CHAPTER 3 |
Robert Chetty
Secretariat for Safety and Security
This chapter aims to provide an understanding of the types and quantities of firearms licenced, where the firearms in SA are presently concentrated, quantities lost and stolen and the types and quantities of firearms and ammunition recovered by the SAPS.
There are more than 4.5 million registered firearms in South Africa including almost 2.8 million handguns (pistols and revolvers). An average of 192 283 new licences have been granted each year for the past five years 1994 to 1998, with significant variations by province. Most of the legally registered firearms (78.2%) are held by private individuals. Over 13 000 individuals have more than 10 firearms registered to them. The rate of approval of firearm licences relative to population varies significantly, with the lowest rate being in the Northern Province and the highest In Gauteng.
In 1998, the firearms recovered by the police in South Africa consisted primarily of pistols (55.7%) and revolvers (15.9%) followed by rifles (10.1%) and shotguns (3.6%). AK-47 assault rifles accounted for a small percentage of the total firearms recovered (2.5%, down from 10.7% in 1994). Home-made firearms accounted for 14.8%. Once again there were significant provincial variations, with most (45%) of the weapons having been seized in KwaZulu-Natal, followed by Gauteng (40%).
The extent and shape of the illegal supply of firearms in South Africa is not known conclusively. The illegal supply of firearms in South Africa is fuelled by losses and thefts of legally owned firearms from individual and state sources. There have been increases in the numbers of firearms being reported lost or stolen each year for the years 1994 to 1998. In addition, there is evidence of a dramatic increase in robberies of firearms, i.e. where the owner of a firearm is forcibly deprived thereof.
The illegal firearms market is also supplied through firearms being imported illegally or imported legally and subsequently diverted to illegal markets, as well as from caches built up during the liberation struggle.
LEGAL FIREARM DISTRIBUTION IN SOUTH AFRICA
| R | ecent figures supplied by the Central Firearm Registry indicate that in South Africa, there are 4 544 705 registered firearms. Just over 3.5 million of these registered to private individuals. This is a ratio of 106 firearms for every 1000 persons.1 The table below provides a breakdown of the numbers of firearms registered to the different users by type of firearm: |
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1 Based on the 1999 estimated mid-year national population figure of 43 056 100.
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