Children playing peacefully at a Where Rainbows Meet school holiday programme in Vrygrond before they were interrupted by fleeing gunmen.
Image: Picture: Supplied
Vrygrond community leader Mymoena Scoltz has vowed to keep on educating and entertaining children after a terrifying incident forced them to run for cover during a school holiday programme in a park in Vrygrond, on Friday April 4, at noon.
The Where Rainbows Meet organisation's facilitators were busy with an educational programme when three gunmen came running through the park from the Vrygrond taxi rank where gunfire had broken out.
Colonel Jacqui Johnson, Muizenberg police station commander, confirmed the shooting incident at the taxi rank on Friday.
"No one was fatally wounded. One person has been shot and an attempted murder case has been opened. No suspect has been identified and no arrest has been made,” said Colonel Johnson.
Ms Scoltz, founder of the non-profit organisation Where Rainbows Meet, said chaos broke out when the men came running through the park where more than 200 children were attending the programme.
"Facilitators kept the kids under control and moved them to a safe space in a nearby resident’s yard.”
Ms Scholtz said fortunately, the children were unharmed, but the youth leaders had a tough time steering the panic-stricken little ones to safety.
“For more than 17 years that was our space to entertain and create awareness around issues affecting us as a community as well as the dangers out there and what they need to be aware of. The ongoing violence should stop as the kids think it’s the norm. They know who these perpetrators are and it is sad.”
Ms Scholtz said the organisation was established in 2008 to empower women and address challenges in Vrygrond and its surroundings through holistic community development, focusing on social, economic, and health improvements.
They have a youth development programme to keep young people away from the streets, addressing issues like drug and alcohol abuse, and high criminality in the community.
“We remain committed to what we set out and that is to be a driving force of change. Our children have no real recreational facilities so we make use of the park in the area,” she said.
Ms Scholtz said the children enjoyed being involved and loved every activity that was introduced to them. “The smiles and happiness are priceless. In Vrygrond we have no proper facilities for our children therefore we have to make do with the open spaces available.”
However, she said, the children need to be protected as “crime is out of control and nobody is putting a lid on it. The justice system doesn't seem to care. Our community’s children are completely neglected,” said Ms Scholtz.
Children were steered to safety at a nearby home close to the park which gunmen ran through.
Image: Picture: Supplied
“The day before the programme we phoned Muizenberg station to ask for a safety patrol at the park while we were busy with the children, but we could not get hold of Muizenberg police Captain Stephen Knapp who always gave us assistance but he was off sick.”
She said the children were stressed after the incident but relaxed when they were all safely back at the organisation. They got a meal, including fruit and yoghurt.
"We thank all our partners for the continued support in order for us to continue the much-needed work," said Ms Scholtz.
“We pray for success and that our team never gets tired of doing good as the bad must never win over the good. We ask for prayers in every community, that this violence must end. Our communities deserve to live peacefully; it is not good to live in so much fear. We thank everyone for your continued support in order to bring the change we need. We are thankful,” said Ms Scholtz.
When asked if police could be of assistance in the school holidays, Colonel Johnson said: “If there is a request for SAPS involvement in a holiday programme, we plan accordingly to accommodate the request. I cannot comment with regards to Captain Knapp as he is off sick.”
Ward 45 councillor Mandy Marr said: “Safety is a huge concern. Most of the time Vrygrond is very peaceful. The Vrygrond community has two play parks that’s enclosed and they've got gates around them but no actual security, and it’s very difficult trying to get security at the parks. However, with the last budget that we are busy putting through at the moment, there will be a dedicated Law Enforcement team assigned to every single ward so for instance if we do need them in instances like this (children’s activities), we will be able to slot them in in future."