Concerns before World Cup

[nairiporter]

South Africa: SA Intelligence Services Gear Up to Thwart Criminality During World Cup
http://allafrica.com/stories/200708310253.html

Intelligence services are to assess criminal elements from outside South Africa that may use the hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup as a cover to enter the country and engage in illegal activities.

Speaking on Thursday at a briefing of Cabinet's Justice, Crime Prevention and Security cluster, Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula said South Africa was aware of the potential for such criminal threats during the hosting of the World Cup.

 

"There are obviously some people out there who want, under cover of the FIFA World Cup, to ... enter South Africa illegally and try and carry out crimes," he said.

The intelligence services would thus have a role to play in thwarting such criminality, the minister said.

"There is an aspect which is important to us that deals with methods of intelligence as well, to know where most people who potentially would want to engage in crime are going to be coming from, and the profiles of such people in order for us to be able to deal with that situation," Mr Nqakula said.

The Minister added that a plan had been put in place by security chiefs to deal with such a scenario. Barry Gilder, the chairperson of the National Intelligence Coordinating Committee (NICOC), added that South Africa would be facing similar challenges in respect of outside criminal elements to previous hosts of FIFA world cup tournaments.

"One of the challenges is that people use such events as a cover because of the special immigration arrangements and things like that which apply during such time, as a cover to get into the country and engage in criminal activities - people-smuggling activities, drug smuggling and so on," he said. The intelligence coordinator said South African security officials had been talking to officials in Germany - last year's host of the FIFA World Cup - as well as with officials from previous FIFA World Cup hosts in this respect.

South Africa, he said, has "learned from their experiences - such as challenges of football hooliganism and other challenges facing bid events such as the soccer World Cup".

South Africa has also learned relevant security practices from its own hosting of other big events such as the World Summit on Sustainable Development, which was held in Johannesburg in 2002, as well as the cricket and rugby world cups and other large events.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Safety and Security has been working with the South African Banking Risk Information Centre (SABRIC) in a push against cash-in-transit heists and other organised crimes, the minister said.

SABRIC's role here has been in supplying "information that relates to intelligence regarding people who might want to mount armed robberies against financial institutions in the country", Mr Nqakula said. Other contributions being made by the private sector - including Business Against Crime - include resources being made available to combat crime, such as closed-circuit television systems.

The Department of Safety and Security has also been working with SABRIC on the design of new, secure vehicles used to transport money around the country, Mr Nqakula added. Meanwhile, the Musanda Satellite Campus in Pretoria has been refurbished to now provide short courses, seminars and colloquiums for intelligence officers, while wider partnerships are being formed with tertiary and other institutions to enhance training.

Nine interdepartmental project teams incorporating representatives from a range of government departments have been established by NICOC, to "create a channel for the deposition of information across government", reporters heard. And a new, high-tech building of the Electronic Communications Security Company (COMSEC) - described as the first of its kind in Africa - is to be opened at the end of this year.

COMSEC already has a fully-equipped security operations centre, reporters learned, with the objective of the COMSEC being to protect critical information and the communications infrastructure of government from unauthorised access and attack.

 

Comments

[georgiarepublic.livejournal.com]

I would of figured the "football hooliganism" of European fans to be the biggest threat based on past experiences, though I doubt many of the ones who instigate this at games in Europe would be making the trip all the way to SA.

[mahnmut.livejournal.com]

I think they were talking about criminals from neighboring countries like Zimbabwe, Angola and Mozambique who would want to make thefts and robberies, rather than the import of football hooligans from Europe and Latin America.