NNP calls for gun amnesty now

2003-09-09 13:42

Cape Town - The New National Party renewed its call on Tuesday for an amnesty for people to hand in illegal firearms, saying "rather sooner than later".

"Illegal firearms need to be taken off the streets," NNP safety and security spokesperson Johnny Schippers said.

Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula and national police commissioner Jackie Selebi should make it clear to the public that it would not be a blanket amnesty, but that police would check if any of these firearms were linked to criminal activity, he said.

In written reply to a question by Schippers in the National Assembly, Nqakula said the South African Police Service had confiscated 41 345 illegal firearms during 2001 and 2002.

Most recoveries were made in KwaZulu-Natal (11 635), followed by Gauteng (10 437), and Limpopo (6 122).

Linked to crimes

Nqakula said 900 of these firearms had been linked to crimes.

During a media briefing at Parliament on Monday, he said it remained government's intention to reduce the number of firearms in the country, and to institute better and efficient regulations regarding gun ownership and possession.

Various initiatives had already been implemented, and the ongoing Operation Sethunya had so far netted more than 15 000 firearms nationally, he said.

Last month, Nqakula said an amnesty giving people an opportunity to hand over illegal firearms without prosecution was being considered.

Peace-loving

This would apply to individuals he described as peace-loving.

The unregistered weapons in their possession often ended up in the hands of robbers who broke into homes.

"We would want them to come forward and declare those firearms so that they can be handed over to the state," Nqakula said.

A condition would be that such weapons should not have been used to commit a crime.

The timing of the amnesty was under discussion, he said.

- SAPA