As someone who has lived in Joburg for 19 years and Cape Town for 7 years... I never had anything untoward happen to anyone I know or to me in Joburg. I was burgled twice in CT, never in Joburg (and there was no wall at all in front of the house, no alarm even, just two dogs at the back)... My mil who is in CT is paranoid about security... My mother who lives near Pretoria near Hammanskraal (a huge township), and my brother/aunt etc. who live in Joburg live responsibly but NOT in fear of their lives. At all.
My inlaws ironically say they'd never live in Joburg due to the crime, which is laughable as they've had lots more happen to them in Cape Town than my family have. There is a very anti-Joburg feel from may cities in South Africa... Which people abroad would not be aware of. This is highlighted in some comments here.
A casing point-a friend (attorney) from CT moved to Joburg as she couldn't find work in CT... She was so anti Joburg before she lived there and she's been there 4 years now and loves it! Says she's happier, more wealthy, has more friends and a better social life etc. than she did before.
This is not a Joburg vs other SA cities comment but I thought it important to state that MANY South Africans are unfair toward Joburg as a whole. Just because they are. And it's mostly due to the wonderful (ugh) media that treats Joburg so badly.
And that very same media is continuing to do it NOW ... This time worldwide media has joined in. Making jokes (jokes!?!!!???) about the tragedy of the death of a beautiful young South African woman. It's sickening. Utterly sickening. Misreporting and making sensationalist statements. There is so much misinformation going on between the various media platforms and the police et al.
Let the judge do his job and grant/not grant bail. Then let him/her decide whether OP is guilty of premeditated murder or not. Yes. We can 'speculate' and chat about what we think.. But let's not condemn him. Lets play far.
And for someone in the UK it is impossible to try and fathom how some people do live in fear and deal with a certain amount of paranoia re safety every day.. Especially with death threats et al. Many celebrities do... Especially when living in a gun-friendly society.
I live in London currently and am no less security aware as I was when I lived in SA. I don't walk in certain areas at night etc. I'm street wise and responsible. The probability of me being knifed rather than shot (less fatalities) is due to there being less guns here. But crime does happen here too - my aunt is a DCI and what she tells me is frightening.
In SA many people drive in unroadworthy/unlicensed taxis which should hold about 15/16 people but actually hold up to 22 at a time... One accident and that's a lot of deaths. The road death rate is high in SA and this is a factor. Guns kill more than knives. There is A LOT more poverty within a high percentage of the population ... Which breeds criminals.
Some have asked why do people live in SA? Well... The people (high percentage) are happy (some of the happiest people I have ever met have been those in townships... Content with the fact they have a hot meal that night... Thankful for things we First Worlders so often take for granted), friendly (Saffas love hosting people. So hospitable, even toward strangers... something sadly lacking in most First World countries), you can have a fabulous life in SA... The weather is super... Opportunities abound. South Africa has been through so much trauma politically and on the whole, the average Saffa makes the best of things and tries to make a difference in every day life.