Murder rate climbs as police ‘drop the ball’

South Africa’s murder rate rose to its highest level in nine years as a depleted police force struggled to get to grips with violent crime.

The number of homicides rose by 7% to 20 336 — an average of almost 56 a day — in the 12 months through March, the police service said in its annual crime statistics report, released in parliament in Cape Town on Tuesday. The murder rate increased to 35.2 per 100 000 people, from 34.1% in the previous year. The rate is more than six times higher than that of the US.

“I can say the South African Police Service dropped the ball,” Police Minister Bheki Cele told lawmakers. “A major problem is that the Saps now only has 191 000 members, compared to the 200 000 we had in 2010. It could take us 10 years to get back to those numbers.”

The number of sexual offenses increased 0.9% to 50 108, while attempted murder cases climbed 0.2% to 18 233, the police report showed. Incidents of truckjacking rose by 1.6%, while carjackings declined 2.3%. Commercial crimes fell 7.8% and home break-ins by 0.4 %. There were 13 bank robberies during the year under review, up from three the year before.

South Africa’s murder rate has fallen from 67.9 per 100 000 people in 1995, when an integrated national police force was created and national statistics were compiled for the first time, but has been on the rise since 2011. Efforts to fight crime were hampered by repeated changes to law enforcement agencies’ top management during former President Jacob Zuma’s almost nine-year tenure, while a stagnating economy and inflation-beating increases for state workers left no room in the budget to retain and hire officers.

Zuma, who was personally implicated in a succession of scandals, was forced to quit in February under pressure from the ruling party and replaced by Cyril Ramaphosa who has pledged to bring crime under control.

“This situation must be arrested and reversed with lightning speed,” said Cele, a former police commissioner, who was named police minister shortly after Ramaphosa took office. “South Africa has not reached a state of lawlessness. These crime statistics will not get worse.”