Cape Town - Police Minister Senzo Mchunu reported a noteworthy decrease in murder cases in the Western Cape, offering some relief from the concerning trend during the presentation of the crime statistics on Monday.
In the second quarter of the 2024/25 financial year, from July to September, the Western Cape experienced an 8.7% decrease in murder cases, from 1 164 in 2023 to 1 063 in 2024.
Among six provinces that reported a reduction in murder rates during this period, the Western Cape ranked fourth, following the Northern Cape, Free State, and Kwazulu-Natal, which had larger reductions.
Philippi East has the second highest murder rate nationally, with 74 people murdered, compared to 28 cases over the same period in 2023.
It is followed by Delft, Nyanga, Mfuleni and Gugulethu in the Top 10 national ranking, but the killings declined by a staggering 15% to 1.8%.
Between July 1 and September 30, 17 communities reported a 5.1% decline in serious crimes nationally.
Contact crimes decreased nationally by 3%, property-related crime by 9.9%, and other serious crimes by 3.4%.
Within contact crime, murder decreased by 5.8%, sexual offences by 2.5%, and robbery with aggravating circumstances by 8.8%.
Rape decreased by 3.1%, robbery at residential premises by 1.3%, and robbery at non-residential premises by 21.1%.
Police Oversight and Community Safety MEC, Anroux Marais, cautioned against “unrealistic expectations”.
“We have to keep in mind that this decrease is in comparison with the same period last year, when we saw significant violence associated with the minibus taxi strike. From time to time, the fluctuation in the Western Cape crime statistics creates an outlier, and July to September last year was such an outlier.
“I remain concerned that our crime levels are still unacceptably high.
“Now is not the time for complacency.
“We should take heart from the decrease in murder to redouble our efforts to further push down crime,” Marais said.
Premier Alan Winde said crime levels, especially violent offences, remain intolerably high.
“We must do everything we can to maintain this momentum in beating back this scourge.
“This includes building up partnerships across our crime-fighting network, further implementing strategies rooted in data and evidence, and adapting our approach to policing through the Memorandum of Understanding we have entered into with the national government, the SAPS and the City of Cape Town. It is only through a coordinated, collaborative approach that we will be able to make our communities safer,” Winde said.
The City’s safety and security mayco member, JP Smith, said one of the positives is that Manenberg and Philippi (Hanover Park) have fallen out of the Top 30 list of policing precincts with the highest number of murders.
“Philippi East remains a concern, particularly around the rate of murders and car-jacking incidents; so too the increase in robberies in Cape Town Central and Bishop Lavis, but similarly, Cape Town Central has also seen decreases in property-related crime, theft out of motor vehicles and other categories of theft.”
Mchunu said: “I want to begin by identifying the core crimes shaping our environment and which are our priorities. First, we face a scourge of violent crimes: murder, attempted murder, assault GBH (Grievous Bodily Harm), and rape. Gender-based violence (GBV), which has become a national priority crime, requires our distinct focus, as it continues to devastate families and communities, with a unique set of challenges that demand specialised intervention, thorough investigations, and collaborative solutions.”
Ilitha Labantu’s spokesperson, Siyabulela Monakali, said the scale of violence in the province is escalating, particularly against women and children, and urgent action is needed.
“Communities like those on the Cape Flats continue to suffer from systemic neglect, poverty, unemployment, lack of service delivery and yet, resources continue to be disproportionately allocated to more affluent areas.
“The government’s failure to address this imbalance not only perpetuates inequality but allows violence to continue unchecked.”
Action Society spokesperson, Juanita du Preez, said: “Action Society demands that more stringent action is taken to protect the women and children of this country. We cannot let another 16 Days of Activism against violence against women and children pass with only lip service and no action taken. We need these crimes to be prioritised.”