Safe Citizen & DearSouthAfrica.co.za join forces to carry your voice forward

The Public Will No Longer Be Silenced on Firearms Legislation

The South African public has watched in disbelief as the ANC government, through the Civilian Secretariat for Police (CSP) and its allies, has geared up to smooth the way for the launch of deeply flawed, irrational and punitive amendments to the Firearms Control Act - with almost no meaningful stakeholder engagement during the development of the proposed amendments.

The process has been characterised by secrecy, procedural manipulation and a deliberate exclusion of the very people whose lives will be most affected – ordinary South Africans who rely on legal firearm ownership for self-defence and the rendering of security services, to protect their families in a country where violent crime remains out of control.

Nedlac – an institution meant to facilitate genuine social dialogue on trade and industry – has been misrepresented to create the illusion of proper stakeholder engagement. The truth is that Nedlac’s intervention is little more than a face-saving mechanism for a government that has already lost control of its own legislative agenda.

When Safe Citizen and other voices exposed the sham, Nedlac was forced to postpone its planned rubber-stamp meeting on November 7th 2025. That postponement – now set for 4 December 2025 – was not granted out of goodwill. It was extracted under sustained public pressure led by Safe Citizen.

Meanwhile, the most important voice of all – the South African public – has been almost entirely absent from the debate. That is not an accident. It is by design. Yet the public is waking up. Evidence emerging daily from the Madlanga Commission and the Parliamentary Ad Hoc Committee has exposed staggering levels of criminality, institutional decay, political interference in law-enforcement agencies, weaponisation of state institutions against citizens, and a police and law enforcement sector often either incapable or unwilling to protect the public.

In this context, the government’s obsession with disarming law-abiding citizens is not merely misguided – it is reckless and dangerous.

Safe Citizen was formed precisely to carry forward the concerns and sustain the voice of the public.

Today we are excited to announce a ground-breaking strategic alliance with DearSouthAfrica.co.za – South Africa’s largest and most effective civic participation platform. This partnership gives every South African, whether they own a firearm or not, a powerful and direct channel to make their voices heard. We are also engaged in high-level discussions with AfriForum to forge a broad, united front on community safety and the protection of constitutional rights.

Safe Citizen is not a gun-lobby. We are a citizen-lobby. Our membership is open to every South African who believes that public safety policy must be shaped by the public – not by captured institutions, ideological zealots or politicians who refuse to face the reality of crime in our country.

Together we will ensure that when Nedlac convenes on 4 December, and when Parliament finally debates these amendments, the government will be confronted with one unmistakable reality: The South African public will not be ignored. The South African public will not be disarmed. And the South African public will not accept being treated as subjects rather than citizens.

Firearm owner or not – your voice matters. Join us. Keep an eye out for the DearSouthAfrica.co.za communications, and please support us by sending funding our way.

 

ENDS

For comment contact:
Jonathan.deal@safecitizen.co.za