A pro-firearm organisation has challenged the Firearms Control Amendment Bill, saying it fails to address illegal guns and repeat offenders.
A new policy submission to national government is challenging South Africa’s crime‑fighting practices, arguing that current strategies miss the real drivers of violent crime, while overburdening law‑abiding citizens.
The submission by pro‑gun lobby group Safe Citizens, titled “Safe Citizen: An Evidence‑Driven Reframing of Violent Crime”, responds to the Firearms Control Amendment Bill of 2025.
It warns that proposed restrictions risk punishing compliant firearm owners, while failing to address repeat offenders, organised criminal networks and illicit weapon supply chains.
Firearms Bill ‘wrongly targets licensed firearm owners, lawful security practitioners’
National coordinator Jonathan Deal said the Bill wrongly targets licensed firearm owners and lawful security practitioners, despite police acknowledging that most illegal guns originate from cross‑border smuggling, corruption and theft of state‑owned weapons.
“The idea that you can fix crime and violence by restricting lawful people, who are already compliant, is unsustainable and ineffective,” Deal said.
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“It punishes the wrong people and makes communities even more vulnerable.”
The submission cautions against “tool‑centric” responses, noting that offenders adapt quickly by sourcing weapons illegally or shifting tactics.
Instead, it calls for intelligence-led policing, focused deterrence, stronger border controls and decisive action against corruption.
Weaknesses in existing strategies
It also highlights weaknesses in existing strategies, including fragmented accountability and poor coordination under the National Crime Prevention Strategy.
Between January and March last year, 5 727 people were murdered in South Africa – an average of 64 lives lost daily.
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Deal pointed to recent incidents where licensed firearms saved lives.
On Monday last week, Imam Ebrahim Lee survived a Cape Town attack after defending himself with his firearm, while DA MP Ian Cameron used his weapon to repel an ambush in Philippi township.
Yet civilian firearms also contribute to the illegal pool.
Over 8 000 guns stolen or lost
The South African Police Service’s 2023-24 annual report recorded 8 452 civilian guns stolen or lost in that period, echoing research by the Global Initiative that private losses are a common source of illegal weapons.
Deal stressed the submission is not a scientific study but a researched proposal to stimulate debate and evidence‑based policy.
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Only the Civilian Secretariat for Police Service has acknowledged receipt of the report, while the Presidency, police minister and parliament’s police committee remain silent.
