South African Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa on Tuesday sought to allay fears about crime in the country during the Soccer World Cup, with the kick-off less than five months away.
“There is nothing friendly between us and the criminals,” he told a news conference. “We are not friends, we are out to get them. We will make them run all the time. That’s why we are always tightening the screws.”
We are preparing the country for any eventuality, whether it is petty crime, whether it is big criminal activities,” he said. “We will be looking everywhere — under the stones, everywhere in the air, on the sea.”
With 41 000 additional police recruited for the tournament, South Africa has one of the world’s largest police forces relative to its population, police National Commissioner Bheki Cele said.
“In the UK, 140 000 policemen for about 60-million people, in France 147 000 for 60-million and here, 186 000 for 47-million,” Cele said.
Mthethwa said strong police visibility during the World Cup would deter criminals from targetting the more than 450 000 visitors expected during the month-long tournament.
“Through our own experience, where there is police visibility, there is a high level of crime prevention. We don’t have to engage in operations to combat crime, we just prevent it,” he said.
About 50 people are murdered a day — more than the United States, which has six times South Africa’s 50-million population. World Cup organisers have offered repeated assurances about safety, saying more than R2,4-billion has been spent on security, but worries remain.
The crime statistics for the 2008-09 financial year, the last to be published before the World Cup, showed that 2,1-million serious crimes were recorded. Violent crime in general was down 2,8%, but the overall crime level rose by 0,2%.
While the murder rate fell by 3%, this still represented 18 148 killings a year. Street robbery was also down, by 7%, and common assault by 4%. Sexual offences rose by 10%, which the government partly attributes to the inclusion of attacks on men for the first time.
Many fans are likely to hire vehicles when they get to South Africa. Car hijackings, according to the data, show an 8% increase compared with the previous year, with nearly 15 000 incidents recorded nationally.
Jo’burg cops crack down on crime
Meanwhile, Johannesburg police say they are confident they can tackle crime during the tournament following the arrest of 235 people during an anti-crime operation over the weekend.
“The weekend operation proves that police have the necessary skills to deal with crime during any large event such as the World Cup,” Captain Bhekisizwe Mvundla said on Monday.
The operation, by several police units, took place in Hillbrow, Yeoville, Cleveland, Berea and Jeppe. Arrests were made for armed robbery, malicious damage to property, fraud and drug-trafficking.
“We are optimistic about the expertise of the combined units in tackling crime during the World Cup as well,” said Mvundla. – Sapa, AFP