SAFETY AND SECURITY (POLICE)
The personnel of the police can be divided into three basic branches: uniformed,
detectives, and support services. In 2003, there were 129 722 police members
in South Africa, of whom 62% were uniformed, 17% were detectives
and 21% (27 000) were civilians, who serve in supporting roles.
Is this enough police? The ratio of the police to the public in South Africa
is better than many countries with similar levels of development (South Korea,
Turkey), close to that of countries with similar violent crime problems (Colombia),
but somewhat less than that in the US or the UK.
Police per 100 000 members of the population
But this question can’t really be answered until the workload each
of these members is facing is considered. About 100 000 operational police
faced about 2.5 million crimes in 2000, or about 25 apiece for the year. This
is 25 crimes per member per year, or one every 10 days. Clearly, not every
uniformed member is dealing directly with crime, and looking at the ratio of
detectives to crime (115 per year, or one every other work day) suggests a
more realistic workload.
How well did these detectives handle this workload? South African detectives
referred about a quarter of the cases that they handled to court, or about
28 cases apiece for the year. This is about one case every nine working days.
This success rate is comparable to that of detectives in the UK, though the
level of productivity does not sound high. Of course, success rates vary depending
on the crime type, but they also vary substantially by province.
How
are the Police, Courts, and Prisons Performing?