Ex-Gang General Raises Hope in Vulnerable Communities

What will you do if I tell you that your past does not define your future?

What will you say if I tell you that there is ALWAYS hope?

Welcome Witbooi was born in Cape Town in 1981 and grew up on the Cape Flats. At the age of 12, when children are still supposed to play innocently with their friends and get tucked into a warm bed at night, Welcome joined a gang. He had an absent father and he desperately wanted a sense of belonging.

When he was 17, Welcome was arrested for a string of crimes and sentenced to 23 years in prison. It was during his incarceration that he joined the 28s Gang in a frantic bid to survive prison. He stabbed his way up the prison number gang rankings and by the time he turned 25 he became a first star general of the 28s.

How would I protect her against abuse?

It was during his time in prison that Welcome started contemplating life and, more specifically, gave thought to what kind of father he would be one day, especially to a little girl. He asked himself a few very significant questions:

How would I protect her against abuse?

What example would I set for her if I was a hardened gangster?

It was at this point that Welcome made a life-changing decision and decided to walk towards CHANGE! He retired as a 28s General and applied to study towards a qualification on education (ABET) through UNISA. He started teaching other offenders at the prison school – Numeracy, English, and Human Social Sciences.

A new foundation was born

After being released from prison Welcome worked for Sonke Gender Justice as a Prisons Project & Programmes Specialist. His passion, however, was working with boys and girls caught in gangs which led to the birth of the BRIGHTSPARK FOUNDATION SA on 20 January 2016.

The foundation does exemplary work across South Africa in communities where gangs are rife and the youth are joining gangs as a form of survival. They mediate and work alongside gangs by bridging the gap and rebuilding communities affected by their activities.

A national ceasefire called during lockdown

When President Ramaphosa announced the nationwide lockdown many gang leaders felt the need to use this time as a period to reconnect with their various communities and help ease the relentless tensions. A national ceasefire was agreed upon on the basis that all gang activities be halted, which includes the selling of drugs, and that the time would rather be used to lend a hand towards building relationships and providing relief during this COVID-19 pandemic.

Welcome played a significant role in establishing this ceasefire and hopes that, once the lockdown is lifted, communities can continue to heal.

When asked to leave our readers with a few encouraging words, Welcome replied:

“Many young people I speak to, both boys and girls, … I always tell them that they need to choose the kind of life they want to live. Each choice has consequences. Instead of joining a gang that destroys the fiber of their communities, I encourage them to join community initiatives that build their communities instead. Change is possible!”