Premier Zille replies to President Zuma response letter on deployment of the SANDF in gang hotspot areas
Today, I received a letter from President Zuma responding to my request made last week Monday, 09 July, for the deployment of the South African National Defence Force to the Cape Town suburbs of Lavender Hill and Hanover Park. The President's letter is attached for reference.
President Zuma stated that he has requested the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans and the Minister of Police to furnish him with an assessment report of the situation in the affected areas before making a decision. While I acknowledge that it would be prudent for the President to consult with the Ministers, the situation in the affected areas has reached crisis levels and we cannot afford undue delays if we are to prevent the further loss of innocent lives.
The past weekend has seen the gang violence continue unabated and indeed intensify and it is clear that the current situation is beyond the capacity of SAPS to control. The temporary deployment of the SANDF into these affected areas is required to create the space for SAPS to do its job more effectively and bolster law enforcement capacity for street-patrolling and search-and-seizure operations.
It has been of particular concern that the Minister of Police had already publicly and vociferously declined to employ the SANDF in Hanover Park and Lavender Hill, in a manner that suggests a lack of understanding of the situation in the affected areas or any real compassion for the desperate plight of these communities, or both. His response to my request to President Zuma has not only politicised the issue, but left the impression that the decision was his, rather than the President's, and that he had already decided to decline my request to President Zuma.
I have therefore replied urging the President to view this matter in the gravest light and to authorise the SANDF's employment while the assessment of the situation by the Ministers is underway.
(A copy of my reply letter to President Zuma follows below.)
16 July 2012
Hon. President JG Zuma
The Office of the President
Union Buildings
Private Bag X1000
Pretoria
0001
Dear President Zuma
REQUEST TO EMPLOY MEMBERS OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN NATIONAL DEFENCE FORCE IN CO-OPERATION WITH THE POLICE
Thank you for your letter, dated 12 July 2012.
I note that you have requested the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans and the Minister of Police ("the Ministers") to furnish you with an assessment report pursuant to section 19(3)(a) of the Defence Act, 2002.
I acknowledge that it would be prudent to consult with the Ministers before a decision is taken. However, I have been advised that the above-mentioned section will not pass constitutional muster if it was interpreted to mean that your constitutional power to employ the SANDF in cooperation with SAPS is rendered subject to a request by the Ministers.
Of concern is the fact that the Minister of Police has already publicly and vociferously declined to employ the SANDF in Hanover Park and Lavender Hill ("the affected areas"), in a manner that suggests a lack of understanding of the situation in the affected areas or any real compassion for the desperate plight of these communities, or both.
The Minister of Police was so quick to reject the proposed employment of the SANDF that he made no effort to engage with the Western Cape Government when he recently visited the affected areas, despite the Provincial Executive's constitutional obligation to oversee the efficiency and effectiveness of SAPS in the Western Cape. His response to my request to you has not only politicised the issue, but left the impression that the decision was his, rather than yours, and that he had already decided to decline my request to you.
I must emphasise that the situation in the affected areas has reached crisis levels and we cannot afford undue delays if we are to prevent the further loss of innocent lives.
The past weekend has seen the gang violence continue unabated and indeed intensify. It has been reported that service members of SAPS were also caught in gang crossfire in at least one incident and had to take cover. It is clear that the current situation is beyond the capacity of SAPS to control and they need the support of the SANDF to restore order in the affected areas. The temporary employment of the SANDF into these areas is required to create the space for SAPS to do its job more effectively and bolster law enforcement capacity for street-patrolling and search-and-seizure operations.
It is relevant to highlight that state security organs have recently been employed to provide additional security for you at a function in Limpopo and the SANDF has been used to support efforts to curb rhino-poaching. These are not objectionable uses of such state resources; however, I now ask that the safety and security needs of the residents of Lavender Hill and Hanover Park are similarly prioritised.
I urge you to view this matter in the gravest light (mindful of the National Minister of Police's apparent bias towards a decision to not employ the SANDF) and authorise the SANDF's employment while the assessment of the situation by the Ministers is underway.
Could you also kindly furnish my office with a copy of the assessment report once completed and submitted by the Ministers, as its contents will likely be useful to inform our efforts as the Western Cape Government to increase public safety.
Yours sincerely
Helen Zille
Western Cape Premier
Extract from the letter from President Jacob Zuma to Western Cape Premier Helen Zille and copied to the Ministers of Police and Defence and Military Veterans, July 12 2012:
Issued by Western Cape Premier Helen Zille, July 17 2012
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