THE festive season, and holidays in general, are synonymous with high crime, ranging from accidents on the road and deaths, crime in busy areas like malls and shopping centres, and robberies at homes and businesses where it is quiet at this time of the year.
Security experts, over the years, said the high accident road rate was only comparable with hijackings, malls and other shopping centres being under siege, bag snatching and pickpocketing.
Nowhere was safe, said security companies and the police, as even those who locked themselves in behind high walls could lose so much – including their lives – by just clicking on the buttons of their phones.
This as holiday scams have become a major crime, as has the interception of money being paid for goods and services online. Reports of delivery vehicles being robbed in almost the same fashion as cash-in-transit heists has taken a nasty turn, they said, as they warned the public to be extremely vigilant at every turn.
“The number of people who book holidays and pay for accommodation from the comfort of their homes, only to find that they had been robbed of their hard-earned money and holidays, has been on the increase every year,” said Sandra Meyer of Forever Holidays.
Criminals have found a way to infiltrate that sector, raking in the millions meant to give people time off and away during the festive season. Ultimately it is the responsibility of everyone to ensure that they don’t get cheated.
The security sector has not found a way to stop this type of crime, and crime that takes place in busy shopping centres, where people often rely on safety in numbers for protection. Bag, phone and card/money snatching, ATM scams, and mall robberies have steadily increased, said Trellidor, as the festive season reached its peak.
“Staying safe during the festive season should be a priority for everyone, whether travelling or staying at home. Being aware of the popular crime trends during the festive season will assist you in keeping you and your loved ones safe,” they cautioned.
They said there was only so much the police, and even security personnel, could do, as criminals and crime syndicates had become highly technological in their operations.
“They operate frequently during the festive seasons as stores have higher stock and cash. The most vulnerable stores include designer, jewellery, and mobile device stores, and they are usually targeted because they are quick to grab and offer higher returns.”
In most instances, when these stores are targeted, weapons will usually be involved, and the criminals are willing to risk innocent lives in the process. As such everyone, whether inside the store or outside, had to be vigilant at all times.
“Remain calm and do not resist. Co-operate with the robbers and don’t take any actions that might jeopardise your safety. Ensure that you refrain from making any unexpected or quick movements, and follow the directions given by the robber.
“If you happen to be close to a store being robbed, stay far away and find a place to hide. Refrain from making eye contact with the robbers and trying to film the event, as this could potentially draw attention to you,” they advised.
Security personnel at shopping centres also warn shoppers to ensure that they keep their belongings close and don’t allow strangers close.
“There is not much we can do if someone offers their card, their details, and their belongings to another person, who pretends either to offer assistance or lower prices. Some report that they were offered cheaper deals when they come to report crime … and there we can do nothing,” a Centurion mall security officer said.
There was not much the police could do, analysts have said, as criminals were always one step ahead, and this has brought to the fore the importance of police visibility.
Last month Police Minister General Bheki Cele launched a plan to bolster the police’s crime combating efforts and to heighten visibility.
The SAPS Safer Festive Season operational plan, rolled out in all provinces, sees a heightened focus on several areas, including gender-based violence and femicide, the combating of serious and violent crimes such as aggravated robberies, border security, strengthening by-laws, road safety, as well as illegal mining.
Cele said: “We are not going to co-govern with criminals. We are going toe-to-toe with them. Our priority is the safety and security of all the inhabitants of this country and their property.
“Police officers are instructed to also sharpen their responses to the most vulnerable in society during the holiday period and beyond.”
National police commissioner Lieutenant-General Fannie Masemola said: “We want to win back the trust of our communities and we can only do so if we deliver and intervene if there are gaps.”
But, is that enough in a country where faith in the police was at an all-time low? “The South African public has low and declining trust and confidence in its police, which impedes efforts to reduce crime, deliver quality services, and lay the foundation for economic growth,” the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) said.
“Last year, the South African Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) reported that just 27% of citizens had some trust in the police.”
The HSRC said views on crime and policing in the country have been a priority theme in its analysis since its inception in 2003.
“Each year, between 2 500 and 3200 interviews are conducted countrywide and then the data is weighted using Statistics South Africa’s most recent mid-year population estimates.”
The HSRC found that the pattern of public confidence in the police remained relatively low over the period from 1998 to 2021.
“Not once during this 23-year interval did more than half the adult public say that they trusted the police, indicating that the issue of police legitimacy is not new.”
Adults in the Western Cape, Limpopo and Gauteng consistently reported figures below the national average, the HSRC said.
The dramatic decline in trust observed between 2020 and 2021 was unevenly reflected across provinces. “The largest decline in police confidence was in the Western Cape. It fell more than 20 percentage points, greatly exceeding the national decline of 7 percentage points. More moderate (but still sizeable) declines were identified in Limpopo, Northern Cape, and Gauteng.”
Public confidence in the police and their ability to prevent crime and arrest criminals had dipped, this and other surveys found, and factors identified include the experiences of crime, where those who had been recent victims displayed significantly lower levels of trust in the police.
There was also a fear of crime, wherein higher levels of fear were associated with lower trust in the police and this applied to some measures such as the fear of walking alone in one’s area after dark, as well as worrying about home robbery or violent assault.
The public’s experiences of policing elicited negative feelings. Those reporting unsatisfactory personal contact with police officers expressed lower trust levels than those reporting satisfactory contact.
“Well-publicised instances of police abuse or failure can also reduce public confidence in police. The 2012 Marikana massacre and the response to the July 2021 social unrest were prominent examples of the perceived ineffectiveness of the police.”
Police corruption, a lack of fairness and effectiveness, where the more the police were seen to be acting unfairly on the basis of race, class or other attributes meant people were likely to view them as untrustworthy, the HSRC found.
“Perceptions that the police treated people disrespectfully, lacked impartiality in their decision-making, or transparency in their actions, could also undermine public confidence. If the police are seen as ineffective in preventing, reducing and responding to crime, this will also diminish confidence.”
Overall, the HSRC and the ISS, among others, said this meant the country remained vulnerable to criminals and crime during periods such as the festive season, whether they were on the road being hijacked or in collisions, in their homes being scammed or robbed, or even as they went about their holiday shopping.
ntando.makhubu@inl.co.za