By: Aneeqa du Plessis

As National Child Protection Week draws to an end, more than 3,300 kidnappings were reported between January and March this year alone. According to the quarterly crime statistics presented by National Police Minister Bheki Cele to parliament on Friday morning, this is an increase of 109.2%, or 1,580 cases, compared to the same time last year.

However, the Western Cape recorded the lowest quarterly increase in kidnapping at 209 cases, up from 193, a difference of 8.3%. Furthermore, Hijacking was the main reason behind kidnappings during this time with 2,849 incidents.

Local premier Alan Winde said the stats clearly demonstrate the need to devolve policing powers to provinces. Murders decreased by 2.9%, while attempted murders decreased by 27.2% following the deployment of Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP) officers in hotspot areas in the province. Winde says he will be calling for greater provincial powers over policing when he submits his policing needs and priorities report to the national government.

Speaking on VOC’s Breakfast show last week, Community Policing Forum (CPF) Deputy chairperson in Manenberg, Vanessa Adriaanse described the ongoing challenges across the community.

“We can’t depend on our men to protect us anymore. Every day we worry about either being shot and killed or being hijacked and kidnapped. This is not fair. We are not meant to live a life of fear,” exclaimed Adriaanse.

Adriaanse says child safety awareness needs to happen daily, change cannot be done in a single week.

“Our people are losing hope. People are turning to organizations like People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD) because they don’t believe in the state anymore and we welcome any organization to stand with others so we can conquer this ongoing violence,” stated Adriaanse.

“Decisions are made on our behalf by government without communicating with the affected communities across the Cape Flats and this is causing even more chaos,” added Adriaanse.

Furthermore, Director at local NPO, Women2Women, Yaseen Johaar said caregivers need to play a more imminent role in the lives of their children.

“We need to become their best friends so in they’ll come to us for advice, they will confide in us, and we will be their safe haven and more importantly we need to in tune with their needs,” explained Johaar.

In the Hanover Park community gang violence has continued unabated across National Child Protection Week.

“We’ve seen more than 30 murders over the last two months. Every community comes with their own challenges, but it is not enough that we protest once a week and/or enjoy lip-service by officials. Our kids are dying,” added Johaar.

According to Johaar all law enforcement stakeholders must come together for the greater good of gang riddled communities.

“Our children are facing bigger struggles than we could have ever imagined. They are exposed to a digital world that we did not face growing up and unfortunately the situation within and outside the home is a dire one,” said Johaar.

VOC