President Jacob Zuma sounded a clarion warning to criminals on Sunday that police officers are not “sitting ducks” and will fight back when their lives or those of the public are endangered.

He was speaking at a ceremony at the Union Buildings in Pretoria commemorating police officers who have died in the line of duty.

A total of 58 police officers have been killed countrywide this year so far – 19 of them in Gauteng.

Zuma urged police members “to defend yourselves with everything at your disposal if you are attacked”‚ but within the confines of the law.

“Our laws allow the police to fight back decisively when their lives or those of the public are threatened.

“Criminals must know that our police officers are not sitting ducks. They will fight back when their lives or those of the public are in danger‚” Zuma warned.

But he added: “At the same time‚ the police must act within the law at all times and avoid using excessive force. The Minister of Police is working on a major transformation plan for the police following the tragic and painful Marikana incident‚ which will take all these challenges into account.”

Zuma said that police were performing a noble task under difficult conditions.

“The violent history of our country as a result of apartheid colonialism has created a fertile ground for violent crime and a disregard for human life by some criminal elements in our society.

“We thus have to confront the hard reality that crime in South Africa is violent and that criminals in our country do not hesitate to take the life of another human being‚ whether he or she be a police officer or a civilian.”

To the families of police officers killed in the line of duty‚ the president said: “The callous murder of your loved ones was an attack not only on them‚ but on the State itself. The police represent the authority of the State. They form the bulwark between order and anarchy.

“The police require the support of the State to ensure that they are strengthened and fortified to be able to respond to crime head on‚ to protect not only themselves but the nation as a whole.”

As a result‚ he said‚ he had directed the Minister of Police to do everything possible to provide the police with the tools they needed to fight crime effectively‚ and to protect themselves.

“A National Tactical Response Plan has been developed to immediately respond effectively to the murders of police officers.

 “All commanders have been instructed to ensure that the plan is implemented with immediate effect‚” the president said.

In addition to the plan‚ station and relief commanders had also been instructed to ensure compliance with the Directives and Standing Orders of the SAPS‚ especially those that had a direct influence on the safety and well-being of every member in the South African Police Service.

These included ensuring that police officers were equipped with the necessary safety gear and equipment‚ including the wearing of bullet resistant vests‚ and briefing them in respect of dangerous suspects or expected situations when reporting for duty.

“Furthermore‚ all Operational Commanders are now tasked with ensuring that routine monitoring and evaluation visits are conducted at police stations and units to ensure that police officers at all levels comply with the Directives.

“The management of the SAPS has also instructed that multi-disciplinary assessment teams be established at Provinces and Divisions to conduct on-site assessment of all incidents where police officers were killed.

“This will enable government to identity the modus operandi of the criminals as well as the circumstances and conditions under which such police officers were killed.

“This will inform the further development and implementation of appropriate preventative or developmental measures‚” Zuma said.

The SAPS was also hard at work to ensure that the safety of officers while carrying out their constitutional mandate to protect and to serve was elevated by putting into place a National Police Safety Plan.

The Police Safety Strategy would prioritise‚ among other measures‚ improved training‚ physical security‚ and trauma management and social support mechanisms.

The fight against crime‚ however‚ required the participation of all South Africans‚ Zuma said.

“The public must contribute to the creation of a more conducive environment for police to fight crime decisively. This must be done by reporting all criminal activities to the police.”