Premier Alan Winde and Western Cape Minister of Police Oversight and Community Safety, Anroux Marais, have cautiously welcomed the decrease in the province’s murder rate in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with the same period last year.
There was a -4% decrease in the overall murder rate in the Western Cape for quarter four of 2024/25, this follows a -7.9% decrease in quarter three and a -8.7% decrease in quarter two. The latest reduction represents a decrease of 44 murders.
“We are heartened by the decrease over three consecutive quarters; however, the numbers are still worryingly high, and 10 of Western Cape South African Police Service (SAPS) stations were among the top 30 stations in the country with high murder rates.
During this quarter, the Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP) was deployed in 6 high priority areas: Delft, Nyanga, Philippi East, Gugulethu, Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain. Of these, there were decreases in Gugulethu of 39.7%, Khayelitsha of 9.5%, and Nyanga of 12.5%. Worryingly, there were increases in Delft of 1.5% and Philippi East of 63.9%. The figures for Mitchells Plain are not yet available. This suggests a positive impact of the LEAP initiative.
Minister Marais added, “Despite these gains, we all remain gravely concerned about the rate of violent crime in the province, the high proportion of gang violence, and the impact of violence on individuals and communities.”
The Premier noted, “The only way we will tackle crime more effectively is by securing the policing resources and authority our residents need and deserve from national government. We remain fully committed to working with national government—as the lead agency in crime prevention and law enforcement, but crime continues to be one of the most stubborn challenges facing our province. In the Western Cape, we have implemented a range of targeted interventions in partnership with municipalities and local communities. Initiatives such as the double-up deployment of LEAP officers in high-crime areas have made a measurable difference. But the hard truth is these efforts, while impactful, are not enough on their own. We need more boots on the ground, greater devolved authority over policing, and deeper, results-driven collaboration with national government to truly tackle crime.”
Over and above dealing with crime itself we need to accelerate and more urgently implement policies and programmes that drive economic growth and job creation. We also need to support families and children at risk and ensure that these youth are supported to remain in school and are offered various learning opportunities. We also acknowledge the important role that community structures like Community Policing Forums (CPFs) and neighbourhood watches, as well as other community structures, play in preventing violence.
The Western Cape Government is in the process of revising the Western Cape Safety Plan to harness the contributions of all role players in addressing the causal factors for violence. The provincial government is also coordinating the Western Cape Anti-Gang Implementation plan to support SAPS in addressing gang violence in the highest-risk communities.
“The Memorandum of Agreement that we signed with national government and the City of Cape Town (CoCT) last year is the critical lever that we need to use to make desperately needed progress in some of our worst-affected areas. There is still much work to be done to ensure that, for example, illegal firearms and ammunition are removed from our communities and that perpetrators of these and other crimes are apprehended and prosecuted,” stressed the Minister.
The Premier concluded, “We are deeply concerned over the recent revelation that despite our joint crime-fighting and prevention efforts with municipalities and other stakeholders, which see hundreds of illegal firearms taken off of our streets each year, an inadequate criminal justice system is failing law-abiding residents. We will continue to engage with the SAPS to strengthen partnerships, especially with the National Prosecuting Authority through our Memorandum of Understanding.”
Media Enquiries:
Regan Thaw
Media Liaison Officer to the Premier
Cell: 083 627 7246
Email: Regan.Thaw@westerncape.gov.za
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