Despite the Downtrend in Crime, Much More Still Needs to be Done says Acting Premier Leonard Ramatlakane | Western Cape Government

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Despite the Downtrend in Crime, Much More Still Needs to be Done says Acting Premier Leonard Ramatlakane

20 September 2004
Western Cape MEC for Community Safety and Acting Premier Leonard Ramatlakane says despite the downtrend in crime in the province, much more still needs to be done to ensure that women and children feel safe.

Minister Ramatlakane told a media briefing at the Pinelands Police headquarters on Tuesday that the latest crime statistics, which showed a drop in crimes such as murder and rape, are good news.

"The results show that the crime fighting strategy implemented when new Provincial Commissioner Mzwandile Petros took over, is yielding results. It is a strategy that has seen senior police officers, like directors being on the coalface of fighting crime."

The strategy required police to work more during the three last days of the week, Friday Saturday and Sunday because those are the days when more than 70 % of crime such as murder is committed.

Minister Ramatlakane said this strategy was working.

The latest crime statistics released by National Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula in Pretoria yesterday, show that in the Western Cape, had come down in the past financial year,

Crime of murder has dropped by 22, 5 %.
Areas like Khayelitsha and Mitchell's Plain, which had been the talking point of crime and at one stage earned the tag of murder capital in the country, have shown a decline.

Mitchell's Plain recorded a decline in crime of murder by 38, 3% while Khayelitsha recorded 32,3%.

Other priority stations also showed a decrease in crime. These are Nyanga (29%), Kuilsriver (25,8%) and Guguletu (18%).

"These figures clearly confirms that the Western Cape has become much more safer and this is the lowest decline in ten years" said Minister Ramatlakane.

Minister Ramatlakane was addressing the handing over of 22 new vehicles to the Police Flying squad unit. The vehicles, which have been fitted with hi-tech software to track suspected criminals, will also add muscle to the highway patrols in a bid to curb crime on the N2, N1, R300 and all other major national routes.

Speaking at the ceremony, Minister Ramatlakane said "The latest crime statistics showed that there is an increase in crimes of child abduction and drug abuse."

"On child abduction I would want to also urge parents to begin to take responsibility of their children and their neighbour's children. It has come to our knowledge the some parents only start to report a child as missing only days after the child had disappeared. That is an act of negligence, which I would regard as a crime. That parents is supposed to be arrested for negligence"

"We have been reliably informed that some of the children who went missing, their parents only reported them two to ten days later. Is that not an act of negligence?"

Minster Ramatlakane says he concurs with the police that the increase in drug related crimes is an indication that police intervention plans have resulted in more arrests by drug users and that more confessions are being made.

Minister Ramatlakane says he is convinced crime will continue to drop despite much criticism.

He called on the police intensify their commitment in order to ensure that the people in the province feel more safe and or never bother to report their children as missing in the last.

Media Enquiries: 

Makhaya Mani
Media Liaison Officer
Ministry of Community Safety
Tel: 021 483 3873