Police pounce quickly on the real threats

Democratic Alliance leader and Mayor of the City of Cape Town, Helen Zille, paid a stiff price for participating in an anti-drug march in Cape Town on Sunday, 9 September 2007. She was arrested outside the Mitchells Plain police station for alleged transg

She claims that the same police station had been involved in negotiating the terms of the march, for which permission had been granted.  Reaction to the crisis was widespread with a number of organisations condemning the police action. The arrest even prompted Cosatu to suggest that the confrontation between government and the City of Cape Town was getting out of hand.

Amien Maker, also arrested during the march, had this to say about Zille: "It is about how as a concerned person the mayor stood up for what is right. She has shown the courage to go and knock on a (drug) merchant's door, something ordinary people expect the police to be doing. I salute her."

Criminals have the last laugh

The drug dealers in the area of the Western Cape are probably laughing out loud. Despite numerous reports detailing the threat of drugs and drug addiction to various South African communities, it seems criminals are able to run their operations with impunity. And when attention is drawn to them, the police step in and arrest those campaigning against crime.

What then of Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula's request for citizens to help the police in combating crime? Surely the circumstances surrounding Zille's arrest provide him the perfect opportunity to step in and publicly renounce the Western Cape police actions. Her actions embody the passive police assistance the Minister has been calling for!

In our view this is another example of selective policing along political lines. We cannot remember any similar incidents resulting in the arrest of previous Cape Town City mayor, Nomaindia Mfeketo or Western Cape premier, Ebrahim Rasool. Perhaps they have never been guilty of the crime of concern for their community.

Perhaps the ANC is worried that Zille's hands on leadership style is exactly what the people of Cape Town want. The Western Cape remains the only region where the Democratic Alliance enjoys more than token support. The DA should take notes, and develop more leaders with Zille's determination and commitment. Such action would result in significant improvements at the next national election.

Shocking response times

Unlike most hardened criminals, Zille did not have to wait long for her first court appearance. She appeared briefly in the Mitchells Plain Magistrates Court a couple of days after her arrest. The case was postponed to 26 October.

Zille's arrest is more alarming when viewed in the context of overall police performance in the country. Hundreds of victims of violent robbery, housebreaking and related crimes often have to beg police to attend the crime scene. And when the police arrive it's another story to get them to perform the basic investigation which might lead to an arrest and subsequent conviction.

How does the South African Police Service expect the average citizen to believe that they are serious about fighting crime when pleas for help are met with a shoulder shrug and an accompanying "we'll see you when we see you" response? This kind of police complacency further skews the available crime statistics in the country, as victims cannot be bothered to report 'unworthy' incidents.

After all, if your local police station refuses to respond quickly to the theft of a motor vehicle what good is reporting a lesser crime of petty theft? It is high time that the Minister of Safety and Security with the help of his various police chiefs remedies this situation. South Africa has enough resource to ensure a professional, public service oriented police force. It appears the problem with South Africa's police service is one of willpower and leadership rather than resource.

Beware of misreporting crime

While we appreciate the frustrations of law abiding citizens when confronted with a perceived lack of sympathy from the police, we cannot condone the measures some individuals will employ to ensure a police response.

Cases have been reported where victims of crime prompt speedier police reaction by making false claims when telephoning the police. Police rushing to a murder or rape scene end up arriving at one of their 'attend if you can' crimes (such as housebreaking) instead. Individuals who make false reports will not get away with it, and have been successfully prosecuted in the past.

South Africans wanting to improve the crime situation can take a page out of Zille's book. Granted, she was arrested for her troubles but just as ANC activists were arrested in their struggle against Apartheid, so too must ordinary South Africans be arrested in the fight against crime. Shortly after her arrest, Zille made a statement which will hit home with thousands of victims of crime.

"The question remains in the minds and the hearts and on the lips of people: Why are peaceful protesters harassed and arrested, and not the people driving the drug trade?"
 
Editor's thoughts:
If South Africa wants to win the war against crime, the police must clamp down on even the smallest transgression. Law enforcement needs to put an end to the selective lawfulness of the country's citizens. If such a zero tolerance approach was indeed practiced, we could accept the arrest of a senior opposition politician for such mundane a sin as participating in an anti-drug demonstration. Until such time, we can only assume the arrest is little more than political harassment. Do you think Helen Zille should have been arrested? Send your comments to gareth@fanews.co.za