Table Mountain a complete "No Go" area ??

[Andre (TM Safety Action Group)]

Another series of attacks on the mountain!! In the last two weeks we
have seen attacks in the Karbonkelberg (attempted rape), Platteklip
and Blockhouse areas. The nature of these attacks has escalated
somewhat and people are now being injured in the process. The
Karbonkelberg incident, for example has prompted the Hout Bay
Community Police Forum (CPF) to declare it a complete no-go area,
warning all Hout Bay Neighbourhood Watch members to stay away. Sandy
Bay falls into the same category.

Do we now add Rhodes Mem / Blockhouse to the list? Do we start to
see parts of the mountain in the same way we see the Cape Town Station
Deck – which JP Smith loves to use as an example of a much higher
priority area for Metro and SAPF resources?

When do we shut down the mountain completely?? I’m not sure this is
such an extreme concept anymore. I have to think very carefully about
where I want to take my family for walks these days. What about you?

Press comments by various members of Table Mountain National Park beg
further comment. While we believe these people to be hard working and
diligent, they are short staffed and lacking in the fundamental skills
of policing and apprehending criminals of this type on this terrain.
SECURITY ON THE MOUNTAIN IS NOT “ADEQUATE”. This is the usual RSA
“What crisis?” response, trotted out by those we have appointed to do
the job. Security should not be “adequate” at this time. It should
be much, much more than just “adequate”.

SANParks itself is hugely quiet on the matter, preferring to leave
all communication, strategy and action to TMNP. Or not? We can only
speculate in the communication vacuum they love to maintain. In the
Kruger Park (extraordinary) forces have been brought to bear to deal
with Rhino poachers. What’s the difference here?

We have access to statistics (diligently collated by a friend of the
action group over the years) that go way back to the year 2000. From
these one can determine that had TMNP (and SAPF) focused on 4 areas –
primarily – up to 75% (!!) of all attacks could have been prevented.
Simple analysis of the data on an ongoing basis would have revealed
this much earlier. Why then the ongoing reference to “it’s a vast
area” ?? A concerted focus – that is visible policing as well as
covert observation posts – in these areas will rid us of most of the
problems.

Which areas are these: Sandy Bay, Lions Head, Blockhouse,
Skeleton. Of these, in more recent times (2010), Sandy Bay and
Blockhouse have recorded more incidents than Skeleton and Lions Head.
Newlands Forest and Celia Forest are also areas to be very careful
in.

Soon we should declare the stretch from Skeleton to Blockhouse a no go
area. Add Sandy Bay and the Karbonkelberg. Still a "vast" area left I
guess - so who cares. Let’s just hand these areas over to criminals
and vagrants. Yes? I hope not.