IPID figures spark outcry over ‘abuse of power’ in law enforcement - IOL

IPID recorded 116 rape cases involving police officers in 2025/26, including 72 allegedly committed while officers were on duty.

The year-on-year spike in cases of gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF) cases registered against police points to an abuse of power within the body meant to serve and protect.

The Independent Policing Union of South Africa (IPUSA) president Bethuel Nkuna expressed deep concern following the release of IPID’s 2025/2026 figures, which revealed that out of 332 cases, 116 involved rape allegations and 72 of those incidents were committed while officers were actively on duty.

“These figures confirm that GBVF within policing is not isolated misconduct but a systemic crisis that undermines public trust in law enforcement,” Nkuna said. 

He condemned the escalation in rape cases involving police. 

“The fact that 72 of these were committed while officers were on duty demonstrates a grave abuse of power and a failure of internal controls within SAPS,” Nkuna said. 

The figures were revealed when Acting Police Minister Professor Firoz Cachalia tabled IPID’s 2025/26 annual report in the National Assembly, pointing to an increase in GBVF within law enforcement ranks.

In 2025/2026, IPID registered 5 259 cases overall. These included 332 GBVF cases, 122 referrals (mainly domestic violence), 116 rapes by officers, 58 assaults and torture cases, 24 murders, and 10 official firearm discharges.

KwaZulu-Natal registered the most GBVF cases (60), followed by Gauteng (58), the Free State (52), and the Eastern Cape and Northern Cape (27 each). Kimberley and Mariannhill police stations led with seven cases each.

Rape cases rose from 95 in 2024/2025 to 116 in 2025/2026. Of these, 44 were committed by off-duty officers and 72 by on-duty officers. 

Although IPID secured 84 criminal convictions, with 26 GBVF-related cases, Nkuna stressed the gap between registered offences and convictions. 

“Survivors of police-perpetrated GBVF face unique barriers to justice, and Ipusa calls for stronger survivor-centred mechanisms to ensure accountability,” Nkuna said. 

“Ipusa demands urgent reforms in SAPS recruitment, training, and disciplinary systems, alongside independent oversight structures to prevent repeat violations. Communities cannot be expected to trust police officers if those same officers are among the leading perpetrators of GBVF.” 

Claudia Lopes, human rights and gender justice programme manager at the Heinrich Boell Foundation’s Cape Town office, described IPID’s figures as a clear signal of the severity of police-perpetrated GBV. 

Lopes said the rise in rapes by police officers was alarming, especially because most happened while officers were on duty, and it is not private misconduct. 

“It’s an abuse of state power, especially when these police officers are meant to protect and provide services to victims or survivors of gender-based violence, not themselves be perpetrators of these issues,” Lopes said. 

She said that while the 26 convictions show accountability, a conviction is the end of a long chain. 

“We need to hold SAPS far more accountable for police-perpetrated gender-based violence than is currently the case,” Lopes said. 

Women Human Rights defender and Archive Amabali Wethu NPO founder Yolanda Dyantyi said it is deeply concerning that police stations, spaces specifically designed to protect communities and combat crime, can become a crime scene. This reality raises urgent questions about safety for women and other vulnerable, marginalised groups.

“What is the role that the government is playing in addressing gender-based violence? It’s been declared a national disaster, but that is not enough. We are still not doing the work. Accountability is poor,” Dyantyi said. 

She said that given South Africa’s high levels of violence, the focus must shift to prevention and strict accountability, including dismissal, criminal prosecution, and the loss of salary, rather than temporary suspensions and paid leave.

“We really need to start thinking about how intentional we are when it comes to this issue, this crisis that has been declared a national disaster. We really need to start seeing heads rolling, harsher measures being implemented,” Dyantyi said.