Cape Town - As many children pen letters to Santa for gifts, those in Mitchell’s Plain have written to the police to end violence over the Christmas holiday.
This, as Gun Free SA and the Cape Flats Safety Forum gathered at a park in Dorper Way, Westridge, on Monday to host the children as they work on reclaiming a safe community.
Each child wrote and signed letters to the National Police Commissioner, Fanie Masemola, and President Cyril Ramaphosa.
A 16-year-old girl wrote: “This Christmas all I’m asking for is to stop gang violence because we are losing our innocent friends and family. I ask for the safety of all communities so that we don’t lose all our young ones because they have a bright future ahead of them.
Another teenage girl wrote: “Can there be more police in the community so we can feel safe when we play outside.”
Many children signed a card, which also asked for safety.
“Please help make our neighbourhood and parks safe from gun violence so we can play outside and dream about our futures. We want to grow up in a world where we feel protected- a world where we don’t need a bulletproof park. That would be the greatest gift of all,” the card read.
Cape Flats Safety Forum’s Lynn Phillips, said: “Our kids don’t have the freedom to play in open spaces. We deemed it fit to have a programme with young kids in the park for them to say they want to claim back their space, and that they want to have fun as it’s school holidays. Through the entire year the kids have been traumatised by gun violence. We are urging the gunmen to allow kids to be kids. Why should children live in fear?
“We are giving the police commissioner 21 days to respond because it is the festive season. They should get rid of guns roaming the streets as our children may emulate these behaviours, seeing gangsters as role models.”
Adele Kirsten of Gun Free SA said: “We want to push the message to the police commissioner and we are posting the letters to the president. This is a whole government problem and they have to respond precisely to gun violence.
“We don’t expect an immediate response, we will courier the letters on Friday.”