Monakali is confident in her analysis: "Rape, domestic violence against women, children and the elderly are the crimes of emasculated men who want attention. Ilitha Labanthu ("rays of sunshine on the people") was started by Gugulethu women 21 years ago and now has branches and safe houses all over South Africa. "The crimes of Gugulethu happen in the home," says Thulile Monakali, chief of operations at Ilitha Labantu, a domestic violence self-help group based in a brick house with a small front garden like thousands of others in Gugulethu. In the area, unemployment exceeds 60% and locals speak of young men beating up their grandmothers to buy "tik'' – crystal meth – with the 1,010-rand (£90) monthly state pension that is the only regular income for many households. There have been 700 murders in Gugulethu since 2005, according to the South African Institute of Race Relations. Statistics suggest that Dlambulo and the owner of the famous eatery – a popular tourist haunt that has been featured by Jamie Oliver – want to put a gloss on an ugly reality. We have no funds but we have all sorts of projects, including an athletics club started by Mzoli." One of our biggest challenges is keeping our youngsters busy. I am a member of the community policing and education forums. "Our problems are internal and we deal with them. He admits overcrowded Gugulethu has its problems but says it is also a place where people look out for each other. Under the huge marquee that is Mzoli's Meat, Mzonke Dlambulo, aged 45, sits at a table covered with a plastic Coca-Cola cloth and sips cider from a bottle as he finishes a helping of grilled meat on a plastic plate. Car drivers suddenly slam on their brakes to stop for a chat with an oncoming vehicle. Women shout greetings to each other, children dash around and dogs laze everywhere. Across the road, a garage displays exhaust silencers on what looks like an oversize saucepan stand in the shape of a Christmas tree. Near it are businesses, including a hairdresser and a phone top-up shop, operating out of containers. There is something fishy about the case." Set in an area of corrugated and tiled roofs atop brick houses painted pink, pale blue and green, Mzoli's seven-day-a-week braai (barbecue) diner and butchery opened in 2000 and draws up to 800 customers at the weekend. You have to have a link with the place to become a target. "Criminals in townships hardly ever choose foreign tourists. "This is the safest place in the world for foreigners," says 56-year-old entrepreneur Mzoli Ngcauzele, whose restaurant the couple were rumoured to have visited on the Saturday evening until it became clear it had closed at 7pm. It has also raised questions about what life is really like in the vast shantytowns. Five months after South Africa staged a largely incident-free World Cup, the case has blemished the country's reputation. The 31-year-old Cape Town man is due to appear in court tomorrow. After two 26-year-old male suspects were arrested last week, a third man was charged yesterday with kidnapping and murder. Her husband Shrien, a 31-year-old British businessman, and their driver survived the late-night hijacking of their Volkswagen Sharan among the low-rise houses and clusters of shacks off the N2 highway.Ī massive investigation has been launched. The Swedish-born engineer was shot dead with three bullets.
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