South Africa to clean up high‑risk areas after 12 women killed
On Tuesday, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a sweeping clean‑up of high‑risk locations across South Africa, following the shocking discovery of 12 women’s bodies in an area east of Johannesburg within just two months.
The killings have intensified calls for action against the country’s chronic gender‑based violence, the highest in the world.
Ramaphosa called the response a multidisciplinary, national‑level emergency and said four suspects have already been arrested.
He warned that “gender‑based violence cannot be accepted as a normal part of life” and acknowledged an insufficient protection of women and girls.
Municipalities are urged to conduct safety audits immediately, identifying broken streetlights, overgrown public spaces, abandoned buildings, unsafe transport routes, and poorly secured parks.
A new enforcement package will target alcohol‑related violence, noting that while alcohol is not a cause, it aggravates interpersonal violence.
Ramaphosa stressed that lasting change must begin before incidents occur, tackling the attitudes that justify control and coercion.
He called on men and boys to lead the fight against violence and condemned the slogan “men can’t be blamed for women’s freedom.”
According to police, 5,427 people were murdered between April and June, with 569 women killed and 1,052 others surviving attempted murder.
