by Caiphas Chimhete This is the last in a Jour-part series on crime in Southern Africa
As cross-border crime continues to escalate in southern Africa, governments in the region have taken a united stance against criminals. Senior police officers from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) recently met in Midrand, South Africa, to map out strategies to combat crime.
At the meeting, senior police officers agreed to establish a Central Data Base on cross-border crime intelligence at the Interpol sub-office in Harare, Zimbabwe. The police officers resolved “to promote joint operations in border areas where they suspect crimes are being committed”.
Many fora have identified the same obstacles to crime prevention in the region. Among them are lack of specific strategies, inadequate information, lack of communication networks, lack of regional operational bodies and common legislations.
Associate Professor of the University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Leonard Shaidi says southern African countries need a coherent policy on crime to assist the state agencies, public organisations and individuals who are in the field of crime prevention and control.
“Most countries in the region lack clear policies. Penal laws and judicial decision often focus at short term and sometimes contradictory objectives,” says Shaidi.
Escalating crime compelled countries in the region to form the Southern Africa Regional Police Chiefs Co-operation Organisation (SARPCCO) last year. The regional organisation, which works in conjunction with Interpol, prepares and disseminates information on criminal activities to benefit member countries.
The organisation also carries out regular reviews of joint crime management strategies and effective joint monitoring of cross-border crime. However, reports say the organisation is in financial crisis, hindering smooth operations.
Previously. Interpol and other regional organisations investigators had been finding it difficult to pursue criminals who absconded into neighbouring countries. With co-operation among member states it will be easy to track down criminals in those countries.
Crime is slowly becoming more organised with some rackets involving law enforcement agencies such as the police, immigration officials and customs making it more difficult to track down cross-border criminals. In South Africa, the public is now taking the law into their own hands as they have lost confidence in the police amid allegations of corruption.
“The police and the courts are perceived as infective, wrongly deployed and corrupt collaborators in the pay of the gang lords and other criminals,” says Ebrahim Rascool, the Western Cape spokesperson for health and social services.
The loss of confidence among the communities has led to the formation of vigilante groups such as People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD) which in August, killed one of the drug leaders.
According to a Nedcor report on crime an estimated R41.1 billion (about US$10 billion) is being lost through crime per year in South Africa. The report says contrary to previous reports, the level of crime is five times higher than the average rate on the international crime index.
In Mozambique, reports say police are seizing large caches of arms on regular basis. The weapons include AK-47 assault rifles, Mausers and pistols. Most people found in possession of these weapons are demobilised soldiers. These former soldiers later sell the weapons to neighbouring countries where they are used to perpetuate criminal activities.
To combat cross-border crime, Mozambique, Swaziland and South Africa carry out joint border patrols. It is strongly believed that former refugees, who were once in SADC countries during the war in Mozambique, are playing a major part in the smuggling of arms since they know all the security checkpoints and can easily avoid them.
Botswana, commonly believed to be the most stable country in the region, has now become “a playing field” for criminals. President Sir Ketumire Masire of Botswana says foreigners are contributing significantly to the rise of crime in his country. However, he says, Botswana nationals are equally involved in propagating criminal activity.
Masire says crime “threatens the sense of security of individual citizens and their families, the hard-won gains of economic progress we have made, and the future of investment opportunities by both Batswana and foreigners.”
Last year, thousands of Namibians demonstrated against the rising number of stolen vehicles which ended up in Angola, many, allegedly in the possession of Angolan officials. The protestors handed a petition to the Angolan Consul in Namibia, Joaquim Quibato, demanding that Angolan authorities hand over stolen vehicles in not more than 10 days.
However, Quibato told the protestors that it was not Angolans who stole vehicles but Namibians themselves who then sold then to Angolans. Reports say some owners of stolen vehicles are risking their lives crossing the border into Angola in a bid to retrieve their vehicles.
Lack of capacity to carry out research that would make the region self-sufficient in matters relating to the development of investigative techniques, drug detection analysis and related skills are some of the major impediments to combating cross-border crime.
Criminologists say the region should work closely together, share intelligence information and harmonise all policing structures and systems to ensure that cross-border crime is brought to a halt before further damage is done.
“It is only through co-operation that crime can be effectively combated. This is a noble and welcome idea. Given adequate support, we will not fail the community,” says Zimbabwe Police spokesperson, Dave Njagu. (SARDC)
