Zamangwane Bija. | Facebook
Durban — Research to better understand the nature and extent of gun use in domestic violence, including when guns are used to threaten and coerce is under way by Gun Free South Africa, in partnership with Mosaic and the National Shelter Movement of South Africa.
This was brought up after ALS Paramedics responded to a shooting at a popular restaurant on Florida Road in the Durban CBD at around 1am on Tuesday morning.
ALS Paramedics spokesperson, Garrith Jamieson said that on arrival paramedics found metro police in attendance with multiple security personnel.
“The paramedics were shown to where four people were lying. Three men and one woman had been shot. The woman, believed to be in her thirties, had sustained multiple gunshot wounds. There was nothing paramedics could do for her and she was declared deceased on the scene,” Jamieson said.
The research campaign titled “removing the trigger”, is working to strengthen the rights and safety of victims from gun-related domestic violence.
Gun Free SA director, Adele Kirsten, said the shooting in Florida Road, Durban, on Tuesday could also form part of the research. In this incident, it is alleged that an off-duty policeman shot and killed his girlfriend outside Authentiq Restaurant.
Jamieson said two others are in hospital after being shot in the upper body during the incident. They were allegedly bystanders. The policeman was shot during an exchange of gunfire with metro police officers who were patrolling the area. He died in hospital.
KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson Robert Netshiunda said two people died and wo were injured.
Netshiunda said it was reported that the man, an off-duty police officer, went to his girlfriend Zamangwane Bija’s workplace.
“It is alleged the woman went out to meet him only for him to draw his service pistol and fire shots at her.
“The victim ran back inside the restaurant and the man followed her as he continued shooting. She was declared dead at the scene. Metro police officers patrolling the area witnessed the incident and reacted,” Netshiunda said.
The motive for the killing was unknown at this stage, however, domestic-related issues cannot be ruled out, Netshiunda said.
Berea police are investigating cases of murder and attempted murder.
When the Daily News arrived at the restaurant on Tuesday, it was closed. Adjoining shopkeepers and their staff declined to speak about the incident.
The Florida Road Urban Improvement Precinct (UIP) stated it was grateful for the swift response from law enforcement and other response services.
“Preliminary investigations reveal the incident to be part of a domestic altercation. This is now an SAPS investigation,” the UIP said.
KwaZulu-Natal Social Development MEC Mbali Shinga said she was concerned about incidents such as these and urged victims of domestic violence to report to social workers.
“Victims of gender-based violence ignore the incident when it begins. The abuse continues until it reaches this level. I encourage victims of abuse to seek help. The department is equipped to deal with such matters and we are more than ready to help,” Shinga said.
Kirsten said legislative and policy amendments were needed to ensure maximum protection for victims of domestic violence, adding that incidents such as these are preventable.
“We have seen an increase in gun-related murders. It has become a national pattern. Imagine a country without guns present in a dispute. What would have been the outcome? There would be a different societal order. Reaching for your gun is not the solution,” she said.
Most women have been threatened with a gun before being shot, she said. The four main types of threatening gun-related behaviour by men are: 1) Threatening to shoot their partner; 2) cleaning, holding or loading a gun during an argument; 3) threatening to shoot a person or pet the partner cares about; and 4) shooting a gun during an argument.
Last month, Ian Cameron, chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Police, stated that a report from the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru), revealed that at least 300 SAPS officers have committed suicide since 2017, raising serious questions about the SAPS’ current capacity to provide ongoing safe, confidential, and specialised mental health support to its members.
Cameron said it also raised questions about the adequacy of SAPS’ pre-employment mental and psychological screening procedures and whether they are fit for purpose.
“The SAPS’ 2022/23 Annual Report records 138 psychological professionals, 57 ‘Quality of Work Life’ professionals, 205 social workers, and 190 chaplains operating in SAPS employee wellness programmes.
“These individuals are responsible for the mental wellness of approximately 180000 SAPS employees, all operating in extremely high-stress and high-risk environments,“ Cameron said.
With a 28.7% vacancy rate for psychologists and vocational counsellors in the SAPS, Cameron said, capacitating this division presents a significant challenge for top management that must be tackled with the utmost urgency.
“Concerns surrounding the SAPS’ employee wellness programmes were raised as early as 2022, when the SAPS conducted its Organisational Climate Survey. The chairperson of the portfolio committee at the time expressed grave concerns about the poor health and wellness services within the SAPS,” Cameron said.
“Building effective, confidential, and specialised mental well-being programmes in the SAPS should be a priority for the Ministry and lawmakers alike.”
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