Rape and the African Peer-Review Mechanism

I know the African Peer-Review Mechanism Country Report is not everyone’s idea of a good read. So let me point you to the interesting bit. It comes right at the end, on page 376 of the copy that was sent to me in the post.

The report cites the rape statistics from the South African Police Service, suggesting reported rape comes in at about 54 000 a year. President Thabo Mbeki’s response is that the statement could be misleading “as this only denotes the incidents of rape that were reported, some of which could have resulted in acquittals”.

He made this statement back in July 2007 at the Committee of Heads of State and Government participating in the APRM. I don’t know who was there from the media. I can’t find the original speech on any website, and frankly, the way it reads, there are just too many grammatical mistakes for it to be verbatim Mbeki.

He is reported as saying some other odd stuff: for example, that “floor-crossing may be of concern to the opposition, but not to the electorate”, and in relation to the report’s suggestion that there is an unacceptably high level of violent crime, he says “this appears to be an acceptance by the panel of a populist perception of the problem”. Apparently, two of the 21 police precincts in Jo’burg account for more than 33% of reported crime. I think that means that although there is crime, it is mostly concentrated. He suggests it is concentrated in “depressed black neighbourhoods”.

Did anyone from his office read these minutes? Are they sure they want their man out there saying this sort of thing? The usual consensus is that rape is under-reported and conviction rates are low, not that some accused are found not guilty. I understand that the president has concerns about the framing of rape as part of his concerns around the racially motivated framing of black African men’s sexuality as being criminal and diseased. But this quote suggests he does not believe that there is a problem with under-reporting of rape. Seriously? Does he really want to go there?

I would think bad press for a politician regarding rape is unhelpful at any time of the year, but particularly during the 16 Days of Activism against Violence against Women and Children — and in the context of the bruising succession debate, where every vote counts. Perhaps that is why the advertised release of the report last week on Thursday November 29 was delayed. If so, a really heartfelt plea that he has been misquoted would probably be strategic.