South Africa and Gun Violence: Too many shots fired?

Has South Africa become a gun-wielding society, and if so, how do we fix it? 68 people are murdered every day in South Africa with firearms being the most frequently used weapon. Is the problem that we have too many guns in society or is it something far deeper than that? Carol Ofori tries to get some answers She hosts a debate around gun violence in South Africa and asks the question, ‘Has South Africa become a gun-wielding society, and if so, how do we fix it?’ Carol’s guests are three seasoned role players in the firearm space in South Africa: Claire Taylor, Gideon Joubert, and Dr. Sibusiso Ntsele. Taylor is a researcher at Gun Free SA, focusing on gun violence prevention. She’s worked as a researcher and communicator on a range of social justice issues, particularly violence and injury prevention and climate protection, for over 20 years. Joubert is the owner and editor of ‘Paratus’ - an online firearm ownership resource - as well as an independent security consultant and a registered Category 4 (Advanced) firearm instructor. Ntsele is a specialist forensic pathologist with eThekwini Forensic Pathology Services, KZN Department of Health. He has vast experience in firearm-related injuries and fatalities and is the Acting: Head Clinical Unit responsible for clinical matters in all KZN medico-legal mortuaries. While all three, for the most part, agree that South Africa is a gun-violent society, there was strong disagreement about the reasons for these problems as well as the potential solutions. It's a lively debate. Episode Credits: News clips courtesy of eNCA, ECR Newswatch and Africa News. Podcast page on ECR's website