'Bullets go through doors': Residents fearful as military deploys to gang-riddled areas

A Hanover Park neighbourhood watch member says that without community involvement in safety initiatives, gang violence will continue unabated, even with the presence of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) in the area.

President Cyril Ramaphosa last week announced that the SANDF will be deployed to gang-riddled areas in the Western Cape and Gauteng. Ramaphosa says the SANDF will join law enforcement agencies to curb gang violence in both provinces.

Hanover Park neighbourhood watch volunteer, Shamiema Davids, says gang violence has the entire community gripped in fear.

"Our children can't play outside. They even can't play inside their house because the bullets go through the doors and the windows. We can't even take our children to the park because that is a red zone."

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 says government should be involving neighbourhood watches and community policing forums in its plans to tackle gang violence.

A mother, whose son was killed by gangsters, says the imminent deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to gang-ravaged areas in the Western Cape will bring welcome relief to communities gripped in fear.

Kashiefa Mohammed, is still mourning her son, Raffiq, who was stabbed to death by gangsters in the area eight years ago at the age of 17.

"It's so painful to lose a child due to gang violence in Hanover Park. The pain doesn't stop. The grief doesn't stop," Mohammed said.

She added that the violence in the area has gripped the community in fear.

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

Mohammed says the SANDF will bring welcome relief, but she fears the gang violence will continue once the troops leave.