My wife and I have been the victims of crime three times since New Year's day 2007 (8 days ago).
Gigi and I are generally very security conscious, both having been born and raised in Southern Africa. In fact I would venture to say that we are both paranoid about security.
First we had the rocks thrown through our lounge window by some New Year 'revellers';
Secondly Gigi had her handbag rifled in the cinema, loosing her cash and ZEN MP3 player; and
Thirdly I had the right hand side triangular side panel stolen off the side of my 1979 Kawasaki KZ400 parked outside work today. (my bike is virtually identical to the one in the hyperlink).
Gigi visited the cinema management today. We were sitting in the row against the back wall of the cinema. It appears that someone crawled down the space under and between the seats and the back wall and got to her zipped up handbag that she had between her feet. The MP3 player was stolen, the cash was removed from the wallet and the wallet and credit cards replaced in the bag, a small folder of unimportant cards was removed and found later by the cleaners and a number of other small unimportant items were also removed. Gigi commented that it would be quite easy for a child to crawl along under there and the cinema management admitted that they had actually caught an adult who did it, thereby admitting that it had happened before! Gigi says they were putting in place some 'moveable' side panels at the ends of the back row to 'discourage' further thefts. 'Ya well no fine'!
Yesterday I used my grand old Kawasaki KZ400 motorcycle for the first time in a year to try and set an example of commitment to reducing personal carbon emissions. As the project manager for the provincial climate change programme I was feeling really good about this - until ... If anyone can help me to obtain a replacement, preferably red, right hand side panel for the old bike please let me know at:
It makes one soooooo angry that people in South Africa just don't have the moral character not to steal anything that isn't bolted down! Either they don't know what damage this does to the credibility of South Africa's image as a tourism destination, among other aspects, or they just don't give a sh...t! I've bought myself a new helmet and will be commuting much more regularly on the bike again. I know of a more secure place (I hope) to park it. I'm lucky enough not to have to use it on those cold wet winter days.
In addition, over the past 4 or 5 years I have had a car 're-distributed' and a digital camera, the gold watch I inherited from my father and Gigi's handbag stolen from our home.
It's got to the point now in South Africa where 'if it isn't bolted down it will be stolen and if it is bolted down it will just be vandalised'. It was mentioned to me last week that even the Mountain Club huts have being broken into, stripped and vandalised recently. We have also had attacks on locals and tourists on Table Mountain in Cape Town recently. Over the Christmas period SA National Parks were not allowing people to walk on Table Mountain in groups of less than five. This level of crime is an outrageous insult to all South Africans.
Until the government actually ADMITS we have a crime problem it's just not going to get any better. As for myself I refuse to continue pretending that it's 'just part of normal life in South Africa'. I'm now just plain 'gatvol' and I'm not going to be quiet about it anymore!
I will remove this post if I notice any improvement in the crime situation. Until then ...
PS: 16 January 2006 - 8 days later
The rant above helped me to let off steam and reduce the pressure.
I'm still going to ride my motorcycle to work each day (when it's not raining) in an effort to reduce my personal carbon emissions.
I have found out that I may even be able to import a second hand side cover for my motorcycle from the USA. Apparently they are sometimes advertised on e-Bay. (Pitty the thief didn't know this. I'm sure he would have left my bike alone had he known this - don't you agree?)
But I must definitely not dispair about crime. This morning's news reliably reports that President Mbeki says that we mustn't believe that crime is out of control in South Africa. He says that it's apparently just a perception caused by the way people write about crime!
So, notwithstanding what I wrote 8 days ago, please be assured that crime in South Africa is definitely not out of control (Psst - just like aids in South Africa is not out of control.) We have no less than the President's assurance on this!
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