The reasons for decline in tourism arrivals in SA

[Peter Betts]

It Depends where you Live and how you get to Kruger >> We go every year through Phalaborwa Gate after driving for 3 days and at 73 next month I have never been attacked , Robbed or Molested >> Its far safer thatn say New York and many more places

[Lisbeth]

It is not, if you look at the numbers! and you cannot judge from your own experiences.

[Lisbeth]

In a Swiss Newspaper and not only, I am sure:


© Shutterstock

Criminality/ Changing maps in South Africa: Google Maps will only indicate «safe routes»

Other apps, including Waze, will also stop suggesting the route through Nyanga township to guide tourists from the international airport to some Cape Town tourist areas

The popular Google Maps and Waze Apps, now used everywhere to indicate the shortest roads to reach your destination, From today they will stop suggesting the route through the township of Nyanga to guide tourists from the international airport to some tourist areas of Cape Town. Alistair Mokoena, head of Google for South Africa, announced yesterday.

The decision comes after last week an American tourist was robbed and shot in the face in Nyanga after a navigation app had directed him to cross the township as it offered the shortest route to his hotel which is located along the coast south of Cape Town. In September, 40-year-old British surgeon Kar Hao Teoh was killed in the same township during a local transport strike.

According to South African media, other people, mostly tourists unaware of the geography of the city’s neighbourhoods, were assaulted while crossing the township, some following the recommendations of navigation apps.

After the killing of Teoh, the British government has published on the website of the Foreign Office a statement warning its citizens visiting South Africa to «be careful when following GPS navigators» and to «avoid taking alternative routes away from the main roads, because they can often lead to less safe areas».

The announcement concludes that «violent crimes in South Africa occur in townships on the outskirts of large cities or in isolated areas».

[Richprins]

A good idea, but what a sad comment on SA!

[Lisbeth]

It sure is!

Even I don't have the courage to return (I have not quite given up yet Going from Nelspruit to Marloth can't be that dangerous )

[Richprins]

Just bad roadworks!

[Lisbeth]

Better, then there are people around

[Richprins]

Security ramped up on N4, R556 routes to Sun City and game reserves


By TimesLIVE - 14 December 2023 - 12:02

A fleet of security vehicles will patrol key routes between Gauteng and the North West after three attacks on tourist buses by hijackers this month.

The armed gang is believed to be from Gauteng, targeting international visitors for foreign currency and other valuables.

Government representatives, police, tourism groups, private security entities and local communities met at Sun City resort this week to develop a prevention plan and ensure visitor safety over the festive season, the acting head of the provincial tourism department Lebo Diale said.

“We are focusing on all routes into the province, but especially the N4 and the R556 which lead to various game parks and resorts,” said Diale.

“This high level of organised crime is not common in our province so we have reason to believe that criminals operating out of Gauteng are following the buses into the North West, believing they can act with impunity here. But we will not stand for this happening in our province.

“We have deployed 35 vehicles along the N4, the R556 and other significant provincial routes. These vehicles will provide an escort to tour buses as well as maintaining a security presence on these routes.”

She said the security vehicles began operating last weekend and are supported by a dedicated data collection agency that can feed information to police about the movement of tourist buses.

Sun City’s general manager Brett Hoppe said the resort has employed four people to operate a special data collection hub located at the resort. They will collate information received from local and national tour operators on the movement of tour buses.

A centralised e-mail address and WhatsApp number have been set up to receive the information, which is shared with SAPS and other relevant parties to assist them with their intelligence effort. The data collection agency will send daily reports to SAPS and also interface with the national tourism safety initiative.

“Some of the initiatives that we and SAPS are executing are confidential at this point, but believe me, they have taken the challenge seriously,” Hoppe said.

The tourism safety and festive season helpline can be contacted at Etelanw@suninternational.com or WhatsApp (text only) on 064-859-6795.

TimesLIVE

https://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/sout ... -reserves/

[Lisbeth]

"This high level of organised crime is not common in our province"

[Richprins]

Four Canadians Abducted by Gangsters in South Africa

By Chuck Stephens

This four-hour abduction took place on Saturday January 6th. Four Canadians and a South African national were abducted, assaulted, robbed, and forced at gunpoint to draw large sums of money from their Canadian bank accounts.

They were driving a rented car, right in downtown Nelspruit. They were westbound on the N4 (Samora Machel) when they were pulled over by a fake police check. The driver was asked for his documents. But within seconds, other men appeared at the other doors with guns. The driver was forced at gunpoint to move to the backseat and one of the gangsters took the wheel. The others then followed in another vehicle, license number KZN ? ? ? MP.

When the police were debriefing them soon after they were released, the South Africa national and one of the Canadians who resides in the Lowveld reported that they had recognized some of the locations they were taken to. These included Kamagugu, Clau Clau and Masoyi. They were held for four hours then let go. However, all five of them had their cell phones stolen.

So they drove to the White River police precinct. This police station could not help them. So they drove on to the home of a family member – another Canadian – who resides in White River. He accompanied them to the Nelspruit police precinct to open a case – mainly for insurance purposes. They were abducted at 8:15 p.m. and arrived at the Nelspruit police precinct to report the abduction, assault and robbery at around midnight.

Three of the five abducted are Canadian tourists. They have been in South Africa for just over one week, having stopped in Tanzania on their way here to climb Mount Kilimanjaro.

Speaking of tourism, by a stroke of luck, soon after arriving at the Nelspruit police precinct, they were approached by an official of Mpumalanga Tourism Authority. By this time, the police were reluctant to open a case file. The police were saying to come back in the morning. But the tourism official intervened and insisted that a case be opened forthwith.

The Canadians asked why their phones could not be tracked, and possibly recovered? The police said that it was only their SAPS detectives who do that, and this was the middle of the night on a week-end. Were it not for the insistence of the tourism official, the police were very sleepy.

Then the tourism official asked how she could help? Could she arrange for them to stay in a hotel in Nelspruit? They replied that they preferred to return to their guest house. However, they feared that the gangsters would arrive there because there was a map on one of their phones. So she then insisted that the police offer them an escort to their guest house, to make sure it was safe. They also offered to contact a security company to send a guard so that the tourists could sleep safely.

A case has been opened at the Nelspruit police station. Each of the five who were abducted, assaulted, robbed and held at gunpoint will no prepare and submit their own affidavit to put in the dossier.

Crime in South Africa has reached proportions that are threatening tourism. The police are slow to respond. During the de-briefing they even recognized the number plate of the gangsters’ vehicle. They said that another similar case had been opened the night before – reporting the same vehicle registration! Gangsters 2, police no score.

https://www.biznews.com/intelligence/20 ... -gangsters