22 killed in two months: Inside Westbury’s deadly gang war
Westbury residents live in constant fear as daily gunfire from rival gangs, the Varados and Fast Guns, disrupts their lives. With 22 fatalities reported in just two months, the community calls for urgent action against escalating gang violence.
In recent months, Westbury in Johannesburg has been embroiled in a deadly gang war, resulting in the deaths of 22 individuals. The conflict involves two prominent gangs, the Varados and Fast Guns, who are clashing over territory and drugs. One Force SA community activist Eugene Dooms has spoken out about the devastating impact of the violence on the community, stating that "from July to August, there have been 22 people killed.
This is only in Westbury." He describes the situation as a "systematic genocide" taking place in the area, where the gangs have moved beyond simply dealing drugs and fighting for turf. Now, factions within the gangs are forming, each vying for a piece of the action. Despite the presence of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), community activist Dooms argues that the military is not effectively addressing the issue.
"When these incidents (shootings) happen, there is no army. When they do come, they are not trained to solve the problem. They do not go after the perpetrators. We are not seeing any prosecutions. We are not seeing any return on the millions in budget spent on sending in the army," Dooms lamented. Government has allocated R823 million for the deployment of the SANDF to gang-ridden areas across Gauteng, the Western Cape, and the Eastern Cape under Operation Prosper.
However, Dooms believes the government's approach is failing, as they fail to engage with or listen to those on the ground. In response to the escalating violence, Dooms and other community members plan to march to the Johannesburg mayor's office on August 21 to present a memorandum calling for the area to be declared a state of disaster.
Furthermore, the Gauteng Education Department has expressed concern over the impact of the gang violence on learners, educators, parents, and the broader school community. Deputy Minister of Education, Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation Lebogang Maile confirmed that five young people were reportedly shot, with three losing their lives and two sustaining critical injuries in a shooting incident on August 17.
One of the victims was a learner from R.W. Fick Secondary School. Maile assured that learners who missed assessments or examinations due to the unsafe environment would be afforded an opportunity to take them.
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