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The Minister for Safety and Security,
The Premier of the Province of Gauteng,
The MEC for Safety and Liaison in the Gauteng Province,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen.

It is a pleasure for me to be amongst you here this evening, for such an important occasion of remembering our police officials and to highlight the plight of widows, widowers and orphans who survived them.

We are also gathered here to remind ourselves of the problem that faces us all, that of the senseless killing of police officials in our country.

Twenty-five police officials were killed in Gauteng this year. From these incidents, twenty-two suspects have been arrested and eleven trials are currently taking place and four are pending. We salute the colleagues of the departed officials for swiftly apprehending the suspects.

That should send a message to the perpetrators and potential police killers that they would be caught and face the full might of the law.

We regard the death or injury of any person in South Africa as being extremely serious, but the killing of police officials hits at the very core of our criminal justice system, as they are the enforcers of the law. We cannot allow it to continue.

There is a school of thought, which argues that people still do not have a proper understanding of the role of the police in society, given the manner in which police were abused by the apartheid government to help sustain apartheid.

While that may be true, we are also of the view that police killers are motivated largely by criminal intentions, as most seek to rob the officers of their firearms, or to suppress certain pending criminal cases.

The role of the South African Police Service in the new South Africa has changed. We have sought as Government to promote the ethos of a community based police service, which works together with communities to prevent crime and to flush out criminals and create safer neighborhoods.

In performing their difficult and challenging tasks, police officials require the support of all South Africans. There is an urgent need for communities to take a stand and report those who are responsible for police killings.

I also invite all sectors in our communities, the religious, business, labour, traditional leaders, traditional healers, women, youth and other formations to speak out against police killings.

Our criminal justice system itself should co-ordinate efforts with regard to police killings, in order to send a strong message to police killers. Harsher sentences for those convicted of police killings would act as a deterrent, and restore the respect of the public in our police officials.

People who murder police officers are in reality displaying total disregard for the authority of the State. If killers murder our police officials with impunity, what hope do ordinary South Africans have? We are determined as Government to ensure that this country does not become a haven for murderers. Such extra-ordinary arrogance requires an extra-ordinary response.

While noting that action must be taken against criminals who murder our police officials, we must remember the victims they leave behind, in the case of our gathering tonight, the widows, widowers and orphans. Ladies and gentlemen, we always stress the need for unity in action by all sectors in our society, in all aspects of our programmes as a country. In this vein, I therefore humbly request all of you today to support the Widows and Orphans Fund, which currently caters for about one thousand and thirteen children in Gauteng only.

We are aware of the visible contribution of the business community in the battle against crime, in particular the work of Business Against Crime.

We have seen criminals being caught red-handed in Johannesburg through projects of installing cameras in crime-infested parts of the city. Business Against Crime is active outside of Gauteng as well, and in many other projects, and as Government, we would like to register our appreciation at such patriotism.

This evening, we would like to humbly request the private sector to extend its support to police widows, widowers and orphans. Support can be in the form of grants to the Widows and Orphans Fund or through capacitating members of these families, especially children, with necessary skills that would help them to become economically active. This would serve to compensate for the loss of their loved ones, who died serving our country.

Compatriots, I cannot conclude my address tonight without reminding you and indeed the whole country to participate in the annual campaign of 16 days of Activism Against Violence Towards Women and Children, which began yesterday, on the 25th of November and will end on the 10th of December.

During the next few days, we should all come together to say enough is enough, and that we are not going to tolerate the abuse of women and children and other vulnerable groups in our country.

As Government, we have played our part. We have ensured that the rights of women are enshrined in our Constitution, policies and programmes. A number of laws that improve the status and position of women are in place such as the Domestic Violence Act, Maintenance Act, Skills Development Act, Employment Equity Act and others.

A number of structures also exist, serving the interests of women and children. These include the Office on the Rights of the Child and the Office on the Status of Women, which are located in the highest office in the land, the Presidency, which displays our commitment.

Government has also developed minimum standards for the centres that cater for victims of abuse and rape, and is accelerating the change in the childcare legislation to make it responsive to the needs of children.

As Government we also believe we deserve credit for entrenching a culture of breaking the silence on serious crimes such as the rape and abuse of women and children. More South Africans are now reporting such crimes, which is making it possible for law enforcement agencies to catch the perpetrators.

Cabinet has also directed an urgent implementation of decisions that will provide additional protection for children. As Government, we conduct constant evaluation of the criminal justice system to ensure that it serves the purpose of curtailing crime.

From recent events, it clear that the application of the law needs to be evaluated, to ensure that the laws on our statute books are implemented accordingly and effectively. Issues such as minimum sentences, easy availability of bail and others need to be discussed by all of us, including the interpreters of the law.

Ladies and gentlemen, the campaign to prevent the abuse of women and children will succeed if we continue to work together. We invite all, especially men, to join the campaign for moral renewal and to lead the campaign against the abuse of women and children. We therefore wish to congratulate the men who staged a march in Cape Town yesterday. These acts should be replicated throughout the country.

Such a campaign will succeed more if men take the lead in defending their grandmothers, mothers, sisters, daughters and aunts from rapists and abusers.

Let me also remind you of the Summit on Moral Regeneration to be hosted by the Presidency early in the New Year. I hope you would be able to become part of that crusade. With your support, we can put moral regeneration on the agenda of every South African household.

Together we can ensure that beasts who prey on defenceless babies and women are put where they belong, behind bars.

In closing, ladies and gentlemen, I am sure we are now all aware of the challenges facing our police officials.

Allow me therefore to remind you once again of our mission this evening, which is to solicit your support in the battle against crime, and also in supporting the families of those who are in the forefront of this battle, our police officials.

I hope that by the end of this function, the coffers of the Widows and Orphans Funds will have grown substantially.

I thank you.

Issued by: The Presidency, 26 November 2001