Action Society was deeply disappointed with the police’s belated release of the latest crime statistics. In May they completely neglected to release the statistics for the fourth quarter of 2023/24 and speculations that the release fell too close to the national elections were confirmed today. This was clearly a political move right before a very important election; a blatant cover up of Bheki Cele’s failure to keep South Africans safe. Under his leadership, the police service was marred with political interference and incompetence, which rendered them ineffective and saw crime rates climb to unprecedented heights, with more than 80 people being killed on a daily basis.
“We welcome Minister Mchunu’s action plan which includes a commitment to uproot and tackle corruption within the police and a planned strengthening of the police’s crime intelligence capabilities to target criminal networks,” said Action Society spokesperson Juanita du Preez. “We hope that these new strategies under the stewardship of Minister Mchunu will yield results and make South Africa a safer place. We also hope that we can develop a working relationship with the new minister and that he will consider our proposals for reform.”
However, today’s crime stats showed that the bloodbath simply continued in the fourth quarter of last year and the first quarter of this year.
According to the crime statistics for quarter 4 of 2023/2024, a rape was reported every 12 minutes. Every day, 73 people were murdered and 82 attempted murder cases were reported. Every day, 514 people were assaulted with the intent to inflict grievous bodily harm (Assault GBH).
The bloodbath continued in the first quarter of 2024/2025. For this period, 9 309 rapes were recorded, with 103 women being raped per day, which means at least 4 rapes occur every hour. Murders reached a total number of 6 198 which means 69 people are killed per day and attempted murder cases reached a figure of 6 867, which amounts to 76 per day. For this period , 39 738 people were assaulted with the intent to inflict grievous bodily harm (Assault GBH), which amounts to 442 per day.
The onslaught on women and children continues to be staggering.
In quarter four of 2023/24, 928 women were murdered – 10 per day, while 1701 attempted murders took place – 19 per day. During the same period, 253 children were killed – 3 per day and 406 were victims of attempted murder – 5 per day. No less than 2 238 children were seriously assaulted – 25 per day.
In quarter one of 2024/2025, 966 women were murdered – at least 11 per day, while 1644 attempted murders took place – 18 per day. For the same period 314 children were killed – 3 per day and 424 were victims of attempted murder – 5 per day. At least 1 596 children were seriously assaulted – 18 per day.
“Police minister Mchunu has no choice but to declare war on crime in South Africa – we expect nothing less. We are clearly living in a warzone where especially the most vulnerable – women and children – are being targeted,” according to du Preez.
