Growing Calls for Inquiries Into Policing in South Africa
After 18 years of democracy, there are growing calls for independent inquiries into policing in South Africa. The most recent comes amid the breakdown of policing in the Western Cape township of Khayelitsha
Gareth Newham, Programme Head, Crime and Justice Programme, ISS Pretoria Office
Recent events in
Khayelitsha in the Western Cape have highlighted how the failures in the
criminal justice system in general, and policing in particular, can have
serious consequences. The most shocking example of this has been the vigilante-related
deaths of at least 14 people between April and July this year. It is becoming
apparent that these deaths are as a result of community members having lost
faith in the police and starting to take matters into their own hands. Indeed,
Khayelitsha as a geographic location is a difficult place to police.
Established in 1985,
Khayelitsha is currently home to an estimated 750 000 residents, most of whom
are from poor and working class communities. Situated 35 km from the central
business district of Cape Town, it is one of the most densely populated areas
in the country and a majority of its young men and women of working age are
unemployed. As a result there are high levels of poverty and associated social
ills such as crime. Concerns about inadequate policing and the criminal justice
system resulted in concerted community action as far back as 2003. Since then,
community-based organisations in Khayelitsha have held more than 100
demonstrations, pickets and marches and submitted numerous petitions and
memorandums to various levels of government in an effort to improve the
situation.
The list of concerns is
long and includes the following complaints:
- When crimes are reported, victims are often treated
discourteously, sometimes with contempt.
- Dockets are often lost, resulting in cases
being struck off the court rolls.
- Investigations and securing of crime scenes,
gathering of forensic evidence, interviewing of witnesses and other basic
procedures are often ignored or performed incompetently.
- Investigating officers often do not communicate
with victims of crime regarding the progress of investigations or prosecutions,
including information about court dates and bail hearings.
- Investigating officers routinely do not secure
the presence of witnesses at trials, resulting in lengthy postponements.
- Witnesses to serious crimes are not given the
protection they need in order to testify without fear of retribution and many
refuse to testify following threats from perpetrators with no response from the
police.
- There is insufficient visible policing in
Khayelitsha (this is almost non-existent in all informal settlements).
Seven months ago a group
of civil society organisations under the banner of the Social Justice Coalition
(SJC), which consists of 1 500 members, lodged a formal complaint with the
Western Cape Provincial Government detailing the many failures of criminal
justice in providing services to the people of Khayelitsha.
In their complaint they
pointed out that since 2009, certain violent crime categories recorded by the
police stations that serve Khayelitsha have increased. For example, murders
increased by 9,5%, sexual assaults by 15,9% and attempted murders by 63%. They
also highlighted that most property crimes such as burglaries, theft and
robbery were not reported to the police because residents were not insured and didn’t
believe that the police would give them the necessary attention. In addition to
the crime statistics, they included a number of detailed case studies that
demonstrated serious systemic failures with regards to the functioning of the
criminal justice system that had contributed to the loss of public trust in the
police.
Their recommendation is that the premier of the Western
Cape, Helen Zille, use her constitutional powers to appoint a five-person
commission of inquiry headed by a retired judge to address the following
concerns with regards to the police:
- Evaluating police effectiveness
- Assessing the suitability of the priorities,
personnel, training, resources, systems, policies and community engagement
practices employed by the police
- Investigating the causes of the breakdown in
relations between the Khayelitsha community and the police
- Investigating the reasons for the
inefficiencies at the interface between policing and the broader administration
of justice
- Identifying the measures necessary to redress
the inefficiencies and other problems identified, including a social crime
prevention strategy
- Establishing time frames for the implementation
of its recommendations
The premier has
indicated that in principle the Western Cape Executive agreed to establish such
a commission. This, along with the recent vigilante killings, appeared to spur
the national SAPS into action and the new national Commissioner has asked that the
establishment of the inquiry be delayed so that they have time to investigate
the complaint. During the second week of July 2012, the Independent Police
Investigative Directorate (IPID) was dispatched to investigate the concerns
raised in the complaint by the SJC.
Irrespective of what the IPID investigation finds, it would
be good for a commission of inquiry to proceed. This is because the IPID
investigation will likely identify specific failings on the part of particular
police officials and possibly other individuals (including perhaps prosecutors
or members of the public). However, the policing challenges facing Khayelitsha
are not confined to that area and occur in many precincts across the country.
When looking at the national picture a range of ongoing
systemic challenges become apparent. While there are numerous examples, it is
worth simply reflecting on the following few:
- Between 2001/02 and 2009/10 the number of criminal cases opened against
police officials with the IPID increased by 363%.
- Internal Police Advisory Council inspections undertaken in 2006 to 2008
before being disbanded found a wide range of problems with poor station level
supervision, inadequate inspections, ill-discipline and shortcomings with
regards to police appointments, promotions, resources, skills and performance.
- Over the two-year period 2008/09 and 2009/10 the police lost 4 797
firearms and only 53 police officials faced disciplinary action as a result.
- A number of the most senior SAPS officers have left the organisation or
are suspended following allegations of corruption. This includes the last two
SAPS National Commissioners.
- In 2010/11 the Minister of Police paid out R115 million in civil claims
arising out of poor police behaviour, an increase of 33% compared to the
previous year.
- In April 2012
the then Acting SAPS National Commissioner conceded that 6 536 members were officially declared ‘not
yet competent’ to handle their firearms.
It is therefore not
surprising that a 2011 Human Sciences Research Council survey into corruption
found that 66% of South Africans believed that corruption was widespread among
the police.
It must be born in mind that there are very many
hard-working, dedicated policemen and women who willingly serve their
communities under very difficult circumstances. However, their morale is seriously
affected by the misdeeds of many of their leaders and colleagues. While a
commission of inquiry into a particular policing precinct such as Khayelitsha
is likely to provide valuable insight into the nature of the problems in that
area and possibly into contributing systemic organisational weaknesses, there
is a need to focus on those higher up in the organisation. Only when there is
an independent inquiry into the challenges facing those at the top of the
organisation who have the authority and responsibility to fix the problems, are
we likely to see the kind of progress needed.
