ActionSA MP Dereleen James has urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare a state of emergency on the Cape Flats to stop ongoing bloody gang violence and drug-related crimes.
James wrote an emotional letter to Ramaphosa stating that growing up in Eldorado Park, a notorious neighbourhood fraught with gang violence, has pushed her to fight drugs and gangsterism after experiencing their impact on her own family.
“How many more children must die before you act?” asked James as she opened the letter.
She said her experience in Parliament, through visits to areas like Mitchells Plain, Bonteheuwel, Lentegeur, and Ravensmead, has shown her the full scale of the crisis.
“What is happening can only be described as a state of terror. Bullet casings litter the streets across the Cape Flats. I fear we have reached a point of no return.
Gunfire common sound
“The Cape Flats is a …war zone. There is no other way to describe it. Every single day, the sound of gunfire is pierced only by the cries of mothers who have lost their children.
“Our children are gunned down daily. Where there should be laughter, there is gunfire and cries of anguish. Where there should be joy, there is death. And where there should be safety, there is only fear,” said James.
She emphasised that children are being killed by stray bullets and highlighted several recent cases. These include five-year-old Melokuhle Tshaka, who was killed in Nyanga in July while walking with her aunt.
Other cases mentioned include two-year-old Esmine Francke, who was killed on August 19 while playing with friends. Two-month-old Moegsien Isaacs, whose died after being hit by a bullet inside his home in Botenheuwel.
Schools are also facing this daily fear, as shootings forced schools in Lotus River and Grassy Park to close.
63 kids slain in five months
James said 63 children have been murdered in the Western Cape in the past five months alone.
She said four of the top five police stations for murders are in Cape Town. These include Delft, Mfuleni, Nyanga and Philippi East.
Between January and March, she said, 208 of South Africa’s 240 gang-related murders happened in the Western Cape.
“That is why, as a last resort, I am pleading with you to declare, for the first time in our democratic history, a State of Emergency in terms of Section 37 of the Constitution. I make this call fully aware of the gravity of such a decision,” said James.
Her proposals include street-by-street intelligence operations to dismantle gangs, deployment of the army to relieve pressure on police, and a whole-of-government response including social work in schools and communities.
Special courts
She also calls for special courts to fast-track cases, as was done during the 2010 World Cup. And the redirection of funds from failing SETAs to skills programmes for vulnerable youth.
“We have tools to fix this, so why will you not act? How many more small coffins must be buried before you show concern and finally act?” asked James.
