AMBER MANSFIELD writes:
The letter, “Stop fussing about crime, think benefits”, refers.
Crime should in no case whatsoever be promoted or justified.
Criminals should be treated as harshly as possible so that others will be deterred from doing the same thing.
Criminals do not all do this because of hunger, etc. They do it out of greed and they injure innocent people.
In regards to the last sentence about the Germans, they support our tourism industry which is a large portion of our country’s income. Do you not think that that is more important than crime supporting us?
Are you as a newspaper promoting this information? In that case, could I post this on social media and ask that they do not support you as you do not support the safety of the things we work hard for and us as South Africans?
Please remove the article.
The writer of the original letter, Pro-government of Kempton Park, replies: The huge amount of negative reaction caused by my letter is clearly shouting to me, to Government and to the police that there is something seriously wrong with our thinking and that the broad public is not thinking about crime the way we do.
It seems that Government needs to make other plans to provide honest jobs rather than being dependent on criminals to do it for them. It seems that the man on the street is insisting on a serious political will to handle crime differently than the status quo.
It seems like Government officials should have less personal pockets which absorb the country’s income from duties and taxes and that they should therefore restrain themselves from dipping into state coffers when the income from the insurance on stolen goods starts to fade.
It seems if the police must change their soft-hands approach in dealing with criminals and the justice system should start functioning properly to remove criminals out of society.
I admit that I was wrong and I will change my ways as I realise now that in any true democracy, the residents have the right to live without fear from crime.
I now see that superior crime prevention will have to be a government priority – nothing more and nothing less. But will my comrades in Government and in the police do the same?
