Community policing forum demands equality for all
People dressed in yellow, orange and blue gathered at the park opposite the SABC in Landdros Maré Street on Monday for a march against xenophobia and the right to equality for everyone.
POLOKWANE – People dressed in yellow, orange and blue gathered at the park opposite the SABC in Landdros Maré Street on Monday for a march against xenophobia and the right to equality for everyone.
Also at the march were Polokwane police officials and various community policing forum (CPF) members.
The march was led by recently-appointed Polokwane police station commander, Brig Sam Mokgonyana, followed by the police brass band and other marchers, and ended at the office of the premier in Hans van Rensburg Street.
At the office of the premier, a memorandum was handed to representatives of the premier. The memorandum stated that the Limpopo CPF board and its subsidiary structures, supported by the transport, safety and liaison MEC Mapula Mokaba-Phukwana, provincial police commissioner, Lt Genl Fannie Masemola, the police in general and youth against crime all stood together against any form of violence against foreigners and their businesses.
The memorandum stated that the marchers demanded the following:
• That government impose the harshest sentences against attackers of foreign nationals.
• That border security should be intensified.
• That all foreign nationals be registered when entering the country.
• That the department of home affairs review and strengthen the registration process of foreign nationals.
• That foreign nationals must not be discriminated against on the base of their languages, race or their material possessions.
The memorandum also called for government departments to have community-based programmes within communities about xenophobia and the negative impact it had on communities.
