Dear Editor
Today’s report by Statistics South Africa, the “Victims of Crime” survey, shows that South Africans are under increasing siege from violent crime. The DA condemns SAPS’ ongoing failure to provide effective policing.
Concerning increases can be seen in serious crimes such as sexual offences, where instances have spiked from 25,000 cases in 2020/21 to a shocking 73,000 cases in 2024/25.
The report by StatsSA demonstrates a national crime crisis, including:
- Only 36.1% of South Africans feel safe walking alone at night in their own communities.
- An estimated 983,000 households were victims of housebreaking in the past year.
- Nearly 846,000 people fell victim to theft of personal property.
Our communities remain under siege due to violent crimes such as murder, assault, robbery, rape and sexual offences, with many cases going unreported due to deep mistrust of the South African Police Service (SAPS).
The recent shootings on the Cape Flats are a stark reminder of the urgent need for reform within SAPS. They highlight not only the scale of violence but also the glaring lack of crime intelligence capacity within the national police service.
Without a functional intelligence unit that can anticipate, prevent, and disrupt criminal activity, communities remain exposed, and SAPS is left reacting to crises instead of preventing them. Crime prevention strategies remain reactive instead of proactive, leaving communities exposed to repeat victimisation.
This survey done by StatsSA has delivered a picture of the lived experiences of the victims/survivors of crime, whereas South Africa receives data-centric reports from the SAPS on a quarterly basis that reflect the documented cases or criminal complaints opened at SAPS stations. The StatsSA survey may paint a more accurate picture of the real impact of crime, because it does not go through the filter of the SAPS self-reporting.
A significant reporting issue in the quarterly crime statistics released by the SAPS themselves, is that they fail to report on crimes specifically targeting women and children. In effect the SAPS crime stats ignore GBV.
SAPS remains under-resourced, undertrained and compromised by cadre deployment and corruption.
The bold reform which the South African Police Service needs includes devolving policing powers to capable provincial and local governments who understand their communities’ needs. This is becoming increasingly essential, and the DA recognises the fight that the province of the Western Cape and the City of Cape Town are mounting to see devolution of policing.
For SAPS to improve, it is high time that there is effective and hands-on management of Policing at the national level to deliver:
- Professionalisation of SAPS by ending cadre deployment and appointing skilled officers based on merit.
- Modernisation of policing through the use of technology, data-driven crime prevention and increased visible policing.
- Strengthening of Community Policing Forums (CPFs) to rebuild public trust and cooperation with law enforcement.
South Africans deserve the freedom to walk safely in their streets, raise their children without fear and live their lives without the constant threat of crime.
Only a capable state with professional, community-focused policing can restore safety and rebuild trust.
Regards
Lisa Schickerling MP
DA Spokesperson on Police