South Africa’s deadly love affair with guns

Penson Menson has been carrying a gun wherever he goes in South Africa. He says he has had to use his gun multiple times to protect himself. Menson: “I never know when I will be attacked by someone who wants to kill me” He says the police and government have failed to do enough to protect the public. South African law states that most people with a gun licence can carry a firearm if it is concealed.

There are more than 2. 7 million legal gun owners in South Africa, according to a 2021 survey by Gun Free South Africa (GFSA) The country’s rate of sexual violence is among the highest in the world. The murder rate in South Africa has reached a 20-year high. Many of these crimes are carried out by illegal firearms.

One of the sources of these illegal guns is the very institution meant to protect civilians. Between 2007 and 2015, ex-police officer Christiaan Prinsloo sold about 2,000 guns to gangs. In South Africa for a person to get a gun licence they need to be over the age of 21, go through extensive training, do multiple tests and show proof of mental competency. These firearms have been linked to more than 1,000 murders and the deaths of 89 children.

Gun culture is influenced by the violent history of the country, which was under white-minority rule until 1994. Black people could not legally obtain guns until 1983. The relationship between gun owners and their firearms is complex and multifaceted, according to the South African Gun Owners’ Association. Legal gun ownership jumped by 40% between 1986 and 1996.

White Afrikaners adopted a unique frontier gun-owning identity. Much of this was driven by the fear of Nelson Mandela taking power. The ANC has now been in power for 30 years - and could lose its outright majority. In 2014 women made up 19% of gunowners in South Africa.

Ms Kirsten believes vestiges of the colonial gun mentality remain, especially among older white males. It is clear that more people are turning to private security companies, instead of the police, for protection. The first time Tzu-Hui Chang saw her father with a gun was when she was a toddler. She is in the process of trying to get her gun licence in South Africa.

If I didn#39;t even consider getting a gun, I wouldn’t even consider it," she says. Pistorius release is a reminder of South Africa#39;s femicide problem. Jacob Zuma is the political wildcard in South Africa’s poll. He fondly refers to his firearms as his #34;monsters#34;" who will always be there to protect his family.