Renewed calls for stricter gun laws

South Africa has a high crime rate, and many homeowners keep weapons to ward off intruders.

Groups renewed calls for stricter gun laws in the nation after this week's killing.

"There are 1.5 million gun owners -- about 3.5 million guns in civilians hands," said Alan Storey, chairman of Gun Free South Africa.

Most of the victims of gun homicides in the nation of 50 million people are between the ages 20 and 30, he said.

South Africa has passed tough legislation that includes a requirement for a thorough background check for prospective gun owners. The check includes spouses and partners, and is repeated every few years, he said.

"People acquire guns believing they are more safe ... but they place themselves at greater risk," Storey said. "We've made airplanes a gun-free zone. We need to bring that logic down to earth."

But the South African Gunowners' Association, a popular gun lobby group, has said citizens have the right to protect themselves from increasingly violent crimes.

"There are already more than enough laws and regulations to control the possession of firearms by private citizens," it says on its website. "Fewer and less complex laws reasonably, yet properly, applied could achieve the required objective."

Postponed bail hearing

Beyond the violence, South Africans struggled with the idea that they've lost a hero, an athlete who defied incredible physical odds to become a global star.

His face became a fixture on billboards across the nation, some of which started coming down after his arrest.

The Pretoria court postponed Pistorius' bail hearing to Tuesday and ordered him to remain in custody until then. Prosecutors said they will argue that he committed premeditated murder.

Authorities said they will oppose bail, but did not provide their reasons for the decision.