Hanover Park mother fears gang violence will continue once SANDF leaves

A Hanover Park mother whose son was killed by gangsters said the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) will bring welcome relief to the gang-ravaged area, but she fears the violence will continue once the troops leave.

Acting Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia on Tuesday confirmed the SANDF will be deployed to gang and crime-riddled areas in the Western Cape, Gauteng and Eastern Cape within the next 10 days.

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Hanover resident Kashiefa Mohammed, who lost her 17-year-old son, Raffiq, to gang violence eight years ago, said the community is gripped in fear.

"Nobody's walking outside. Our pensioners are scared to go to the terminus to fetch their pension because they have to duck dive because of bullets."

Mohammed said she's not convinced the deployment will make a difference.

"The army was deployed in 2019 for six months, and for that time, the gang violence decreased a bit, but when the army left our area from 2019 until 2026, the crime increased."

Mohammed has called on government to brief the community about the purpose of the SANDF's return to the area.

‘WHAT IS THE ARMY GOING TO COME DO?’

A volunteer crime fighter in gang-ravaged Hanover Park has called on government to include neighbourhood watches and community policing forums (CPFs) in its plans to tackle gang violence in the area.

Shamiema Davids does not believe the SANDF deployment will make a difference.

"What is the army going to come do? Who are they going to come catch? Why must the army come here? Why didn't they call the army in the first place? What are they going to come do... hit our children, torture our children?"

Davids said without the community's involvement in safety initiatives, gang violence will continue unabated, even with the presence of the SANDF in the area.

"The community must stand up. Our people must stand up because it's children we know and we as parents can talk to them. Even here on the terminus if we talk to these gangsters, they listen to us."