Running away from crime
Posted by Tanja Estella Bosch | 25 May, 2009
I went jogging around 6.30am last Tuesday morning before work, when I casually greeted another jogger in an equal state of huffiness. On my way back I nearly tripped over the police tape of a section of road cordoned off, with a body being sombrely being covered by the cops. Flashing lights lit up that section of the still dark road, and my dog growled briefly at the kind officer who lifted the tape and shone his flashlight so we could pass. This incident left me pondering the frailty of life, particularly after I later heard on radio news that the body was that of a jogger who was attacked, stabbed twice for his cellphone, and who died on the side of the road, discovered by a roving patrol van. A few hours later I heard a description of the dead man on the radio, and was startled to learn that this was the same jogger I had greeted so casually on my run. Not only was he a fellow jogger, but a fellow hiker, a member of the small group of people who practice the sport I love so much.
I usually jog alone, but on Tuesday morning I had my staffie along (mostly in the hope that she would help me increase my running speed). This really got me thinking about several things. Had I been on time (I was 'running' late that morning) and had I not had the dog, I may have stepped right into the attack or worse yet, been the victim. And why do we have so much violent crime in South Africa? Perhaps it’s naive to imagine that one might politely request a potential victim to hand over their valuables; but somehow the idea that someone might deem it necessary to take another’s life – over a few material possessions (in this case a measly cellphone) – seems unpalatable. Other African countries have similar levels of crime – pickpocketing and other petty thefts – but these are rarely accompanied by stabbings or shootings. Perhaps this incident was nothing more than a jolt to my privileged life in the Southern Suburbs, since such crimes are commonplace on the Cape Flats and elsewhere. Johnny Steinberg (in The Number) explains that crime has always been present for the vast majority of South Africans, and that it was only when it started spilling out into middle class suburbs that we noticed; and that moreover, crime is a form of low-intensity civil war. Sure – with our history of severe inequality (which continues today) it almost even kinda makes sense. But I think it (together with many other things) is symptomatic of a sick society. We need to start thinking about getting at the root causes of crime. There’s something wrong with our society when people can kill other human beings for their possessions. Equally indicative of our sick society is those drivers who don’t step at pedestrian crossings, people who litter, parents who don’t teach their kids to say please and thank-you and adults who don’t respond to cellphone messages.
Of course this also got me thinking about how we choose to live our lives. I often run and walk alone – but never when I feel that my personal safety might be threatened. I am adventurous, not stupid (or so I like to think). Do all joggers now have to run in packs, fearful of muggers? Do I turn the poor staffie into a regular jogging mate? Do we have to get an alarm system and electric fencing? (we must be among the few who don't already)
I think the solution is to live life and not to become victims of fear. Exercise a degree of measured caution but not expect the worst. In defence of/ reaction to my own fear, I piled the poor staffie into the car and went hiking to Noordhoek Peak from Silvermine the day after. I was relieved when upon meeting an affluent looking cyclist, said faithful staffie growled fiercely as he approached up the hill, lycra clad and wearily pushing his Diamond Back, in desperate need of the good news that the rest of his route was downhill.
I’m not planning on emigrating anywhere, anytime soon. And I haven’t yet figured out the solution to the ‘problem’ of crime. So in the meantime, if you encounter a sweaty and huffy jogger with a staffie, don’t be offended if they both growl at you.
I usually jog alone, but on Tuesday morning I had my staffie along (mostly in the hope that she would help me increase my running speed). This really got me thinking about several things. Had I been on time (I was 'running' late that morning) and had I not had the dog, I may have stepped right into the attack or worse yet, been the victim. And why do we have so much violent crime in South Africa? Perhaps it’s naive to imagine that one might politely request a potential victim to hand over their valuables; but somehow the idea that someone might deem it necessary to take another’s life – over a few material possessions (in this case a measly cellphone) – seems unpalatable. Other African countries have similar levels of crime – pickpocketing and other petty thefts – but these are rarely accompanied by stabbings or shootings. Perhaps this incident was nothing more than a jolt to my privileged life in the Southern Suburbs, since such crimes are commonplace on the Cape Flats and elsewhere. Johnny Steinberg (in The Number) explains that crime has always been present for the vast majority of South Africans, and that it was only when it started spilling out into middle class suburbs that we noticed; and that moreover, crime is a form of low-intensity civil war. Sure – with our history of severe inequality (which continues today) it almost even kinda makes sense. But I think it (together with many other things) is symptomatic of a sick society. We need to start thinking about getting at the root causes of crime. There’s something wrong with our society when people can kill other human beings for their possessions. Equally indicative of our sick society is those drivers who don’t step at pedestrian crossings, people who litter, parents who don’t teach their kids to say please and thank-you and adults who don’t respond to cellphone messages.
Of course this also got me thinking about how we choose to live our lives. I often run and walk alone – but never when I feel that my personal safety might be threatened. I am adventurous, not stupid (or so I like to think). Do all joggers now have to run in packs, fearful of muggers? Do I turn the poor staffie into a regular jogging mate? Do we have to get an alarm system and electric fencing? (we must be among the few who don't already)
I think the solution is to live life and not to become victims of fear. Exercise a degree of measured caution but not expect the worst. In defence of/ reaction to my own fear, I piled the poor staffie into the car and went hiking to Noordhoek Peak from Silvermine the day after. I was relieved when upon meeting an affluent looking cyclist, said faithful staffie growled fiercely as he approached up the hill, lycra clad and wearily pushing his Diamond Back, in desperate need of the good news that the rest of his route was downhill.
I’m not planning on emigrating anywhere, anytime soon. And I haven’t yet figured out the solution to the ‘problem’ of crime. So in the meantime, if you encounter a sweaty and huffy jogger with a staffie, don’t be offended if they both growl at you.
