Nearly three murders were committed every hour during the first quarter of the year in South Africa, where record crime is still more intense, according to official police statistics released on Tuesday (May 30th).
Every three months, in one of the most dangerous African countries in the world, Police Minister Bheki Cele paints a sad picture of insecurity during a press conference broadcast live on television. Between January and March, murders increased by 3.4% compared to the same period last year with 6,289 cases recorded.
We are gradually regaining ground from criminals.
Bheki Cele, South African Minister of Police
But "fewer children were killed compared to last year," Vele said, with child murders down 20 percent. "We are gradually regaining ground from criminals," assured the minister. For comparison, South Africa records an average of ten homicides per 100,000 inhabitants when Japan is close to zero and the France to one, according to the World Bank.
Sometimes referred to as the "epicentre of rape" for the staggering number of complaints, South Africa opened more than 10,500 cases in the first three months of the year. A figure for once down, with 2.8% fewer cases reported than over the same period last year. Cash-in-transit attacks have also increased by more than 20% and thefts from residences by nearly 6%.
