Gun Free South Africa, in partnership with MOSAIC and the National Shelter Movement of South Africa, is working to strengthen the rights and safety of victims from gun-related domestic violence.
The remove the trigger from domestic violence campaign aims to:
- Investigate gun use in domestic violence. While we hear of cases in which a gun is used to injure or even murder, we want to better understand the nature and extent of gun use in domestic violence, including when guns are used to threaten and coerce.
- Raise awareness of the right to have a gun removed in domestic violence. Most women have been threatened with a gun before being shot. The 4 main types of threatening gun-related behaviour by men are 1) Threatening to shoot their partner; 2) Cleaning, holding or loading a gun during an argument; 3) Threatening to shoot a person or pet the partner cares about; and 4) Shooting a gun during an argument. Click HERE for more information on how to apply to have a gun removed.
- Hold the state accountable for the removal of guns in domestic violence and call for legislative and policy amendments where needed to ensure the maximum protection for victims of domestic violence.
The Remove the Trigger campaign was established after Sasha-Lee Shah was shot dead in 2022. Read Sasha-Lee’s mother’s statement following the inquest into Sasha-Lee’s murder, which confirms that Sasha-Lee’s ex-boyfriend used his licensed firearm to murder her; and that the police failed to remove his gun despite a court instruction ordering its removal.
