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“Action may not always bring
happiness,but there is no happiness without action.”
Benjamin Disraeli
Having the opportunity to spend a full day with
representatives of all eleven stations of Soweto while they were engaging
with the local community, I can stand witness to the quote above.
“Today is the highlight of Area Soweto’s Imbizo Focus Week and a day of
open interaction where we will listen to the concerns and complaints of
sections of the community and respond accordingly. This is a wonderful
opportunity to promote public participation in policing programmes and to
get feedback from our customers about service delivery”. Assistant
Commissioner M N Maphanga, Area Commissioner, Soweto
People throughout Soweto watched wide-eyed as a large contingent of
police vehicles, including a marked bus, took to the streets of the town and
visited several sites to talk to local citizens. Area management, station
commissioners from the eleven stations, branch commanders, relief
commanders, crime prevention commanders, Community Police Forum (CPF) and
Youth Desk representatives, reservists, community patrollers and
communication officials all worked together and gathered to work as a team
and ensure the success of the Imbizo. |
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At the Soweto and Kliptown Youth Centre
(SKY) we
were welcomed by dancers and musicians who
happily led us to the
inside where we were treated
to a play by children as well as a gum-boot
dance.
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At the Soweto and Kliptown Youth Centre (SKY) we were welcomed by dancers
and musicians who happily led us to the inside where we were treated to a
play by children as well as a gum-boot dance. |
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| The programme of the day included a visit to an old age home in Eldorado
Park where police and community leaders listened to the concerns of some of
the residents and handed out information leaflets containing crime
prevention tips. Each resident also received a “Help us to help you” leaflet
that they could complete about their concerns and complaints and then hand
back to the communication officials. The next stop was in Ward 19, Kliptown at SKY (Soweto and Kliptown Youth
Centre) where we were welcomed by the multi-talented Bob Nameng and other
artists who had already made it and are now involved with the well-being of
the children of Soweto. Most of these children come from a background of
abuse and poverty and have lived through a great deal of trauma despite
being very young.
According to Bob and the co-founder of SKY, Mr Majozi, they
established the centre to support children who suffered abuse.
They believe that art is positive therapy for children who suffered
abuse because they find a voice by acting out their pain on stage.
Sometimes they bring out so much of their real-life hurt and pain to
the stage and thereby they find healing. Sharing their distress
brings some light back into their liveThe play presented to us by these children was awesome, to say the least.
Talent is in abundance, but the reality of their feelings and the raw
emotion put into the portrayal of the “discovery of a little girl’s rape and
murder” was completely unexpected and certainly very revealing.
Our next stop was at the Thakalani Centre for the Disabled in
Orlando in which the Adopt-a-cop project is involved in a major
way. They ensure regular patrols and safety checks on the centre and
provide a sense of security to patrons, personnel and residents
alikeIn the course of the afternoon we also visited two victims of crime - one in
Meadowlands and one in Dube. In the second case, the woman had been a victim
of domestic violence for many years. The SAPS education programme on the
Domestic Violence Act made her aware of her rights. She then decided to take
action against her abuser. When the next incident of assault occurred, the
man was arrested and brought to trial. He is currently serving a jail
sentence of eight years.
The proceedings of the day ended with a closed session at the Community Hall
where the Area Commissioner of Soweto, Assistant Commissioner Maphanga,
other senior SAPS officials and the Area Board representatives attended to
questions and problems of local reservists and community patrollers.To sum up the day, there was much happiness, smiling faces and hands of
friendship. |
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