28 May 2007: ISS Today: South Africa: Community Policing or Sector Policing: Puzzling Developments

28 May 2007: South Africa: Community Policing or Sector Policing: Puzzling Developments

 

During his budget vote in Parliament on 22 May 2007, the Minister for Safety and Security, Mr Charles Nqakula, devoted a large part of his speech to the intended ‘re-vitalising’ of community policing and community police forums (CPFs). Of course there is nothing wrong in principle with the idea of strengthening community-police cooperation and forming partnerships, but this is also the rationale behind sector policing. What is puzzling is that the Minister made no reference in his speech to sector policing.  This obviously raises a number of questions, since the South African Police Service (SAPS) has been implementing sector policing for almost ten years.

 

Three such questions might be:

  • Is the ‘new’ community policing idea intended to replace sector policing?
  • If not, is the idea to strengthen sector policing through a more effective CPF structure?
  • Why not just strengthen sector policing without a return to something that has served its purpose, but is now considered to be outmoded?

 

To place the above questions in perspective it is necessary briefly to consider the development of both these concepts in South Africa. The notion of community policing dates back to the National Peace Accord of 14 September 1991. Section 221 of the interim Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1993, took the process further by providing for community police forums (CPFs) with the responsibility, inter alia, to promote police accountability and cooperation, and to enable the community to advise the police on policing priorities. Two years later, more extensive legislative prescripts followed in the South African Police Service Act (Act No 68 of 1995). This was soon followed by a number of policy and guideline documents intended to assist the police and communities with the implementation of the concept and the management of CPFs.

 

By the late 1990s it had become clear that community policing was not living up to expectations as far as combating crime was concerned. In this regard, South Africa was not alone. Research in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom found that community policing made little or no impact on levels of crime. Its only real contribution was in the enhancement of police legitimacy, something that this country and the police at the time clearly needed. Now, although a high level of legitimacy should always be a priority, the main aim with closer community police cooperation is to fight crime more effectively. For the police this meant a search for an alternative to community policing. 

During 1998, and based on a combination of international practices, the concept of sector policing was developed specifically for South African conditions and piloted in the Johannesburg Police Area. It contains elements of community policing but is more practical and more focused. In 2003 a draft National Instruction was circulated within the SAPS to guide the implementation of this concept. This was followed in 2005 by an excellent draft Policy Document on sector policing that, for some reason, was never approved. Based on the above policy document the Strategic Plan of the South African Police Service 2005-2010 (p.36) states that:

 

“[s]ector policing is the main focus area of the SAPS’s approach to the normalising of crime and is based on the following pillars:

  • The geographical demarcation of a police station area into manageable sectors, taking into account Crime Administration Blocks, the geographical size of areas, topographical features, community resources, crime types and patterns.
  • The appointment of permanent SAPS members as Sector Commanders and Sector Policing Teams.
  • Active participation by communities by means of Reservists, partnerships and support groups.
  • The implementation of strategies and projects by the SAPS and communities to address specific crime problems in each sector” (my underlining).

The 2005 draft Policy Document provides for sector crime forums (SCFs), which it links to CPFs (made necessary because of the CPFs’ legal status).  SCFs provide the structural basis for communities and the police to cooperate and to conduct their business as set out above. The Policy Document also provides for the formation of neighbourhood and business watches. The type of reservists (‘urban and rural sector police reservists’) it refers to are in a category (‘D’) specifically created for sector policing.

 

Where sector policing is well resourced and well managed it makes CPFs redundant and, given the failures of community policing (as far as its crime fighting contribution is concerned), should be replaced by SCFs. The latter structures have the potential to deliver everything and more in terms of what the Minister has in mind with the ‘new’ CPFs.

 

The attempts by the Minister to intensify the fight against crime by improving community police cooperation needs to be acknowledged, but at the same time it must be pointed out that there is no need to reinvent the wheel. Talks about revitalising community policing and the deafening silence about the future of sector policing can create only confusion and uncertainty at a time when we can least afford it. Community policing and CPFs had their chance and failed. Sector policing and SCFs are current and have the potential to achieve the Minister’s objectives. All they need is to be adequately resourced and well managed, and, of course, that either legislation or policies that provide for them be finalised.

 

Johan Burger, Crime and Justice Programme, ISS Tshwane (Pretoria)