JOHANNESBURG - The Gauteng Liquor Traders Association insists tavern owners are being used as scapegoats for violence and turf wars.
Association spokesperson Jongikhaya Kraai said the blame can not always be pointed to liquor outlets when such shootings happen, especially when they are legally licensed.
"The outlets that we are talking about, yes, it is at a residential area. It is a licensed outlet, meaning it went through all the hoops that it was supposed to jump to be licensed at that particular area.
"Unfortunately, liquor traders in this province or in townships cannot afford rentals at affluent areas or at business zoned or business sites. We can only operate where we reside and the unfortunate part is that some of these killings, we cannot unfortunately run away from,"
Kraai noted the elements of criminality behind these incidents and urged for more police visibility.
"I hope we stop pointing fingers at each other and start dealing with the criminality we face every day," he said.
But the Southern African Alcohol Policy Alliance argues otherwise.
According to its campaign director, Nomcebo Dlamini, liquor outlets cannot deflect blame onto already overburdened police.
"Ten to 12 percent of our GDP goes to these issues that are around alcohol. And not that we're saying that businesses should not exist, but we are basically saying public health really should be uppermost in every decision that we make," she said.
Recent mass shootings in Gauteng and the Western Cape have reignited concerns over safety at taverns.
A total of 32 people were killed in three separate mass shootings this weekend.