Shootings and crime statistics in SA
A few months ago, Gen. Kayumba Nyamwasa fled to South Africa to join Col. Patrick Karegeya into self-exile.
A few months ago, Gen. Kayumba Nyamwasa fled to South Africa to join Col. Patrick Karegeya into self-exile.
These are officers who left Rwanda rather than face up to questions about aspects of their conduct while still serving in national institutions.
Now someone has shot Kayumba Nyamwasa in Johannesburg. And immediately, before a single Johannesburg policeman could rise up from his desk to conduct an investigation, several news organizations were publishing reports insinuating that the general’s shooting was related to his fleeing.
However a simple Google search on crime in South Africa will show you that very few are immune to violent crime in that country. CEOs of companies have been shot by armed robbers thinking they are carrying wads of cash. Famous musicians have been killed by carjackers. Elsewhere in this newspaper we report of a newspaper story in South Africa describing the murder of a football boss.
Before anyone goes into overdrive with their speculation why don’t they take a look at these horror stories?
Johannesburg of course is a world class city, just like many cities in South Africa. This is a wonderful country whose enormous wealth coupled with the fact millions of its citizens are destitute inevitably leads to high levels of violent crime. The authorities at times seem helpless to do anything about curbing this crime, though some success has been recorded in this year of the World Cup.
Security notably has improved around the football venues and the tourist sites likely to be crowded with visiting “soccer tourists”. But elsewhere in the suburbs and outskirts of major cities life remains the same, i.e. anyone is likely to meet misfortune at the hands of a criminal with a gun. Decades of the inhuman policy of Apartheid left the vast majority of South Africans psychologically scarred, not to mention the economic disadvantage many of them suffered and still do.
The government of the ANC has done much, at least to reverse the economic iniquity, by introducing the policy of Black Economic Empowerment. But millions more remain mired in astounding squalor and poverty. For too many of the youth the only option they think they have is to resort to crime. Of the violent kind.
It is not surprising therefore if a youth turned up in the driveway of an apparently wealthy man like Nyamwasa and shot him.
We are not pretending we know everything about the general’s shooting.
We are only inviting any who might be inclined to jump to conclusions about a shooting in far away Johannesburg to take a look at the everyday life circumstances of that city, and the crime statistics. And to think before they say anything.
Related articles:
With no proof some turn Gen. Nyamwasa shooting into political issue
Lt. Gen. Nyamwasa suspected to be behind grenade attacks
Posted by The Rwanda Focus
on Jun 24 2010. Filed under Editorial.
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