Police Minister Senzo Mchunu delivered the latest crime statistics for the third quarter of 2024/2025 in Pretoria on Friday.
While Mchunu applauded a decrease in serious crimes, the Democratic Alliance has highlighted that the statistics reveal the grim reality facing South African citizens.
Minister encouraged by drop in serious crime stats
Certainly, Mchunu praised the decrease in the reported statistics as a significant improvement compared to the same period last year.
“The statistics we present today show a significant shift in our national crime landscape. Encouragingly, we have observed an overall decrease in several categories of crime.” said Mchunu
Mchunu highlighted the following decreases:
- A 9.8% decrease in murder cases
- A 3.3% reduction in rape cases
- A 3.2% drop in attempted sexual offences
Democratic Alliance reacts: Stats reveal reality of life in SA
Democratic Alliance Spokesperson on Police Ian Cameron says that the decrease in some crime stats does not reflect lived realities for most communities in South Africa.
“Today’s release of the crime statistics reflects the horrific daily experiences of South Africans. Despite some reduction in key crimes such as murder, if you ask anyone across communities whether they feel safer, their answer would be no.” Cameron explained
Cameron highlighted how, from October to the end of 2024, the following crimes had taken place:
- 6 953 people were murdered (76 daily)
- 54 337 people were assaulted (591 daily)
- 11 803 people were victims of raped (128 daily)
- 12 447 common robberies occurred (135 daily)
Cameron stressed the importance of enhancing crime intelligence and forensic capabilities as the world continuously finds new approaches to tackling crime.
“Our approach to crime must be ahead of criminals and current (approach) is not. Technologically, we are outdated, as our forensic labs and intelligence systems must not only be updated but built for the future.” Cameron elaborated.
Provinces with highest murder rate revealed
Mchunu also revealed that, while all provinces had recorded an overall decrease in murder cases, Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal were the highest contributors overall.
The provinces accounted for 25% and 21.4% of the reported cases, followed by the Eastern Cape at 18.9% and the Western Cape at 17.4%.
Furthermore, the Western Cape recorded the highest number of gang-related murders in South Africa (263), with the vast majority (135) of these crimes taking place in Bishop Lavis, Mitchells Plain, Kleinvlei, Delft and Elsies River.
Do you agree there has been a drastic improvement in crime?
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