Foreign businesses lose faith in police
April 19 2013 at 10:35am
By Sisi Lwandle
By Sisi Lwandle
inlsa
MEC Dan Plato, second
from right, speaks to Quan Jiawei, whose shop was robbed last week. Chinese
consul-general Li Jiangning and deputy provincial police commissioner Peter
Jacobs look on Picture: Cindy Waxa
Cape Town - More than 70 percent of
business robberies were committed against foreign-owned businesses, according
to Community Safety MEC Dan Plato.
Plato was addressing growing concerns at
a meeting between the police and the Chinese business community in Milnerton on
Thursday.
“There has been a notable spike in
business robberies in the Western Cape, specifically Cape Town. This has not
affected Chinese communities alone - it has also affected other foreigners like
Somalian and Pakistani shops,” said Plato.
The meeting follows a robbery in
Milnerton a week ago, the fifth targeting a Chinese-owned business in the
province since January. The six robbers allegedly included two policemen. The
officers have been arrested and suspended.
One of the victims said he was still
“traumatised” by the incident, which occurred last Thursday.
Speaking with the help of a translator,
the man, who gave his name only as Yan, 33, said he was struggling to trust
anyone, including the police: “The people I trusted turned around and stabbed
me in the back and robbed me.”
Quan Jiawei, a shop owner robbed last
Saturday, believed the robberies were an inside job: “The robbers knew where
everything was and where to find everything. I don’t think the police can help
us here.”
Zhang John, vice-chairperson of the
Chinese business community, said the community had lost confidence that their
businesses were safe.
Deputy provincial commissioner
Major-General Peter Jacobs said the foreign businesses were not targeted
because the owners were foreigners, but because the owners had money on the
premises. Other reasons were that most owners lived on the premises and because
most foreign owners followed a specific routine.
“If we look at the amount of money
being taken, we see amounts in excess of R400 000 were stolen.”
Plato and Jacobs encouraged business
owners to deposit their takings in the banks, and to use cash-in-transit
vehicles to get their money there.
The minister was reluctant to reveal
other safety tips in the open meeting and called for a closed dialogue with the
businesses to discuss further safety details.
sibusisiwe.lwandle@inl.co.za
Cape Argus
