Murder rate in Western Cape falls, but crime issues still loom large
The shadow of crime looms large as officials demand urgent funding for police amid rising violence.
Image: File
Despite a reported 3.4% decline in the murder rate in the Western Cape, officials are sounding alarms over persistent crime issues in the region.
The Western Cape Government and the City of Cape Town are pressing for immediate financial support to strengthen SAPS, which is currently under strain.
The news comes as police reports that three people were murdered in Joe Slovo, Milnerton on Saturday.
The provincial government said the latest quarterly crime statistics for the Western Cape once again show that a complete reform of South Africa’s policing system and proper funding for law enforcement agencies are needed.
Premier Alan Winde and Police Oversight and Community Safety MEC, Anroux Marais, have cautiously welcomed the 3.4% decrease in the province’s overall murder rate for Quarter 3 of 2025/26, which they say represents a decrease of 41 murders over this period.
There was a higher decrease in murders (-3.7%) in the combined Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP) deployment areas in Cape Town, which fell from 323 cases in Quarter 3 of 2024/25 to 311 cases in Quarter 3 of 2025/26.
Three of these areas had noticeable decreases; namely Delft (-19.4%), Gugulethu (- 13.3%) and Mitchells Plain (-22%). The Western Cape, excluding LEAP deployment areas, recorded a decrease of -3.3 %.
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde.
Image: Armand Hough / Independent Newspapers
"While there has been a decrease in the murder rate, far too many of our residents are dying at the hands of gangsters,” Winde said. “The evidence is clear, cooperative, locally managed policing works."
Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis added that the City has taken some encouragement from a moderate reduction in violent crime, particularly in LEAP deployment areas, but reiterated that metro police stands ready to help the SAPS and NPA improve the conviction rate for gang, gun and drug crime.
Fight Against Crime Spokesperson Jay Jay Idel said statistics was not the reality on the streets: “The Western Cape Government maintains that where it intervenes, murder rates decline. Yet those same communities remain trapped in cycles of gang recruitment, poverty and violence. The brutal truth is this: statistics don’t bury children, bullets do."
SAPS officers searching a block of flats for drugs
Image: Matthew Jordaan/Independent Newspapers (Archives)
His sentiments were echoed by the Chairperson of the Bishop Lavis Crime Prevention Forum, Graham Lindhorst, who said: "That's why we sit with 10 policing precincts, which is in the top 30, now for a very long time."
The South African National Defence Force (SANDF) is set to be deployed to combat rising gang violence, sparking debate among civic organisations and government officials.
Image: File
Unite for Change Leadership Council Member & GOOD Secretary-General, Brett Herron, said that the province faces a devastating reality.
“We are seeing stations, such as Manenberg, creep into the top 30 murder stations in the country, and it has been years since Manenberg made an appearance,” Herron said.”
Winde reiterated that the deployment of the SANDF to the Western Cape as a force multiplier must be followed by an urgent overhaul of South Africa’s entire criminal justice system.
Freedom Front Plus MP Wouter Wessels warned that optimism about declining figures should be tempered by concerns raised by the Auditor-General about the reliability of crime data and low prosecution rates nationally.
RISE Mzansi said the statistics reflected persistent fear and institutional failure, highlighting the increase in attempted murder and ongoing firearm-driven violence.
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