CAPE TOWN, Western Cape – Community members and local leaders in the Cape Flats have voiced strong concerns over the effectiveness of Operation Prosper following Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s assessment visit to the region, arguing that the joint South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and police deployment has not delivered meaningful improvements to safety in gang-affected areas.
The Deputy President’s tour, conducted nearly two months after security forces were deployed to stabilize volatile neighborhoods, unfolded against a backdrop of persistent violence and resident skepticism that government efforts prioritize visibility over tangible results.
During the visit, residents expressed frustration over the limited presence of security personnel. “We only saw them twice and now today was three times since they’ve been deployed,” one community member stated. “What is their purpose here? They can go back to where they come from because we, as a community, have to fight the battles that the army is fighting.”
The emotional toll on families was underscored by a resident who shared her four-year-old granddaughter’s plea: “She asked me three weeks ago, ‘Ma, is this gangster paradise that we’re living in? I don’t want to stay in gangster paradise. I don’t want to die in gangster paradise.’ How can they say they haven’t failed us? They failed us deeply.”
Further tension arose when Community Policing Forum (CPF) representatives reported being barred from the Deputy President’s closed-door meetings, despite having extended invitations. CPF leadership questioned the logic of developing crime-combat strategies without engaging established community structures. “What we experience today—where I, the CPF chairperson here, am told I’m not welcome in my own home—it’s a slap in the face,” one representative said. “If that is government’s response to us as volunteers, then we as a community need to review our relationship with government, with the police, and other stakeholders.”
The visit came in the wake of a particularly deadly weekend in which mass shootings and children caught in gang crossfire resulted in at least 13 fatalities across the Cape Flats.
In response to community concerns, Deputy President Paul Mashatile acknowledged ongoing challenges while affirming the operation’s objectives. “I’m happy with the report I received from the police and the army about the work they are doing, but there is much more we need to do,” he stated. “There are still people who are being killed in some parts of the Cape Flats, and we must make sure that we get to these culprits. They must be arrested and go to jail.” Mashatile emphasized that political leaders “must not just sit in parliament” but engage directly with communities to verify that security forces are fulfilling their mandates, adding that observations would be conveyed to the President.
Nevertheless, anti-crime activists warned that residents are increasingly disillusioned with short-term interventions that lack enduring impact. “For the police and the army to come with what we call optics—even today we see it as going out into the communities—it’s showing but it’s not producing the kind of sustained change that we want to see,” one activist observed. They called on authorities to “start listening to those that speak on behalf of the community. We have committed people on the ground.”
As Operation Prosper continues, bridging the divide between official progress reports and the daily realities faced by Cape Flats residents remains a critical hurdle for authorities working to restore safety and rebuild public trust.
