GOOD statement by Brett Herron, GOOD Secretary-General & Member of Parliament
03 June 2022
The Crime Stats paint a horrifying picture of a country gripped by violent crime with murder still on the rise.
A 22% increase in murders, an undeniable measurement of the violence our communities endure, exposes our failure as a country to secure the right to life and peace.
The increase in the number of rapes and sexual offences is shocking.
The fact that the second most likely place for murder is at your home, and that almost half of rapes take place in the victim or perpetrator’s homes, are shocking acknowledgments of how unsafe we all are.
When our own homes are potential crime scenes and when women constitute the largest number of victims the data shows that we have a long way to go in our fight against gender-based violence and domestic violence.
Mob justice and vigilantism, being the second highest reason for murder, is a worrying statistic because it shows a lawless society where communities are taking the law into their own hands. This must be curbed by improving trust for the ability of the South African Police Service (SAPS) to serve better and to be more responsive.
It wouldn’t have helped the statistics that the reporting period coincided with a period of instability in our policing – with the Minister and previous Police Commissioner unable to work together. We call on the police’s political and operational leadership to work in the interests of all South Africans and their rights to life, limb, property and peace
Improving the quality of policing is only a partial solution.
Our crime levels reflect the unaddressed social, spatial and economic injustices from the past that continue to prevail in our towns and cities today.
If we are to meaningfully tackle crime we must meaningfully address the social, spatial and economic conditions that prevail in our towns and cities.
Communities ravaged by violent crime and gangsterism are the same communities that were under-developed by the apartheid government. For this, our governments – at all levels –must take responsibility for they have failed to address the historical deprivation of opportunities and the disparities in services, amenities and infrastructure.
We will reduce crime when we address both poor quality policing and also peoples’ lived experience. So that all feel they have a stake in a better future for our country.
It is the duty of all three spheres of government to address the conditions which create an environment that is conducive to crime. An over emphasis on policing will not resolve our crime problem.
Media Enquiries:
Brett Herron, GOOD: Secretary-General & Member of Parliament
Cell: 0825183264
Email: bretth@forgood.org.za
Janke Tolmay, GOOD: Media Manager
Cell: 0733671223
Email: janke@forgood.org.za