A new book entitled, “Thin Blue: The Unwritten Rules of Policing in South Africa” by Johnny Steinberg, uncovers the chilling truth behind the thin blue line that is often the only protection ordinary law-abiding citizens have from the country's hardened criminals.

According to the Pretoria News, Steinberg spent spent three to four shifts nearly every week for almost eight years in a police patrol van trawling the streets of Gauteng.

His quest was to find the truth regarding policing in South Africa.

Driven by his fascination of the police force's transition to democracy, Steinberg sought to establish how the police were taking to their new task of being a service that would protect all citizens from crime.

What is scary is that Steinberg found that it is not the police who control the criminals, but the criminals who dictate when, where and how they will be policed.

In the opening chapter: “Two Incidents, Juxtaposed”, Steinberg describes how he travels with constables K and N through the old mining town of Randfontein near downtown Johannesburg on a Saturday nightshift.

It is here that Steinberg witnesses how a group of seven young men dictate to the policemen about how they should carry out or rather not carry out their duties.

This comes after the policemen try to get a youngster in the group to return his father's bakkie, which he has stolen.

The tirade of abuse and deaths threats against Constable K's children that follows shows the youngsters' scant regard for the law.

"If they tried to arrest anybody, they would be overpowered, their guns taken from them,” said Steinberg.

"Nor could they get into their vehicle and drive away: an attempt to retreat would surely enrage the youths, and incite them to violence.”

The theme of criminals calling the shots when it comes to policing is a constant theme throughout the book.

In the chapters “To Newclare and Back and Sibanda of the Suburbs”, Steinberg looks at how communities, both poor and rich, are forced to defend themselves from criminals who outgun and outnumber the police.

The chapters highlight how community-based initiatives are trying to take back their streets from thugs because of the police's failure to do so.

"It is clear that the only real thing police are good at when it comes to gaining control of criminals is emergency situations such as the recent xenophobic violence and dealing with domestic violence."

Steinberg is adamant that until South Africa's communities give their consent to be policed they will be the ones that do the dictating on how policing in this country is done.

"The only way we are going to see that consent being granted is if there is a change and that change will have to come from police management. If effective change is to be seen in policing in South Africa then management are the ones that need to change and that change is a shift that has to be made."

Scary stuff don't you think?