Top Soweto Tourist Spot – Vilakazi Street – Now Safer for Tourists & Locals

A 24-hour CCTV Security system has been launched in Vilakazi Street to enhance the safety of business owners, the public and tourists visiting this popular area… following the murder of Sakhumzie restaurant manager Khwesi Hudson in January, during an attempted robbery.

At the time Joburg Mayor Herman Mashaba visited the restaurant and pledged to install the camera systems. This week he made good on that promise, with 25 newly installed CCTV cameras going online.

Running on fibre optics, the cameras are connected to the Department of Safety’s Intelligence Operation Centre (IOC), where the view from each of the cameras are monitored 24 hours a day (in a way similar to how Monaco operates).

“These cameras can zoom in to more than 150m in any direction; provide full high definition images even at night; count people; identify an abandoned or removed object; and provide intrusion detection to secure areas.

“From this moment on, we will be able to monitor the area around the clock for any possible criminal activities,” said Mashaba.

Mashaba hopes the introduction of CCTV cameras will assist with both enhancing safety in the area, as well as enhancing the entire Vilakazi precinct from both a tourist and investment perspective.

More than 700 people are employed by the restaurants in Vilakazi Street alone.

Hudson was killed in late January at around 1am on a Saturday night.

At the time, then Tourism Minister Derek Hanekom said: “This has come as a big shock to the community of Vilakazi Street, and to the tourism industry…

“Vilakazi Street has enormous significance for our country and for the world. The families of Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu lived here. Vilakazi Street is the home of our liberation struggle leaders and Nobel Prize laureates. It has become an iconic magnet for tourists from across South Africa and the world.

“It is essential that the community around Vilakazi Street, tourism business owners and our visitors are safe in this precinct.

Vilakazi Street. Photo: Jayne Zakheim

He said the Tourism Dept would work with local authorities to ensure increased safety in the area.

Safety is a priority for South Africa’s tourism industry as crime can be a deterrent for international visitors.