What was all the fuss about? Fans feel safe in South Africa (Feature)

By Veronica Sardon Jun 17, 2010, 13:27 GMT

Durban - Security concerns were massive ahead of the World Cup in South Africa, but have been considerably toned down now that all teams played their openers in the tournament.

Fans found out that they could basically go about their usual football-related business just fine in South Africa, and that for all the pre-World Cup hype they generally felt safe amid a strong police presence.

'People were a bit worried beforehand, but security seems fine,' England fan John said in Cape Town. 'We've had no problems.'

Many others had a similar experience in Durban, Johannesburg, Port Elizabeth and elsewhere in the first African country ever to host the World Cup.

Some 44,000 police have been deployed to guarantee security during the World Cup, and South Africa's courts have shown impressive results in dealing with football-related cases fast.

However, like at previous big sports events elsewhere it has also come at a price for some locals.

'Vulnerable children, traders, the poor, the homeless, shack dwellers, refugees and others are removed so tourists won't see them,' the Durban Social Forum complained in a statement.

The fans on the ground feel safe, and many praised South Africa for having 'done a good job on security' and for having imposed 'absolute police control.'

'You feel a little bit unsafe when you go into Jo'burg and you hear some of these stories, but I think it's probably a bit in the media rather than anything else,' Ralph, from Sydney, said Sunday in Durban ahead of Germany-Australia.

Foreign and local fans alike wandered around tourist centres quite happily on match and non-match days.

Cape Town's upmarket Victoria & Alfred Waterfront or Durban's beachfront promenade were a good daytime option, with bars on Long Street and Florida Road commanding a impressive fan presence in each of these cities.

Most football tourists would not go off the beaten track, though, and saved their desire for adventure for the world-famous Kruger Park game reserve in north-eastern South Africa, or perhaps for a beach in Mozambique.

But even those who tried something different did not feel at risk.

'I'm the only white guy in the room but I feel very safe,' said a portly German tourist named Lutz, who had ventured into the township of New Brighton, just outside Port Elizabeth, to watch the South Africa team play Uruguay on Wednesday night.

'A few people gave me funny looks, but there was nothing beyond that,' he said.

Cacho and Joaquin, from Buenos Aires, found that they did not need to be anymore cautious than they would be at home, although they resorted to the assistance of a local driver to venture into the unknown ground of Soweto.

In Durban, they took a minibus taxi, which tourists are often told to avoid, and found 'no problem whatsoever.'

While some incidents, particularly robberies, were reported across the country, they would not stand out when compared to what tourists face in many other places around the globe.

And some people were suggesting that crime had fallen in South Africa during the World Cup: perhaps the extra police presence works as a deterrent, or perhaps potential offenders are spending too much time just watching football games.

Be that as it may, fans found most to complain about with relation to security in the paranoia of some locals, particularly of the white middle class.

Some, for example, warned people wearing their FIFA accreditation tags to only wear them in the stadium because they made them 'a target.'

Paul and Orlando, from Melbourne, noted that such concerns about security were in themselves annoying, although they had no actual problems.

'It's been fine fine. It's just that coming from Australia it's all 'don't walk here,' 'don't go there,' and we're not used to it,' Paul explained.

The world of football is watching closely as South Africa tries to patch up security issues at least for the month-long tournament: it will need to be done again in four years' time, when the World Cup circus travels to football-crazy, but also violence-ridden Brazil.