Cabinet has welcomed the South African Police Service’s (SAPS) ongoing operations aimed at preventing and combating Gender-Based Violence and Femicide related crimes.
This follows the arrest of 224 suspects for rape, and five suspects for attempted rape between 5 and 11 May 2025.
Briefing the media on the outcomes of the Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday, Minister in The Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, highlighted that amongst those arrested on allegations of rape, included a SAPS trainer, a traditional leader (Inkosi) from KwaZulu-Natal, and a 15-year-old boy in Mpumalanga.
“Additionally, 148 suspects were arrested for attempted murder, 256 suspects were arrested for dealing in drugs, 2 841 suspects were arrested for being in possession of drugs and 86 hijacked and stolen vehicles were recovered. Furthermore, 74 explosives mostly used in illegal mining and cash in transit robberies were seized by North West police,” Ntshavheni said.
Ntshavheni also noted that the SAPS operations to remove illegal firearms to ensure safer communities, has been intensified throughout the country, with over 100 firearms seized in the past week alone.
Inquiry into TRC cases welcomed
Cabinet has also commended the establishment of a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to establish whether attempts were made to prevent the investigation or prosecution of apartheid-era crimes referred by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
The establishment of the Commission of Inquiry follows a legal settlement reached in a court application brought by families of victims of apartheid-era crimes.
“Through this Commission, President Cyril Ramaphosa is determined that the true facts be established and the matter brought to finality,” Ntshavheni said.
The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission, established under the Promotion of National Unity and Reconciliation Act (Act No. 34 of 1995), was set up by the Government of National Unity to help deal with what happened under apartheid.
The conflict during this period resulted in violence and human rights abuses from all sides, and no section of society escaped these abuses. -SAnews.gov.za
