Clashes between two notorious gangs in Inanda, north of Durban, have led to the closure of a school in the area. Weekend classes were also cancelled to ensure the safety of learners and teachers. The fight between the gangs resulted in the death of a young man last week.

The Inanda township has hogged the headlines over the past few years, as one of the most dangerous places in South Africa. For the past three years, it has been amongst the top three areas with the most murders in the country.

This time around, violence is between two gangs, the East and the West. The groups are fighting for control of the township and, earlier this year, targeted members of the Community Policing Forum (CPF).

VIDEO | Gangs targeting CPF members in notorious Inanda.

The violence has now spilled over into schools and a local high school, the JG Zuma High, has been shut down due to the violence. KwaZulu-Natal Education spokesperson Muzi Mahlambi says the situation is concerning.

“We were made aware of possible disturbances on Friday in Inanda and KwaMashu, and some principals chose to play it safe and not allow learners and teachers to come to school, but they have provided us with their recovery plans as to what they are going to do to make up for the two days which is Friday and Saturday.”

As a result of the ongoing violence in the area, a young man was unfortunately killed in a shooting incident in the past week.

Meanwhile, local residents, who wanted to remain anonymous, say they fear for their lives as these gang members, many of whom are learners, are heavily armed and dangerous.

Police spokesperson in KwaZulu-Natal, Robert Netshiunda, says police will be deployed in the area to monitor the situation in schools.

“With regards to the safety of the school, as police, we are responsible and we have programmes that are aimed at restoring law and order in schools. Yes, the murder happened just outside the school and if there is any violence it will spill over the school premises and we are aware that we need to deploy accordingly before, during and after because we know that if the murder is gang related there will be those who will go to the funeral and try and shoot randomly in the air and we are ready.”

Netshiunda also calls on parents to report criminal activities, which their children are involved.

“These so-called gang members who are very young are still staying with their parents and are at their school-going age. That means they are still under the control of their parents. So, if there is no strong parenting, we are likely to have children join gangs. Some of them don’t want to join gangs because they want to, but they are pressured or threatened, and they become part of those gangs.

“If parents don’t report their children’s unusual behaviors, many children will turn into gangsters. If you are a parent and see your child with a gun, you should be worried because that gun is not for decoration, but for killing,” Netshiunda explains.