Gun violence continues to plague the Cape Flats, claiming more young lives day by day. The latest figures from the Western Cape Health Department report that between January and June this year, over 300 children with firearm-related injuries were treated at public health facilities in the province.
Speaking on VOC’s Sunday Live show earlier today, Crime activist and Child & Human Rights Defender, Zona Morton said a more decisive plan is needed to combat youth involvement in crime.
“I don’t think the SAPS or Law Enforcement have a strategy for the crime affecting youth. We need more boots on the ground. Social services have no budget, and we bear testimony to this when we drive past certain areas and see children running rampant on the streets during school hours. The public turning a blind eye to this is worrisome,” explained Morton.
She further detailed absentminded parents and how it exacerbates the current issue.
“The major problem that we have currently is that we have loads of minors who have absent parents. Children must fend for themselves in sub-economic areas where there is extreme poverty and peer pressure and they do not attend school and thus they are targeted as recruits for gangs,” stated Morton.
Several areas, including Hanover Park, Manenberg, Mitchells Plain, Khayelitsha, and Nyanga, have seen children caught in the crossfire. More than 50 children have been fatally wounded in crossfire in the WC this year alone.
VOC
