AMID the soaring crime rate, thousands of South Africans are applying for gun licences for self-defence and personal use.
Experts have warned that the illegal firearms trade and smuggling of firearms are contributing to the increased crime in the country, saying police need to have a specialised unit to deal with the scourge.
Police, on the other hand, believe that they are making progress through Operation Shanela, which has seen the arrest of over 4 000 people with illegal firearms to date.
Damian Enslin,
