Yesterday I posed a question about what roles do communities play in terms of keeping their areas safe and "disciplined", and how we could exercise this role without having to "break the law" or take the law into our own hands?
The photographs below were taken in Nyanga, Cape Flats in Cape Town by Lulama Zenzile, a prolific photographer who works in that and many other communities of the Cape. They show a young man who is alleged to have stolen a cellphone and was caught by the community and subjected to the People's Justice form of disciplinary measure.
 |
| A crime suspect lies on the ground while a community member takes aim with a hammer. Photo: Lulama Zenzile |
 |
| A community member in Nyanga aims for the head of a suspect with a concrete rock . Photo: Lulama Zenzile |
 |
| Alleged perpetrator of crime is caught and surrounded by community members in Nyanga: Photo: Lulama Zenzile |
 |
| A kid is seen running in the streets on the aftermath of "Peoples Justice" activities, in Nyanga, Cape Town. Photo: Lulama Zenzile |
The images shown here are nothing new to the people whom are subjected to the levels and the forms of crime that ordinary South Africans are used to. I was saddened when I saw on the news about two or so days ago, this video. The gentleman in this video might decide to up and leave the country and if the reasons for his departure are related to the incident he was party to, then, how many other (skilled, loyal and patriotic) South Africans are forced to leave their place of birth through such violence?
The populace does not have faith in the system anymore and the police do not command the respect and the trust of the people. This is leads them to take the action you see in these pictures. None among any community enjoys witnessing a brutal killing of a young man in the name of justice. None enjoy the necklacing and burning of young men as a form of justice method.
Moreover, none enjoys it when their home is a playground for thugs and thieves and stealers. Nobody likes it when their homes are ransacked and the authorities are unable to bring the perpetrators to book. So, again, what do the people do? What power do they have over their own homes and communities? I am not saying this kind of justice is right by any means, but I am asking if there isn't a way that would suit both the victims of crime (people who have been stolen from, raped, killed, hi-jacked) and the authorities?
Who must protect the communities, the families, the women, the children, the vulnerable and the old, when police fail? And I am not only talking about making the arrest and taking the statements, I am talking about instantaneous trials, prosecutions and convictions of these people. They are giving the rest of South African men a bad name.
What must the communities do?
No comments:
Post a Comment