Why South Africans have become so violent in many ways

The latest Victims of Crime report is a reflection of the psychological trauma of the past that the country has not yet healed from and experts say this spillover has led to South Africans resorting to violence as a coping mechanism.

On releasing the 2018-2019 report yesterday, Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke revealed that there was a 50% chance that one was assaulted by their family member or acquaintance and a 22% chance that assaults happened between spouses or intimate partners.

The report also suggested that only 35% of South Africans felt safe walking alone in their neighbourhoods at night, though the proportion who felt safe during the day had risen to 83%.

It also showed that a lot of crime remained unreported, with 40% of home robberies and 65% of street robberies not being reported. It suggested it may be linked to citizens having little faith in the police.

Security expert Ntsikelelo Breakfast said he believed the issue of crime had a lot to do with security and this report was a reflection that people did not feel safe.

“South Africans have lost confidence in the police,” he said.

Institute for Security Studies justice and violence prevention researcher Lizette Lancaster said the fact that a third of South Africans felt unsafe on their own streets had been raised for about 20 years.

She said despite this, not much had changed, or improved, to make people feel safer.

“Conflicts and arguments have gone out of control. We see it at schools and in homes, where violence is used as a form of punishment, during violent protests and looting,” said Lancaster.

Breakfast also suggested government took on a holistic approach to deal with the issue, starting by tackling the serious socioeconomic issues facing people, like unemployment and poverty.

– jenniffero@citizen.co.za

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