Question NW1042 to the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development

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08 October 2024 - NW1042

Profile picture: Abrahams, Ms ALA

Abrahams, Ms ALA to ask the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development

With reference to the 2023-24 financial year, what is the total number of (a) successful convictions of perpetrators of statutory rape, (b) cases awaiting trial, (c) cases awaiting sentencing and (d) cases that were withdrawn (i) due to insufficient evidence and (ii) by the victim and/or the family of the victim?

Reply:

The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) was able to extract the following information from the Electronic Case Management System (ECMS) on convictions and verdicts of Statutory Rape cases. The NPA does not keep data on reported crime as it is reported in various stations of the South African Police Service (SAPS).

  1. 150 convictions involving cases of statutory rape were successfully prosecuted and finalised during the financial year 2023/24 (April 2023 to March 2024):
  2. As of 25 September 2024, there are 323 cases involving statutory rape before the regional courts and 123 before the district courts, under investigations, and pre-trial processes.
  3. As of 25 September 2024, only 4 cases have been postponed for sentencing, two of the four cases were postponed for a correctional officer report and one for a probation officer report from the Department of Social Development.
  4. The NPA does not keep electronic records of the reasons for withdrawals, though it is captured on the case dockets. The details of withdrawals are thus not readily available. There were 81 cases withdrawn involving statutory rape during the 2023/24 financial year in regional courts. These include the reasons for withdrawals. Some of these cases may have been re-enrolled where circumstances permit.

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