Communities fear lifting lid on illegal firearms: Gun Free South Africa

CAPE TOWN - Firearms advocacy group Gun Free South Africa says the police must assure communities that they are safe to report illicit gun markets.

According to the organisation, at least 24 legal guns enter the illegal sale of firearms in the country every day.

This is after at least 20 people died in shooting incidents in Cape Town in the past two weeks, including a police officer.

Gun Free South Africa's director, Adele Kirsten, says communities are afraid to speak about crime because they fear for their lives.

"There's some kind of collaboration between cops and gang leaders. Sometimes it's around fear. You will hear a young cop saying there's no way I'm going in there."

Kirsten said the South African Police Service requires a specialised team of dedicated officers to remove illegal firearms from the streets.

"They need undercover cops. They need intelligence-driven policing, even though they find the guns. Another call Gun Free has made is that this requires a dedicated specialist team of cops to recover these guns, who trace and track them. They need informers."