The Citizen writes that while political assassinations have been a feature of SA life for several years, equally concerning has been the recent spike in targeted hits on judicial officers, lawyers, whistle-blowers and anti-crime investigators.
Targeted hits in general, as revealed by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, has reached crisis levels in the country, having increased by 70% since 2000 (84 cases in 2000 and 143 cases in 2021). At least seven magistrates were assassinated in SA between 2000 and 2022, according to the international non-governmental organization. This included the recent attack on Mount Aylif magistrate Buliswa Tseki-Phatho, who died in a hail of bullets that also injured her husband and children. The Global Initiative’s Chwayita Thobela said the impact of these assassinations was far-reaching and resulted in the intimidation of members of the criminal justice system. The analyst also noted that the taxi industry, due to decades of violence over routes and profits, had become a ready source of professional hitmen. “Police responses to instances of targeted killings have often been fragmented and ineffective. Few killers, or the people that recruited them, are ever brought to book,” Chwayita stated. More than 50% of the magistrates responding in the 2019 Magistrates Matter Judicial Officer Survey on perceptions of their work environment were concerned about their personal safety both in and outside of court.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sipho Mabena at The Citizen (subscriber access only)
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