Gang-related murders of children on the Cape Flats have doubled over the past year.
This was revealed by Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia, in response to ActionSA’s parliamentary question on the
number of persons aged 0–17 years who were murdered, particularly those killed
by firearms, broken down by cause of death as recorded by the SA Police Service in
each police station located in the Cape Flats policing precincts in the past
five financial years.
Cachalia confirmed that between the 2023/24 and 2024/25
financial years, gang-related murders of minors on the Cape Flats more than
doubled from 27 to 59.
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SUPPLIEDBetween 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2025, 472 children were
murdered on the Cape Flats, with Elsies River, Mitchells Plain and Delft accounting
for more than 40% of all gang-related child deaths recorded over the past five
years.
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SUPPLIEDThe Minister also disclosed that 3 335 illegal firearms
were recovered by Cape Flats police stations between 2020 and 2025.
‘’This recovery is both considerable and concerning as this
represents only a fraction of the illegal weapons flooding these communities
and fuelling a climate of violence and terror, where daily shootings have
become a grim reality for these communities,’’ said Dereleen James, ActionSA
Member of Parliament.
‘’These figures lay bare the devastating reality in Cape
Town’s forgotten communities, where children are increasingly caught in the
crossfire of warring gangs that continue to reign unchecked, with no clear plan
of action from government. ActionSA rejects the ongoing blame shifting that
persists over which sphere of government carries responsibility, as this blame
shifting cheaply distracts from the collective duty that all spheres of
government share to confront the bloodshed and lawlessness that has engulfed
Cape Town,’’ she added.
Done by: Mitchum George
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