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A NATION WITHOUT GUNS? The Story of Gun Free South Africa by Adele Kirsten (University of KwaZulu-Natal Press)
Review by Janet Shapiro
Although an account of the origins and story of Gun Free South Africa (GFSA), this book is much more than that. It is a detailed, and often moving, account of a campaign born in the dying days of apartheid and intended to help build a new society, one worthy of the miracle that unfolded in South Africa in April 1994. It is the story of how an activist, her skills honed in the height of the repression of the eighties and early nineties, turned to organising and campaigning for the long-term goal of a gun-free nation in a newly democratic state.
In many ways, it mirrors the realisation of apartheid era activists that the end of apartheid was the beginning of the long haul. It provides a “how-to” book for those engaged in the many struggles that remain to be fought to make South Africa the country we imagined it would be. Appendix 5, covering both the law-making process and a guide to successful advocacy, is particularly useful in this regard.
As well as this more general application, the book paints a clear picture of the impact of gun violence on South African society, a picture in which real people kill with guns and die from gun-shots wounds. The statistics are there (for example, South African civilians now own 3.7 million licensed firearms, compared to the 567 000 in the hands of the police and army) but the book is also haunted by the very real victims described in the first few pages. The culture of violence that occupies the front pages of our newspapers almost every day, and its origins in the years before 1994 are described, as is the remarkable way in which GFSA tapped into “the ability of ordinary people to bring about change – by mobilising, organising and campaigning.”
The chapters of the book map out the steps of a mobilising campaign, beginning with what Kirsten calls “the defining moment”, the weapons hand-in of 16 December 1994. This was based on a government-agreed 24-hour amnesty in terms of which no questions would be asked of anyone handing in a weapon, and there would be no prosecutions based on the hand-in. Although it represented the culmination of months of intense campaigning, it was a beginning rather than an end.
Indeed, the closing chapter makes it clear that the end is not yet in sight and, despite the passing of the Firearms Control Act in 2000 (surely another defining moment), and a reduction in the number of firearm deaths in South Africa, “the struggle continues.”
Nevertheless, the chapter dealing with the largely symbolic hand-in (a total of 900 firearms were handed in at the 167 hand-in points), in addition to making clear how much of a contested area the idea of a gun free South Africa is, also relates a number of moving stories. These include some powerful moments such as the simultaneous handover of guns by two rival Western Cape gangs, and the picture of a group of pre-schoolers in Diepkloof, Soweto, handing in their toy guns for destruction. The Chapter describing the grassroots mobilisation against guns explains the GFSA strategy: influence public policy on firearms legislation, engage people at the grassroots level; and raise awareness about the danger of guns “in order to shift public attitudes away from accepting guns as a norm”. Kirsten goes on to describe how the grassroots part of the strategy was translated into action towards achieving the organisation’s goals, using the “gun-free-zone” campaign to connect communities to what was happening at the national policy level.
A gun-free zone is a space where firearms and ammunition are not welcome. The symbol of a crossed out gun, with the slogan “This is a gun-free zone” was distributed by GFSA and became a familiar sight. It went with a workshop pack for community leaders and activists, working with communities to set up gun-free zones in public places. The campaign challenges the notion that people feel safer when guns are present. The book presents a case study of one community in which the gun-free campaign became an active project, generating considerable media interest, and inspiring similar activities in other communities.
At the same time, GFSA was building up relations with like-minded organisations and with government departments such as Safety and Security, Justice, Defence and Education, working with the media and building research capacity within the organisation to make a strong case for gun control. This led to the formation of the Gun Control Alliance (GCA), with the aim of stricter gun control as its rallying call. The purpose of the GCA was “to get as many people as possible to support an achievable short-term objective” as a step in GFSA’s vision of a gun-free nation.
This included involving communities in discussion around the Firearms Control Bill when it was published at the end of 1999. The GCA ran workshops with communities prior to the public hearings on the Bill and, when the hearings took place, brought people from communities to parliament and provided them with the support they needed to have the courage to stand up and speak their minds.
The experience of Samuel Kobela, spokesperson from the Mapela community in Limpopo, a community which had embraced the gun-free zone campaign, at the hearings, is recorded in his own words as well as those of Kirsten, in a Chapter entitled “Making Democracy Work: The People Come to Parliament”. This touches the heart of what is best about our democracy, something we lose sight of too often. Less dramatically, but equally importantly, GFSA analysed the legislation carefully and prepared their representation methodically and strategically. Kirsten sees the passing of the Bill as a “solid victory for gun control” and as the result of “a joint effort between the MPs and civil society”.
The Chapter dealing with winning public opinion through media advocacy and campaigning is particularly fascinating. GFSA formed a dynamic relationship with an advertising agency as a “charity account”. This partnership produced provocative and exciting material, examples of which are provided by Kirsten. GFSA also worked well with the media and developed useful guidelines for itself in making this relationship as positive as possible.
