Cape Town – Calls are mounting for gangsterism to be declared a provincial disaster in the Western Cape, as community leaders and civil society organisations warn that gang violence has reached crisis levels and continues to claim lives across the province.
Civil society group the Cape Crime Crisis Coalition (C4) has urged the provincial government to formally acknowledge the scale of gang violence, arguing that existing interventions have failed to protect vulnerable communities.
According to The Citizen, C4 chairperson Reverend Llewellyn MacMaster described the situation as a “human-made catastrophe”.
“While the Western Cape provincial government continues to maintain a disturbing and morally indefensible silence on a far more deadly, persistent and entirely human-made catastrophe, people continue to die,” MacMaster said.
Police statistics
The organisation cited alarming figures, noting that hundreds of people were killed in gang-related incidents in a single month last year, including women and children, underscoring the devastating social toll of the violence.
Police statistics indicate that gangsterism remains a major driver of violent crime in the province.
As reported by IOL, gang-related activity accounts for a significant proportion of murders in areas such as Mitchells Plain, Delft and Elsies River.
Western Cape Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Thembisile Patekile has previously warned that illegal firearms and ongoing turf wars continue to fuel bloodshed.
“Gangs are responsible for a large portion of violent crime in the Western Cape, and firearms remain the weapon of choice,” he said.
Stronger interventions
The debate over declaring a provincial disaster has also reached political leadership.
According to EWN, Western Cape Premier Alan Winde has acknowledged calls for stronger interventions but stressed that any declaration must comply with the Disaster Management Act and involve national government processes. “You can’t simply declare a disaster without following the legal prescripts. There are processes that must be adhered to,” Winde said.
Civil society organisations argue that a disaster declaration would unlock emergency resources and enable improved coordination between law enforcement, social services and community structures. “What we need is urgent, coordinated and lawful intervention involving all spheres of government and civil society,” said Christo van der Rheede of the FW de Klerk Foundation, which supports the call in principle.
For residents in gang-affected communities, the renewed calls reflect deep frustration and fear, with many saying violence has become a daily reality. Activists warn that without decisive action, gangsterism will continue to erode safety, development and human dignity in the Western Cape.
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Compiled by Lisabeal Nqamqhele
