BRIEFING 1 of 2022: Femicide in South Africa over 18 years
Femicide – the murder of women and girls – is the most extreme form of violence, and shows a country’s magnitude of violence against women.
South Africa’s third national femicide study looks at how femicide has changed over an 18 year period, comparing data from 1999, 2009 and 2017.
The findings of the Medical Research Council’s 2017 femicide study include that:
- While SA’s […]
STATEMENT: Latest SA femicide study highlights gun control integral to saving women’s lives
8 March 2022: The third national femicide study released by the SA Medical Research Council (MRC) to mark International Women’s Day shows the importance of gun control in protecting women and girls aged 14+.
Says Adèle Kirsten, Director of GFSA, “The latest MRC study is good news. It shows we have halved femicide in South Africa over the past 18 years. […]
STATEMENT: RIP Gun Free SA Patron Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu
“Real peace never comes from the barrel of a gun”
Gun Free SA Patron Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu
7 October 1931 – 26 December 2021
26 December 2021: It is with great regard and sadness that Gun Free South Africa marks the passing of our beloved patron, Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu.
The Arch, who himself admitted that he couldn’t, and wouldn’t shut up in […]
BRIEFING 4 of 2021: A snapshot of injury-related death in SA in 2017
Briefing 4 summarises South Africa’s 2nd injury mortality survey which analyses 2017 mortuary data. The survey gives a snapshot of who, how, where and when people died including detailed information on the weapon used in murder or suicide.
The main findings of the 2017 injury mortality survey include that:
‒ More people were murdered than died […]
16 Days of Activism: Disarm gender-based violence
2021 marks the 30th anniversary of the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, which runs from 25 November (International Day Against Violence Against Women) to 10 December (International Human Rights Day).
Despite three decades of ardent campaigns to end gender-based violence (GBV), hundreds of millions of women and girls continue to be abused, deprived of their human rights and […]
STATEMENT: Delaying Firearms Control Amendment Bill is right thing to do
GFSA welcomes yesterday’s decision by the parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Police to delay tabling amendments to the Firearms Control Act.
Says Adèle Kirsten, GFSA’s Director, “Yesterday’s decision is not a sign that parliament is opposed to strengthening the Firearms Control Act. Instead it ensures that the best possible version of the Bill comes to parliament, and was the right thing to […]
STATEMENT: Response to video of armed man shot in head by cop at hotel
During the recent public debate on proposed amendments to the Firearms Control Act, a
common theme was how effective guns are for self-defence. Despite the evidence that guns are not the
solution, and rather pose a risk for injury and death, the myth persisted through anecdotal evidence. This
terrible incident, leaving all the people involved traumatised, and one man fighting for his life, […]
BRIEFING 3 of 2021: The illegal firearms trade in South Africa
In May 2021 the Civilian Secretariat for Police Service published a draft Firearms Control Amendment Bill. With almost 100 proposed amendments, a key focus of the Bill is to control legal firearms and ammunition more effectively. This Briefing explores whether that approach will have an impact on the illegal firearms trade in South Africa, and is based on a recently […]
STATEMENT: Welcome Draft Firearms Control Amendment Bill
Gun violence in South Africa has reached epidemic proportions: Nationally, guns have overtaken knives as the weapon most used in murders , while in Gauteng more people are shot and killed than die in traffic accidents. Within this context, we welcome the Draft Firearms Control Amendment Bill, and in partocular support:
- The alignment of the Firearms Control Act with global […]
BRIEFING 2 of 2021: SA’s Central Firearms Register – The collapsing cornerstone of gun control
On 14 and 15 May the Portfolio Committee on Police is conducting an oversight visit in Gauteng, where members will visit the Central Firearms Registry (CFR) in Pretoria. Briefing 2 has been developed in preparation for this oversight visit to highlight that problems in the functioning of the CFR identified in 2010 have still not been dealt with eleven years […]