SA highest number of women killed by partners: MRC

South Africa has the highest number of women killed by their partners in the world. This was revealed by the Medical Research Council (MRC) to the Parliamentary committee on the improvement of life and status of women.

The council has been conducting a two year study on Intimate Femicide since 2002. It found that 88 in a million women aged 14 years and older were killed every year. Intimate femicide, or women killed by their intimate partners, is seen as the most serious form of domestic violence. The MRC says 40% to 70% of female murder victims in the world, are killed by an intimate partner every year.

South Africa is the first developing country to conduct a study of women murdered by their partners in 1999. Its femicide incidence is six times higher than that of the United States. Shanaz Matthews from the Medical Research Council, revealed that in South Africa itself, 50% of the women murdered by a known perpetrator were killed by an intimate partner.

Disappearance of dockets
Missing dockets on women who were killed by their intimate partners also came to the fore during the committee meeting as Matthew gave a presentation. This is an issue that angered some committee members.

The chairperson of the committee says it is a serious concern and demanded to know in which provinces the dockets had disappeared. Gauteng and the Eastern Cape appear to be the provinces where most of the dockets go missing. The council warned that its findings had shown that women who stay in abusive relationships are likely to be killed by their partners.