Punctuating the description of the carefully planned and creatively executed strategy is a background of intense antagonism from the gun lobby, illustrated by harassment in the form of obscene threatening phone calls, break-ins, theft and vandalism. The book conveys the fear, despair and, ultimately, strengthened conviction, this brought to staff and dedicated campaigners. Gun control is a contested issue and the gun lobby presented a formidable challenge. Kirsten provides a useful analysis of where she thinks the lobby got it wrong. Contrasting with the overt hostility and more sophisticated lobbying and messaging of the South African Gun Owners’ Association (SAGA) was the ongoing support from other organisations and activists involved in similar campaigns in places such as Brazil, Canada and Australia.
This book is very readable, both for the specific story it tells and for its wider application. It should be a “must read” for anyone involved in advocacy work that aims to make our Constitution a living reality rather than just a self-congratulatory reference point.
Janet Shapiro is an expert in the fields of human behaviour, developmental psychology and social work, and has facilitated the development of programs for at-risk families in the community.
"The story of GFSA and its engagement with our political institutions holds many lessons that are valuable for civil society organisations seeking to improve government policy".
Zackie Achmat, Chairperson of the Treatment Action Campain, South Africa.
"Informed by social movement theory as well as original research on similar social movements in other countries such as Brazil, Kirsten provides an account that is informative, engaging, and inspirational. This story is an important one for anyone committed to social change."
Wendy Cukier, President of Canada's Coalition for Gun Control and Professor of Justice Studies and Information Technology Management, Ryerson University, Toronto
Journal of Peace Research 2008; 45; 437 Nicholas Marsh
Kirsten, Adèle, 2007. A Nation Without Guns? The Story of Gun Free South Africa. Scottsville: University of KwaZulu-Natal Press. xx + 244 pp. ISBN 9781869141356.
Feinstein, Andrew, 2007. After the Party: A Personal and Political Journey Inside the ANC. Johannesburg: Jonathan Bull. xiv + 287 pp. ISBN 9781868422623.
From very different standpoints, these authors have written two fascinating accounts of South African politics during the decade after the country’s first democratic election in 1994. Andrew Feinstein was an MP who led the ANC’s representation in the parliament’s Public Accounts Committee. At first, his book is auto-biographical and outlines his upbringing, education, activism and marriage. But most the chapters describe how the initial optimism and commitment to democracy of the ANC government were replaced with growing authoritarianism and corruption. Feinstein details the intellectual corruption of Thabo Mbeki’s Aids denialism and financial corruption of the arms deal. He records how the ANC leadership prevented an investigation into the deal – which is worth some US$ 7.5 billion – even though the European arms manufacturers have been investigated by their governments for corruption associated with it. His most striking allegation is that one of the main beneficiaries of the multi-million dollar bribes was the ANC itself – it used the money to fight the 1999 election campaign. Attempts at parliamentary scrutiny were quashed by an ANC leadership which replaced the vigorous discussion of the opposition years with a rigid insistence on loyalty to the party, and Feinstein states that the prevention of an investigation into the deal led him to resign in 2001. As Feinstein concedes, such antics will hold few surprises for those who have followed the careers of Blair, Mitterrand or Berlusconi. But South Africa cannot afford a leadership which denies treatment to the some five million people infected with HIV and squanders billions on weapons. Kirsten has written an insider account of the NGO Gun Free South Africa (GFSA), an organization dedicated to preventing violence by reducing the number of guns available in South Africa. Kirsten was GFSA’s national coordinator between 1995 and 2002. The book outlines the history of GFSA and explains its strategy. It starts in 1994, and Kirsten asserts that guncontrol initiatives were an important component of peacebuilding. Handing in weapons was a powerful symbol that the armed struggle was over, and GFSA organized a national firearms amnesty in December 1994, after the first democratic elections. GFSA then embarked upon an ambitious three-part strategy. First, at the grass-roots level, it supported the establishment of gun-free zones – by which buildings or communities would declare themselves to be gun free. Second, it organized an ambitious media campaign, and some of the advertisements are included in the book. Last, and perhaps most successfully, it lobbied for a change in South African firearms legislation. From the outset, GFSA took a pragmatic strategy. It decided, early on, to aim to reduce the number of firearms rather than to eradicate guns. Moreover, Kirsten states that it focused upon short-term projects that were designed to achieve long-term goals. The book provides many insights into South Africa in the years after apartheid – the NGO sector was developed along with the country’s nascent democracy. Kirsten also notes the importance of research. GFSA placed an early emphasis upon obtaining, in partnership with the health sector, the data it used to make its case. If Feinstein details how the country’s optimism was betrayed, Kirsten shows that progressive causes could succeed in South Africa’s vibrant democratic spaces. The books reveal two facets of a country still remaking itself after the end of a unique and still unravelling conflict.
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