Both the ANC and Police Minister Nathi Nhleko have called for a review of gun laws following the fatal shooting of Bafana Bafana and Orlando Pirates captain Senzo Meyiwa on Sunday and last week's shooting of ANC MP Jackson Mthembu.
ANC spokesman Zizi Kodwa said yesterday that the ruling party "calls for the total removal of illegal guns from society as they have proved to be a menace".
Kodwa said the shootings were a "manifestation of . marauding, gun-toting criminals who have no regard for human life".
Kodwa said the changes to the law might include harsher punishments for gun owners whose weapons landed in the hands of criminals because of their negligence. "They must not just have their weapons taken away - they must be sent to jail," Kodwa said.
Asked whether the problem was in the firearms legislation or in the police being unable to enforce the act, he said this should be a focus of the review.
Nhleko said his department had started working on technical changes to the Firearms Control Act. N hleko said about 5000 people a month applied for firearms licenc es and only about 500 applicants were turned down.
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