SOUTH AFRICA COMPUTERS STOLEN FROM DIPLOMATS IOL: Criminals targeting diplomats:
By Graeme Hosken and Peter Fabricius

Members of the diplomatic corps have been targeted by ruthless criminals who in recent months have staged daring break-ins, getting away with items worth millions of rand.

In a bid to stem the tide of crime, several envoys on Friday held an emergency meeting.

The meeting came after an admission by the SAPS that they had been forced to review their security measures around embassies and high commissions following three attacks on the Bangladeshi High Commission and the high commissioner's residence in the past 10 days in Pretoria.

The meeting of members of the Asia Pacific Heads of Mission in Pretoria follows an attack on the Bangladeshi High Commission on Thursday.

A group of men broke into the building and stole a DSTV decoder and some of the personal belongings of the high commissioner, Nasima Haider.

In the first burglary, which occurred last week on Thursday, thieves stole a computer and a number of computer accessories.

On Monday, three men, who are believed to have been armed, climbed through a window in Haider's Waterkloof Ridge house. They fled without taking anything after they were apparently disturbed by security guards.

Haider was asleep in the adjoining bedroom. It is the second time since December that her home has been broken into.

The latest attacks follow the theft of an estimated R1-million from the Iranian Embassy two months ago.

The attacks come less than five months after a number of ambassadors and diplomats signed a petition aimed at forcing government to increase security around embassies in Pretoria.

The petition was drawn up after a Malawian diplomat's daughter was raped in her home and weeks after four embassies were hit by armed gunmen.

An emotional Haider on Friday said she feared for her life following the attacks.

She confirmed that an emergency meeting of members of the Asia Pacific Heads of Mission had been held.

"We are holding the meeting to discuss these attacks and other security issues," she said, adding that they would be pursuing the matter with government.

Bangladeshi head of chancery Nazmul Hasan said they were extremely upset by what had happened. He said: "We are very disappointed by what has happened and feel that both the government and its law enforcement agencies need to provide far more proactive support to the embassies and diplomats in the country."

Hasan said they would be employing a private security company to provide proper security to the high commissioner and her staff, "as we do not believe that the South African Government can secure us properly".

"We are hoping that this latest attack and the emergency meeting will prompt the government into action so that these kind of things can be stopped once and for all," he said, adding that they wanted frequent police patrols to be conducted around embassies and the homes of ambassadors.

Philippines ambassador Virgilio Reyes, who is the Asian diplomatic community's acting doyen, said at a meeting diplomats had with government earlier this year, government had offered to create a special police unit to protect diplomats, "but so far this has not materialised".

He said diplomats were planning to meet the Safety and Security Ministry this month to discuss the crime problem and to ask what had happened to the proposed diplomatic protection unit.

Foreign Affairs spokesperson Ronnie Mamoepa said they were outraged by the attacks.

"We are confident that the law enforcement agencies will get to the bottom of the matter," he said.

Provincial police spokesperson Director Govindsamy Mariemuthoo said they would review the security measures around embassies.