Evaluating police effectiveness in controlling crime tends to be based on general feelings of safety, the types of crime which people have been victims of, as well as the actual police performance in the areas in which people reside.

The majority of respondents (52,7 per cent) in Cape Town felt that the police in their areas were not doing a good job at controlling crime, while 22,8 per cent felt that they were, and a significant percentage of people (24,5 per cent) had no opinion on the subject. This raises a number of questions on whether or not those with no opinion had personally had any contact with crime or the police.

Despite this view, respondents believe overwhelmingly that the police (and, to a lesser extent, the criminal justice system) are fundamental in making Cape Town a safer place. This suggests that, for those who have experienced crime, in particular, the responsibility for providing safety in the short term rests squarely with the authorities. This suggests that citizens are less likely to take the law into their own hands.

One can assume that people who have been victims of crime are more likely to have come in contact with the police (although one would need to look at reporting rates for particular crimes). Disconcertingly is the fact that victims are more likely to think the police are doing a poor job (56,7 per cent) in controlling crime in their areas and are less likely, although this is marginal, to have no opinion (20 per cent), compared to non-victims who are slightly less likely (49 per cent) to think the police are doing a poor job, with 28 per cent of non-victims having no opinion on police effectiveness. However, differences between victims- and non-victims- perceptions of police effectiveness in controlling crime in their areas are not that marked.

The experience of people living in particular areas of the effectiveness of the police was also considered.

Perceptions of police effectiveness appear to vary considerably across race groups. Whites (38,6 per cent) are the most likely to think that the police are doing a good job in controlling crime in their areas, while coloured people (15,5 per cent) are the least likely to think so. Coloured people (67,3 per cent) and Africans (50,9 per cent) are more likely to think that the police are doing a poor job. A large percentage of whites (32,5 per cent) and Africans (30,9 per cent) expressed no opinion.

Figure 39: Perceptions of police effectiveness in Cape Town in controlling crime in areas



Of the victims of property, violent and sexual crimes who reported these crimes to the police, the following perceptions of police effectiveness in terms of controlling crime in their areas became evident in the survey.

Figure 40: Perception sof police effectiveness in Cape Town in controlling crime by race



The majority of victims who reported crimes to the police thought they were doing a poor job in controlling crime in their areas. Half of the victims of sexual crimes who reported these incidents to the police believed they were doing a poor job, while 45,8 per cent of the victims of property crimes thought they were doing a poor job in controlling crime in their areas.

Figure 41: Perceptions of police effectiveness in Cape Town in controlling crime by victims of particulare crimes



Of those respondents who thought the police were doing a good job in controlling crime in their areas, the following reasons were given for their responses. The police were quick to respond (33 per cent), provided visible patrolling (30 per cent), were effective (21 per cent), co-operated with the community (9 per cent), and crime was felt to be stabilising in their areas (6 per cent).

Equal percentages of respondents thought the police were quick to respond (33 per cent), and perceived them not to be doing a good job in controlling crime in their areas as they were slow to respond (33 per cent). It appears that policing is not of a uniform quality across areas in Cape Town and that there is no guarantee of a professional police service. Rather, it is the luck of the draw that determines the treatment one will get, which ranges from very helpful to unreliable. The lack of visible patrolling (20 per cent), often important in reducing the fear of crime, was the next most cited reason for the police doing a poor job. Unprofessional attitude (17 per cent), followed by corruption (12 per cent) were further reasons. Perceived corruption among the police appears to be more of a problem in Cape Town than, for instance, in Johannesburg and Durban. Interestingly, a lack of resources (2 per cent) was last on the list of reasons why respondents felt the police were doing a poor job in controlling crime.

Figure 42: Reasons why the police are seen to be doing a good job in controlling crime



Whites are the most likely to think that the police's conduct is professional (50,8 per cent), and that they are doing a good job in controlling crime in their areas. They are the most likely to perceive the police as doing a good job, despite being hampered by a high crime rate (12,8 per cent). Substantiating other data above, coloured people across the board are the least inclined to think that the police are professional and doing a good job in controlling crime, perceiving them to offer a slow and inadequate response (40,8 per cent), and treating victims poorly (16,3 per cent). Africans also experience the police as being slow and inadequate in their response (35,4 per cent), but are slightly more sympathetic, believing them to be good, but hampered by crime (11,1 per cent). They are the most inclined to believe that the police lack government support (25 per cent) in trying to do their jobs effectively.

Figure 43: Reasons for police effectiveness in Cape Town in controlling crime by race