Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

SANDF told to stick to its guns better Parliamentary Editor CAPE TOWN The Ceasefire Campaign has taken aim at the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) for lack of control over the weapons it owns, suggesting that it be forced to comply with the Firearms Control Act.

The Ceasefire statement follows reports that many SANDF weapons, from R-4 assault rifles to pistols, have gone missing and could have been used in armed crimes. There have been news reports of a report compiled by the SANDF's head of legal services, Maj-Gen BS Mmono, warning the chief of the SANDF, Gen Godfrey Nhlanhla Ngwenya, could face criminal charges because of poor weapons control.

Lack of control over SANDF weapons is totally unacceptable, the Ceasefire Campaign said.

It also expressed its grave concern at reports of shoddy control over weapons in the SANDF and lack of compliance with those sections of the Firearms Control Act that could assist in ensuring that control is more effective. Compliance could also assist in ensuring that weapons are less likely to be in the hands of mentally unstable members of the SANDF. We commend Maj-Gen Nmono for bringing this to the fore. This is not the first time that weapons have gone missing and it has become apparent that the SANDF does not have a system in place to keep track of weapons. The report of lost/stolen arms at home is compounded by those involved in peace-support operations who have not been able to account for all their arms, as was the case in Burundi not so long ago, the Ceasefire statement said. It described as outrageous the fact that there was no system to report weapons thefts and to track losses of arms and ammunition at the SANDF, given the number of weapons under its control.

Notwithstanding dissatisfaction with service delivery and the high rate of crime, we are fortunate to live in a relatively stable political environment, it said.

It argued that the theft of 500 rifles and pistols from the Mthata SANDF base, as confirmed by the police, should be ringing bells and be given high priority by government officials.

The SANDF was not available for comment yesterday. Ceasefire also suggested that because of high rates of domestic violence and family murders in SA, soldiers should not take their weapons home with them.