that advocates for the reduction of guns and enforcement of the laws, said the move was a visible sign of success in combating gun usage.
“We applaud the SAPS for their efforts and we would like the minister to take a stand and pronounce schools as firearm-free zones to make them even safer spaces.”
She said the Firearms Control Act was innovative in that it gave the police minister the authority to declare areas gun-free.
“It is a good piece of law but there are problems with enforcement. With specifically declared areas, it would give SAPS the ability to act.”
Scaw Metals chief executive Markus Hannemann offered the use of his steel manufacturing business to incinerate the weapons.