The Ministry of Police has presented the 2017/2018 national crime statistics to the Portfolio Committee on Police in Parliament, and the numbers paint a grim picture.
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The briefing wraps up.
Sitole: "If we get any report from any woman, or any community, that a woman was not assisted, in terms of the SAPS disciplinary code, that is a serious
Sitole says there are already several instances where action has been taken in matters like these.
On a question of whether or not the country has descended into "lawlessness", Cele responds with an emphatic no.
Cele: "Somebody had a mission of making sure that Hawks are not Hawks... just to make sure that he's got a big pair of scissors to cut all the wings."
"So he's busy putting those wings back," Cele says of the new Hawks head. "And we will not, together, hesitate to do that."
Cele says if they need to act, they will act.
"We are here, and we make sure that we dismantle that," Cele says in response to a question of whether or not a culture of impunity exists among criminals because they see high-level politicians getting away with
Cele mentions the recent arrests in KwaZulu-Natal, including that of an ANC
Cele on the issue of police using force.
Cele says the government security cluster has not met for the last two years. Says he's not sure
Cele and Sitole now fielding questions from members of the media.
Sekhukhune now going through and discussing some of the numbers in the slides again.
"In terms of sexual
Cele: "It cannot be the norm that children as young as two are killed..."
Cele is now briefing the media.
Murder by numbers: This is the rate of killing in SA
South Africa's murder rate has increased by 6.9%.
In real numbers, this means that 1 320 more people have been murdered in South Africa in the past year.
The number for the previous financial year was 19 000. This number has increased to 20 336.
That means, on average, 57 people are killed in SA every day.
Sitole touches on the "creation of safer cities" strategy, says they've been to China and Thailand last week, along with the president, and South Africa was the only country to present a completed strategy.
"We have already identified 10 of the safer cities pilots in the country, I think in Gauteng it's Johannesburg and Pretoria, in Western Cape it's Cape Town and in Mpumalanga, Witbank, North West, I think Rustenburg... we've got the whole list."
National Police Commissioner Khehla Sitole says they increased their intake of officers from the planned 3 000 in this financial
Sitole says their colleges can take up to 7 000, and that is what they will consistently aim for until the gap is closed.
Cele: "Police will need the support of the portfolio committee in terms of resources... and explain how it happened, how it could have been avoided, how it can be corrected".
"The theme
On murder stats: The Western Cape had 10 police stations in the top 30 ranked for murder.
The issue of adequate police personnel and capacity has been a recurring theme in questions posed to Cele and his colleagues.
Sekhukhune earlier on reported incidents of mob justice - 264 in Gauteng, 173 in the Western Cape, 145 in KwaZulu-Natal and 95 in Limpopo.
KwaZulu-Natal also recorded 30 political murders, whereas two were reported in the Western Cape.
MPs on the portfolio committee now directing questions at Cele and his colleagues who presented the statistics.
Robbery of cash-in-transit vans increased by 86 counts, from 152 to 238. Most happened on the road, in business areas, and 40 happened in spaza shops and malls. In most instances, security guards' weapons were taken from them.
Sekhukhune says firearms were the most-used weapons in most instances to commit murders, says one firearm could have been used in more than one incident to commit murder.
Sekhukhune says police killings also contribute to murder statistics - the highest number of officials killed at once was in the Ngcobo police station massacre earlier this year.
Sekhukhune mentions 62 farm murders, says the highest contributing province was Gauteng, followed by North West and Limpopo, with 9 cases each, then Free State and Mpumalanga with 8 murders each.
According to Sekhukhune, in some instances murders are multiple murders, particularly in the Western Cape where gang crimes are high. Sekhukhune says there were 808 gang-related murders in the Western Cape, and 87 in the Eastern Cape.