Of the approximately 50,000 rape cases reported in South Africa every year, 30,000 - 35,000 simply disappear. The majority are closed by the police: case withdrawn, undetected, unfounded. Prosecutors decline to prosecute approximately half those referred to them. Of the remainder that are prosecuted, around 40% result in conviction. This translates into an overall conviction rate of between 4-8% of reported cases. To understand the criminal justice system's failure to adequately deal with sexual violence, one needs to start with the police. This book tells the story of some of the cases reported to the South African Police Service and how they were dealt with. Through a detailed qualitative review of rape dockets the author provides novel insights into police responses to rape. A key insight from the study is that while stereotypes certainly abound, it is in the process of investigating rape cases that things fall apart. Here we see the impact of poor investigative skills and a systemic breakdown in supervision at station level. The (unexpected) result, as the cases in this study show, is to shift responsibility for the investigation of these cases - and their ultimate failure - onto the complainant. The book shines new light on complainant withdrawals, false rape complaints and police responses to rape, issues which are problematic in South Africa but not unfamiliar elsewhere. Recommended for: Local and international academics concerned with policing and gender-based violence, policy-makers working on improving criminal justice responses to rape, and general readers interested in understanding the failure of the criminal justice system to deal with rape.

For more than a decade, South Africans have been advocating a reform of the country’s laws on sexual offences. South Africa has one of the highest levels of reported rape in the world, and legislative reform was seen as an essential step towards shifting the understanding of rape and its treatment within the criminal justice system.

Since 1996 the activism has focused on the South African Law Reform Commission’s investigation into sexual offences, and the parliamentary process, which culminated at the end of 2007 in the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act.

Many of the authors of Should We Consent? were involved in substantive legal submissions, research and legislative drafting and promoting changes to the law to provide rape victims with effective redress and protection. Drawing on a body of empirical, social and legal scholarship, this unique text charts the critical social and legal debates and jurisprudential developments that took place during the rape law reform process.

This book also provides important insights into the engagement of civil society with law reform and includes thoughtful and contemporary discussions on topics such as ‘defining’ rape, HIV, sexual offences against children and sentencing of sexual offenders.

• Examines the successes, challenges and defeats of rape law reform
• An important reflection on the engagement of civil society with government in precipitating and sustaining this important law reform process.
• Highlights the significance of rape law reform inclusion or exclusion at various stages in the process
• Discusses the strategic decisions made by gender activists and the context in which these decisions were made
• Discussions are from a comparative and international context
• Emphasizes potential implementation challenges and considering how these might be addressed in terms of law and policy.