Hon Speaker, I think it is very clear that the hon member is basing her question on speculation. On the basis of what is being said and what we see, we, therefore, think this is what is happening, because we don't know what the contents of the amendments are. She is speculating, therefore, that maybe this is what the commissioner means, or that maybe from what you say, this is what you mean. That is how I understood the question.
I think we are very clear on this matter: We are dealing with crime. The crime in South Africa is different from that of other countries, although it may be the same in terms of quantity. It is different from the point of view that crime in South Africa is more violent than in any other parts of the world. Criminals here act differently; if they break into somebody's house, they wait for the person to arrive and demand the keys to your safe, etc. In other countries they steal and run away.
Here, criminals have been killing people. That is why crime here is characterised as violent. We are, therefore, dealing with that situation. In addition, South Africa is heavily armed as a country. There are lots of guns all over and they are being used to commit crime. We are saying that we need to fight crime. We have made the point that when criminals are cornered, they take out guns and they don't fire warning shots; they shoot to kill. There are many police who have died as a result of that, while observing what ought to be standard practice.
After I addressed the police officers, a policeman in Pretoria who did not have his bullet-proof vest on was killed. The policeman shouted at a criminal three times, "Put your gun down!", and the criminal shot and killed the policeman.
The point that I have been making at least is that when criminals take out their guns, their intention is not to warn; they take them out with the intention to kill.
On the spur of the moment, what do you do as a policeman? Should you say, "I'm a very good policeman and I've got a gun, but I'm not going to shoot you. Please, put the gun down!" How do you deal with the issue of violent crime? How do you limit the numbers of police that are killed by criminals? That's the point we are dealing with, within the law, not outside of the law; hence the amendment to the Act.
Some of the police officers who have made such mistakes as shooting innocent people are now in prison; they have been arrested. There is no open-ended policy that gives the police the right to shoot randomly. That is why the emphasis has been on the amendment of the law. Thank you. [Applause.]