Business as usual at SA malls following terror threats
It was only after ambling around the shopping mall with a conspicuous bag of electronics for 35 minutes and deciding to leave one of the country’s top tourist attractions that we saw uniformed police for the first time.
TMG Digital paid a cursory visit to the V& A Waterfront on Tuesday to look for signs of tightened security after the weekend terror alert issued by the US‚ which the South African government has since slated as “dubious”.
Angered by the warning‚ the South African government has sent a diplomatic protest to foreign embassies over the affair.
The US embassy announced at the weekend that it had received information that terrorist groups were planning to carry out attacks at South African malls in Johannesburg and Cape Town.
“This information comes against the backdrop of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’s public call for its adherents to carry out terrorist attacks globally during the upcoming month of Ramadan‚” it said.
Britain and Australia followed suit‚ updating their travel advisories for citizens travelling to SA.
But on Wednesday‚ the SA Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s Clayson Monyela issued a statement voicing the Pretoria government’s displeasure over the manner in which the alerts about South Africa were handled.
“The information provided as a basis for the latest terror alerts on South Africa has been found to be very sketchy. On closer examination‚ we have found the information to be dubious‚ unsubstantiated and provided by a ‘walk-in’ source based on questionable conclusions.
Shopping centres across the country nevertheless reacted to the alert by increasing their security‚ including the V& A Waterfront which said that police had increased their presence at the mall‚ which recorded 11.8-million visitors between November 2015 and March 2016.
“We continue a co-operative relationship with SAPS‚ who has increased their presence and vigilance on our property‚” V& A Waterfront said.
Increased visible security around the mall was not immediately apparent however when TMG Digital paid an impromptu visit‚ carrying an office laptop‚ plugs and cables in a sling bag. There was little visible security upon arriving at the underground parking and no formal checks were performed on TMG Digital upon entering the mall through a main entrance.
Unlike the restrictions implemented at airports across the world‚ shoppers at the V& A Waterfront are still able to walk into the mall freely with electronics.
While window browsing through the latest trends at various fashion outlets‚ four security guards were spotted patrolling the centre in navy blue uniforms. The guards did not appear to be armed.
The first obvious sign of police was encountered when exiting one of the parking garages where a SAPS vehicle was parked.
The mall states on its website that security measures are both “visible and discreet”.
Malls that have beefed up security include Sandton City‚ Nelson Mandela Square‚ Mall of Africa and Menlyn Mall.
- TMG Digital
