Cape Town - Frustrated with the ongoing gang violence in their community, fervent Hanover Park community leaders, residents and community-based organisations staged a demonstrative walk in the community calling for a united effort in the fight against volatile gang wars.
The march, which was held on Sunday began in the community’s central point with a conjoint speech by local leaders and faith organisations.
Speaking to the Cape Argus, resident Errol Davies said last month residents bore witness to at least 20 killings in the community, a testament to the dire need for more concentrated efforts to be directed to eradicate gang violence in the community.
Davies, 54, was among dozens of residents who showed up for the demonstrative walkabout organised by community leader Toha Rodriguez.
Speaking to the Cape Argus, Rodriguez said the community had come together with other safety structures, including the controversial anti-crime group Pagad G-Force to voice the concerns of residents who are tired of the ongoing gang violence.
He said: “Just recently a young person was shot and killed, his mother was taken to hospital. Today we have assembled different religious organisations to take a stand against the gangs and to say that the community would no longer tolerate their reign of terror and would be confronting them head-on.”
Rodriguez also commended Community Safety and Police Oversight MEC Reagan Allen for his willingness to work alongside communities battling gang violence, saying that Allen’s vibrant ideas were a good step forward to bring an end to the deadly gang wars.
The Hanover Park community safety march coincided with the start of the National Child Protection Week, which is observed between May 29 and June 5 annually.
Resident and mother Washiela Samuels, who lost two sons to gang violence said she was pleading with authorities and the government to intervene and work together to restore peace in the community.
Samuels, who is also part of the communities’ neighbourhood watch and social activism group Mom’s for Justice said: “ We are crying out for help. I would like to see our children go to school, to live and grow up together like it was before. We are not getting the support we need from the local police.
“They have failed us, can you imagine that since both my sons were murdered seven years ago, not once have my son’s killers appeared in court.”