The South African government, having solved all other pressing problems, seems to have instituted a draconian gun control policy (because we all know how effective those are, right?) In the meantime, citizens are doing what they must:

Tighter gun ownership laws are pushing South Africans to buy crossbows, spears, swords, knives and pepper sprays to protect themselves from violent crime.
...
With some homeowners worried about prosecution if they kill intruders, the crossbow is particularly popular because of its silence and the difficulty of tracing the firer from forensic evidence, he said.

THWOP!!