Pretoria - Police are confident that the re-introduction of specialised units will contribute to a further decline in the number of sexual offences.
The number of sexual offences committed in the country had decreased by 4.4 percent from the previous financial year but Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa believes more can and still needs to be done.
Speaking at the release of the National Crime Statistics in Pretoria on Thursday, the minister said police had made 26 311 arrests for sexual offences from 1 April 2009 to 31 March 2010.
"We view this positively and if we can do more, we will be able to achieve more successes. We believe that the reintroduction of specialised units such as the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offence Unit will contribute to decreasing this even further," he added.
The minister urged families and communities to help police achieve this goal by breaking the silence on sexual offences and by not offering protection to people who harm women and children.
"Research points out that crimes such as rape, assault and grievous bodily harm take place amongst acquaintances, but then at times the victims are suppressed from reporting such crimes, socially, culturally and other reasons that are advanced," he added.
Mthethwa said those in the community that harbored perpetrators of sexual offences were as committed to the crime as those who had actually carried out the crime.
"This is also a very difficult area for police to deal with, because it occurs behind closed doors and amongst acquaintances," he added.
