South African Police Service
national police force of South Africa
The South African Police Service (SAPS) is the national police force of the Republic of South Africa. Its 1,165 police stations in South Africa are divided according to the provincial borders, and a Provincial Commissioner is appointed in each province. The nine Provincial Commissioners report directly to the National Commissioner. The head office is in the Wachthuis Building in Pretoria.
The Constitution of South Africa lays down that the South African Police Service has a responsibility to prevent, combat and investigate crime, maintain public order, protect and secure the inhabitants of the Republic and their property, uphold and enforce the law, create a safe and secure environment for all people in South Africa, prevent anything that may threaten the safety or security of any community, investigate any crimes that threaten the safety or security of any community, ensure criminals are brought to justice and participate in efforts to address the causes of crime.
In 2013, Amnesty International expressed concern over South African police brutality, including torture and extrajudicial killings.
History
Colonial years
The South African Police Service traces its origin to the Dutch Watch, a paramilitary organisation formed by settlers in the Cape Province in 1655 to protect civilians and to maintain law and order. In 1795, British officials assumed control over the Dutch Watch, and in 1825 established the Cape Constabulary (which became the Cape Town Police Force in 1840).
In 1854, a police force was established in Durban which would become the Durban Borough Police, and in 1935 the Durban City Police (DCP). Act 3 of 1855 established the Frontier Armed and Mounted Police Force in the Eastern Cape, restyled as the Cape Mounted Riflemen in 1878.
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The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 22, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1362732. VIAF identifies the subject as 5994156677163933770006. The Library of Congress control number is no96047026. 2 of 4 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2013, 1655, 1795 and 1825.
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This entry incorporates text from “South African Police Service” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.