Researcher Kerwin Lebone said the 25,965 people murdered in 1994-95 had decreased to 18,148 murders in 2008-09.
This showed a decrease in the rate of murders per 100,000 people, from 70 in 1994-95 to 37 in 2008-09.
Lebone said the consistent decline in the murder rate showed that the police had achieved some success. However, the improvement in the murder rate was not reflected in the perceptions of South Africans that crime levels have increased.
House robberies, which are often violent and sometimes lead to people being killed, had the biggest effect on perceptions.
Lebone said SA’s murder rate was still unacceptably high and the use of private security had increased among those who could afford it, replacing the role of the police in their communities.
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