South African President Cyril Ramaphosa called the killings of women in the country “horror” in Johannesburg on Tuesday and announced that these crimes had increased by more than 50% in early 2022.
South Africa has seen a 52% increase in murders of women in the first three months of the year compared to the same period last year, according to the President, speaking at a conference on gender-based violence in Johannesburg. During the same period, child homicides increased by 46%.
The President regretted that despite the government’s efforts, violence against women and children is reaching high levels in the country. “Not a day goes by without a story … about a woman or a child who has been killed or has suffered horrific violence,” he said. “These horrors are incomprehensible (…) They tell a deeply disturbing story about our society,” added President Ramaphosa.
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South Africa has recently been rocked by a spate of horrific crimes, including the gang rape of eight women in July and the discovery of half a dozen bodies – some of which may be those of sex workers – in a Johannesburg building last month. Ramaphosa faced an outcry and questions from women’s rights activists, some of whom accused the government of not doing enough. “We South Africans are the rape capital of the world,” said Lebogang Motau of the NGO Free World Initiative. The President said the government has enacted legislation to better protect women and bring perpetrators to justice. He also pointed out that the government has earmarked around 21 billion rand ($1.2 billion) for women’s empowerment.
But according to police data, rape and sexual assault have increased by 13% since 2021-2022, Ramaphosa noted.