South Africa: The true scale of violence against women remains unclear

In response to the release of the quarterly crime statistics, Amnesty International South Africa Executive Director Shenilla Mohamed said:

“Despite a slight decrease in the number of reported sexual offences, including rape, the number of these cases still remains a concern. The most recent quarterly crime statistics (April 2026 – June 2026), recorded 9201 reported rapes, while this was down 0.3% from the same time last year, this still amounts to just over 100 rapes a day. The total number of sexual offences reported were 11,532, down 0.8%. 

However, the full scale of violence against women remains unclear. In August 2025, the South African Police Service (SAPS) suspended publication of disaggregated crime data, including statistics related to murder and assault of women and children, citing accuracy concerns that required investigation before the matter was resolved. Reliable data is not a technical detail, it is a prerequisite for accountability. When critical information about the killings and assaults of women is missing from official statistics, it undermines efforts to prevent violence, allocate resources effectively and hold those responsible to account. SAPS needs to resolve the issue of data collection methodology as soon as possible and not use this as an excuse not to provide accurate and disaggregated statistics. ”