In a sweeping statement on Tuesday, President Cyril Ramaphosa declared a national clean‑up of high‑risk areas after the bodies of 12 women were discovered just east of Johannesburg in two months.
The killings have ignited a nationwide outcry over the high rate of gender‑based violence that plagues South Africa, according to recent statistics.
Ramaphosa described the response as a multidisciplinary, emergency effort with four arrests already made and called the violence unacceptable.
He ordered every municipality to conduct immediate safety audits, checking for broken streetlights, overgrown spaces, abandoned buildings, unsafe transport routes and poorly secured parks.
In addition, the president unveiled an enforcement package targeting alcohol‑related violence, emphasising that while alcohol aggravates conflict, responsibility rests with the perpetrator.
Beyond policing, Ramaphosa urged men and boys to confront the cultural attitudes that treat women as inferior and to reject the notion that control equals protection.
The president underscored that the root of violence lies in early attitudes that condone disrespect and jealousy, and called for a cultural shift to stop accepting the status quo.
South Africa remains one of the world’s deadliest nations, with over 5,400 murders recorded between April and June this year and more than 5,000 women victims.
