Chair, crime can be prevented before it occurs. The more trained police officers we have on the streets, the better we will be able to prevent crime and bring criminals to justice. This must go hand in hand with steps to improve these officers' performance. Police officers should be employed on the basis of merit and not on the basis of quotas or political alignment.
The taxpayer also often carries the burden of the failure of the Independent Complaints Directorate, ICD. There were over 6 000 complaints against members of the SA Police Service, SAPS, this past year. About 2 772 of these complaints were about criminal activities. This equals eight police members doing crime every day of the year.
For the past three years to date, R90 million has been spent on suspended SAPS members on full pay, covering 12 723 working days in total. It would be worth nothing if SAPS members would only be dismissed when they are given a prison sentence without the option of a fine.
The DA also said that the firearm legislation would be an extremely expensive failure - and I'm afraid this is what it has become. Legal gun owners fumed at the hoops they had to jump through to get a new, improved and expensive gun licence when they already owned one.
At the same time, one clue to how our criminals have become so heavily armed comes from the information that the police somehow lost 2 507 weapons last year. Added to municipal losses, this means that 3 767 weapons are now in the hands of criminals. In fact, over 14 000 weapons have been lost or stolen from police stations since 2001. So it makes no sense that the department would choose to turn and focus on legal gun owners.
It is disappointing that President Zuma failed to announce the reconstitution of the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences units in the state of the nation address. It was the previous police commissioner, Jackie Selebi, who decided to close down all specialised units such as the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences units and all the other units which had been crafted into lean, delivering units equal to the best in this world.
Regrettably, the government appears intent on centralising all facets of government, including the police. This means that the need for specialised crime fighting units, which are so urgently required to deal with many of the most serious types of crimes, continues to be ignored. We, as the DA, welcome the Minister's consideration to reopen these specialised units. Minister, we will be monitoring this.
Today, another 52 people will be murdered in this beautiful country of ours. Fifty-two murders per day! This could happen to anyone of your friends, families or even us. Government has a target on reducing serious and violent crimes like rape by 7% to 10% every year, but only 50% of reported rapes lead to arrests, while only 17% of matters ever go to trial in Gauteng - the one province which we have data for. The conviction rate for rape hovers at 7%, dropping to as low as 4% in Gauteng. It is then not surprising that the police do not possess any real ability to prevent rape.
Evidence is emerging that some police stations may be manipulating their statistics to meet targets. In 2007, at least 50 rapes reported in the Paarl area were allegedly recorded as general inquiries and were left uninvestigated. Organisations serving rape complainants have corroborated this, saying that they too have been approached by complainants alleging that police officers have refused to accept their complaints.
The frightening part is that only one in nine women raped reports their attack to these police. It is clear that despite this impossible 7% target, there has not been a real reduction in rape. Instead, this target has unintentionally created perverse incentives which may render the trauma and suffering of rape complaints irrelevant in the face of performance targets, and could make those responsible for enforcing the rule of law complicit in the law's corruption. In the process, underreporting is further increased. The quality of engagement of police officers and prosecutors with complainants ought to be assessed.
President Zuma admitted failure by saying that the ANC now needs to establish an integrated, modernised, properly-resourced and well-managed criminal justice system. The Global Peace Index survey places South Africa at 123 out of 144 countries. Seven places down from our position last year. Clearly, the ongoing deterioration of the crime problem in South Africa warrants a decisive new approach.
As I conclude, every expert in the country will tell you that updated and accurate information on crime is an essential tool in fighting crime and creating real and localised responses. Covering up crime won't make crime go away, Mr Minister. The question is: Are we going to allow this to go on or are we prepared to take responsibility and take corrective measures to really serve the people of South Africa and give them what they deserve - freedom, with safety and security? I thank you, Chair. [Applause.]