The Eastern Cape is quickly becoming the kidnapping capital of South Africa, according to anti-crime activists.
This follows many abductions including that of 9-year-old Emaan Fatima who was taken walking home from Dreamland Primary School, Buffalo Flats in East London on 4 February.
The next time she was seen was on a video where she was telling her parents she wanted to go home.
“Come and get me please, I don’t want to stay here anymore,” the little girl said.
The Pakistani girl’s family reportedly found out about the short clip from a friend after it was shared on social media.
A family friend said: “Emaan lives across the street from her home and she was grabbed as she walked with her brother.
“We don’t know what they want from the parents, no one has been able to communicate with them (kidnappers).
“Her parents are very devastated.
“Her father has a shop and also owns the school.
“Emaan is very independent. She knows how to take care of herself but we need her to come home. Everyone misses her.”
Pakistan South Africa Association East London general secretary Zaheer Iqbal said they are planning a big march for awareness about Emaan’s kidnapping.
“On Saturday we had a march, and now people know about her disappearance.
“We were shocked to receive the video of Emaan, and now we want to have a huge march, appealing to the kidnappers to set the girl free.”
Iqbal said on Sunday he was contacted about an escaped businessman who had been captured.
“That guy escaped from the kidnappers and we found him near Willow Park. When I got there, one of the kidnappers was still looking for the victim, I ran after him and caught him. The police came and interrogated him. They found the house, and found more leads, there was CCTV footage that was recovered,” he said.
“I had hoped that the people who had him had Emaan, unfortunately, she was still not found. This is the second child who was kidnapped, another was taken last month in Dimbaza, he was set free after a ransom of R200 000 was paid, initially they were demanding R1 million.
“The child led the police to where he was held but no one was arrested,” Iqbal said.
The Hawks’ spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Avele Fumba said they are investigating a case of kidnapping.
Between July and September 2024 a total of 4 627 kidnappings were reported, showing an increase of 327 compared to the previous year.
In the Eastern Cape, 203 cases were reported, in the previous year 47 more were recorded.
Anti-crime activist and TV host Yusuf Abramjee said: “There is no doubt that the Eastern Cape is fast becoming South Africa’s kidnapping capital.
“We know that the numbers were high, previously but at this rate, it seems the numbers are going to overtake Gauteng and other parts of South Africa. We know that there have been a number of kidnappings in the Eastern Cape and just on Tuesday, a businessman was taken in Uitenhage, probably another ransom kidnapping.”
He added that the kidnapping of a Pakistani girl shows there are several of gangs, even copy gangs “on the prowl to make a quick buck.”
“They are causing mayhem and anyone is their prey, the fact that they are even taking children is an indication of how desperate they’re becoming.”
Abramjee said there needs to be an urgent intervention by the police.
“While they are making good strides, a lot of work still needs to be done. There needs to be specialised units, to deal with the kidnapping scourge and not only in the Eastern Cape but for the rest of the country.
“There is an anti-kidnapping task team but is under-resourced and not fully capacitated, they need to be beefed up.
“There’s a need for community awareness and most certainly fear has gripped, especially business people in the Eastern Cape, there are criminal syndicates taking advantage and trying to make a quick buck through these kidnappings.”