Deputy Security Minister Susan Shabangu on Sunday repeated her controversial demand that police respond harshly to attacks to earn public trust.

"Police will have to survive at all times because they have got a responsibility of protecting the communities" and themselves, she said at a commemoration service in Pretoria for more than 100 policemen killed between April 2007 and March 2008.

"If they cannot protect themselves, communities will lose confidence in the South African Police Service," she said on State broadcaster SA FM.

"Kill the bastards"

The minister's comments appeared more cautious than her call last April for police to "kill the bastards" who attacked them, which drew shock and anger.

"You must kill the bastards if they threaten you or your community," Shabangu told a crime rally in Pretoria at the time to a standing ovation.

"Your responsibility is to serve and protect," she said. "I want no warning shots. You have one shot, and it must be a kill shot."

Following her April remarks, the main opposition Democratic Alliance called for Shabangu to be fired, while the chairperson of the Human Rights Commission said he was "taken aback" by them.

South Africa has 9000 murders and nearly 7000 robberies a year, according to official figures.

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AFP