Johannesburg, South Africa — While Gauteng celebrates a 6.5% drop in overall crime, Premier Panyaza Lesufi is sounding the alarm over one harrowing trend that refuses to budge: Gender-Based Violence and Femicide (GBVF).
Lesufi has declared GBVF “the only crime category still rising” in the province and is calling for urgent and decisive action to curb the epidemic.
In a bold response, Lesufi has activated a 72-hour rapid response plan for law enforcement to urgently track down and apprehend known GBVF perpetrators. The move underscores the province’s growing frustration with the slow pace of progress in protecting vulnerable women and children.
Lesufi’s call to action coincided with his participation in the ANC Women’s League march to the Union Buildings in Pretoria on November 29, 2024, where protestors demanded stricter enforcement, harsher sentencing, and increased accountability in gender-based crime cases.
Speaking during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, Lesufi also linked alcohol abuse to a spike in GBV, especially in known hotspots like Ga-Rankuwa. He didn’t hold back in criticizing existing provincial strategies, calling them “outdated and ineffective”.
“We cannot celebrate a drop in crime while women continue to live in fear. If our strategy isn’t working, then it’s time for urgent reform,” Lesufi said.
However, not everyone agrees with the Premier’s assertion. Some members of the public have pushed back, pointing to ongoing issues like armed robberies, cable theft, and drug-related crimes as persistent challenges that show no real signs of slowing down.
Still, Lesufi remains steadfast, arguing that GBVF demands national attention and must be treated with the same urgency as violent and economic crime
