By: Natasha Archary

Minister of Police, Bheki Cele has deployed the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) and a special police task force to protect delegates of the 15th BRICS Summit taking place in Sandton from 22 to 24 August.
Cele, and National Police Commissioner, Fannie Masemola, addressed the forces who will be deployed for the Summit on Monday, 21 August, at Innes Free Park, Sandton.
The Minister, who faces criticism for the staggering crime rates in the country, said every member of the security force for the BRICS Summit is prepared for the task at hand.
Thousands of SANDF and SAPS officers will be deployed in Sandton, Johannesburg and Pretoria, which are the key areas that delegates will be navigating.
Addressing media, Cele said the country’s armed forces will continue to prioritize safety and combating crime beyond the BRICS Summit.
“We are not undermining or watering down the seriousness of this event. I’m told that 51 Heads of State and governments have been confirmed to be here in the country.
That’s not a small number of Heads of Government and Heads of State.
We have until yesterday (Sunday, 20 August) arrested some 99 754 criminals for serious crimes, including murder, attempted murder, car hijackings, truck hijackings and more.
So, we have been doing this job far before this event, but this operation Shanela will not end once BRICS is over.
When BRICS is gone and forgotten, we will continue with our operation.”
Bheki Cele
21 August 2023 || Minister of Police, General Bheki Cele and the National Commissioner of the South African Police Service, General Fannie Masemola address all the forces deployed for the 15th BRICS Summit at Innes Free Park, Sandton.#SANDF#BRICSZA#BRICS2023 pic.twitter.com/pZxyrgPm0q
— SA National Defence Force (@SANDF_ZA) August 21, 2023
The Minister’s promises come just days after the release of the country’s first quarter crime stats which showed that Gauteng remains the province with the highest number of contact crimes over the past year.
Between April to June 2022, there were 2 420 more reports for contact crimes in the province, and while the murder and sexual offences rate dropped slightly, 1 188 women and children were still murdered.
Also read: These roads will be closed from 20-26 August for the BRICS Summit in Sandton
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