Army Enters Lavender Hill, but Some Are Sceptical

Soldiers carried out spot searches in Lavender Hill and Steenberg on Friday.

• The army and police entered Lavender Hill and Steenberg on the Cape Flats on Friday, searching suspected drug houses.
• While children in Lavender Hill were excited by the arrival of the army, some, including Members of Parliament, expressed scepticism that the over R800-million Operation Prosper would have a sustained impact on crime.

On Friday evening, a small army contingent and police swept through Lavender Hill and Steenberg on the Cape Flats, raiding several suspected drug houses and conducting spot searches.

A stream of young children trailed behind the convoy of soldiers and law enforcement vehicles.

Some had wandered more than 300 meters from their homes, drawn not by fear, but by fascination. In neighbourhoods like Military Heights, an informal settlement in Lavender Hill, there are no playgrounds or structured activities, so events like this offer some excitement.

On Thursday, the army was deployed in the Steenberg and Muizenberg policing precincts, following up on information about suspects who were involved in a shooting incident in Lavender Hill on Wednesday morning.

A community leader told GroundUp that such short-lived deployments offer little more than a temporary illusion of safety.

Without a sustained and visible presence in the most affected areas, he warned, the cycle of gang violence and shootings will continue unchecked, leaving residents to navigate the same dangers once the convoy disappears.

Police worked with soldiers in the operation.

Earlier this month, it was announced that 2,200 soldiers from the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) would be deployed across several provinces until 31 March 2027 to assist SAPS to fight crime. This deployment, dubbed Operation Prosper, is expected to cost over R800-million.

On Sunday, Sergeant Wesley Twigg told GroundUp that there had been no reported shootings in Lavender Hill and Steenberg since the deployment on Friday evening. This is not the first time the army has been in the area in recent days.

On Thursday, the army was deployed in the Steenberg and Muizenberg policing precincts, following up on information about suspects who were involved in a shooting incident in Lavender Hill on Wednesday morning.

According to Twigg, the information led them to a house in Trevor Siljeur Street, Vrygrond. “The members found a 9mm pistol hidden in a cupboard … The suspect was arrested for the illegal possession of a firearm,” said Twigg.

Nicola Small, chairperson of the Steenberg Community Police Forum (CPF), welcomed the army’s deployment to the area. She said there had been a significant decrease in violent crime since the army had been in the precinct.

“It definitely shows that additional boots on the ground and visibility impact crime. It changes the patterns,” she said.

She encouraged the community to work with SAPS. “The army was welcomed into the space. I want to thank the community for being understanding of the process,” said Small.

But shootings linked to gang violence have continued across the metro. According to SAPS, seven men are expected to appear in different courts on Monday for murders and attempted murders linked to shootings that occurred in gang hotspots on the Cape Flats in the past week.

The domestic deployment of the army has been heavily debated.

MP Ian Cameron (DA), chairperson of the portfolio committee on police, said operations should be about more than just visible policing.

“It has to be intelligence-led and prosecution-led. It is not enough to put more boots on the ground and hope for the best. Operations must target the right people, the right places, and the networks behind the violence. And when arrests are made, the cases must be strong enough to stand up in court.

“So far, very few arrests have been made and hardly any major drug or arms caches have been uncovered. That should concern all of us. If the people driving the violence are still operating, and the weapons and drugs are still flowing, then the operation is not yet landing where it needs to,” he said in a social media post last week.

Before the deployment began, Members of Parliament raised concerns, including how the command structure would work and how the success of the operation would be measured.

The army will be deployed to various communities until 31 March 2027.

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