November 5 – South African football authorities have called on fans to surrender their illegal guns following the recent fatal shooting of national captain Senzo Meyiwa that shocked the entire nation.
The authorities want to melt down the weapons and build a statue of the popular goalkeeper who was killed during a robbery raid on his girlfriend’s house last month.
The funeral of Meyiwa, who played for Orlando Pirates, took place in KwaZulu-Natal province at the weekend and was attended by thousands of his fans.
His death has once more highlighted the high rates of violent crime in the country – where an incredible 47 people are murdered a day. Police recorded more than 17,000 fatalities last year, or 31 per 100,000 people.
“We need to mop up all illegal guns and destroy them. This campaign aims to save lives so we are appealing to society to hand in all illegal guns,” said South African Football Association president Danny Jordaan as he launched the campaign which has been backed with letters of support from Meyiwa’s family and that of Reeva Steenkamp, shot dead by Oscar Pistorius who was recently imprisoned following a globally televised trial.
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