Is Pretoria on list of world’s most violent cities?

The apparent Valentine's Day shooting death of the girlfriend of Oscar Pistorius — the South African Paralympic gold medalist known as the "Blade Runner" — is likely to respark debate about gun ownership around the world.

More from GlobalPost: Oscar Pistorius, South Africa's 'Blade Runner,' shoots girlfriend to death, reports say

Pistorius allegedly shot and killed his girlfriend after mistaking her for an intruder at his home early Thursday morning. 

Mexico's Citizens' Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice this month unveiled its yearly list of the most violent cities around the globe.

The Mexican NGO, which focuses on violence reduction, argued that laws which restrict gun ownership do almost nothing to curb homicide rates around the world.

The council's list is as follows:

1. San Pedro Sula, Honduras

2. Acapulco, Mexico

3. Caracas, Venezuela

4. Distrito Central, Honduras

5. Torreon, Mexico

6. Maceio, Brazil

7. Cali, Colombia

8. Nuevo Laredo, Mexico

9. Barquisimeto, Venezuela

10. João Pessoa, Brazil

The Citizen Council's attributes the high rates of violence in Latin America to a combination of drugs, organized crime and governments that are ill-equipped to handle the challenge.

ABC News quoted council president Jose Antonio Ortega as saying:

"In countries where there are few restrictions on weapons ownership, there is much less violence than in countries where prohibitions and restrictions on gun ownership prevail. Prohibitions [on gun ownership] do not affect violent criminals who, ultimately, have a way of getting their hands on weapons. They only disarm innocent people and leave them at the mercy of criminals."