By Nangamso Mabindla
16 September 2005

IF WE are serious about bringing tourists to our townships, we need to curb the problem of crime, which threatens to deprive our communities of international visitors.

This is the word from Odwa Tyeni, the chairperson of the Duncan Village Community Policing Forum.

Tyeni was speaking to residents during a tourism road show aimed at involving communities in the industry. As one of the areas with the highest crime rates in Buffalo City, tour operators feared bringing tourists, especially international visitors, to Duncan Village.

Because of its history as part of the apartheid government's homeland arrangement, Mdantsane was one of the tourist attractions in Buffalo City. However, it faced a similar crime problem.

"People want to learn about how Mdantsane became a township. They want to learn about Duncan Village and other areas. However, because of the high crime rates in our areas, agencies refuse to bring them here for fear of their lives," Tyeni explained.

With this in mind, Duncan Village residents had teamed up with the police to start the community policing forum. "We wanted to work with the police to fight this problem, which plagues our communities and our efforts to encourage township tourism."

For the city to fight crime in the CBD, it needed to get to the root of crime - the townships. "If we are successful in fighting crime in our township, then agencies will see that our communities are serious about combating crime.

"They will be more confident when they bring tourists to our townships," Tyeni concluded.