Monograph 15: Costly Crimes: Commercial Crime and Corruption in South Africa, Edited by Lala Camerer

Government initiatives to combat crime have largely focused on visible and violent crime, and the `white-collar crimes` of fraud and corruption have not been high on the policy agenda. Yet these crimes are costing South Africa billions of rands a year, and undermine the national integrity. There is also growing public outrage over corrupt officials and opportunistic fraudsters who appear to be `getting away with it`.

The National Crime Prevention Strategy (NCPS) adopted in May 1996 commits itself to addressing commercial crime as a national priority; however, as yet there has been little movement around this programme generally. As regards corruption, initiatives under the NCPS have largely concentrated on interdepartmental efforts to address corruption in the criminal justice system.

Thus, while the public is increasingly interested in commercial crime and corruption, very little local research is available on how government as well as other role players should tackle these issues. This monograph presents two documents that highlight key policy considerations surrounding fraud and corruption, and suggests concrete steps for addressing them effectively in the South African context. It is hoped this will stimulate public awareness and debate around commercial crime and corruption – crimes that can no longer be sidelined as low-level priorities within the crime prevention debate.

The monograph is made up of two parts:

• a comprehensive report drawn up by the Business Against Crime working group on commercial crime to identify blockages and solutions in the criminal justice system in relation to commercial crime; and
  
  
• a study on how corruption affects the poor, originally compiled as a working paper for the World Bank/UNDP study on poverty and inequality in South Africa.

Commercial criminals are seldom successfully convicted, largely because overloaded investigators and prosecutors do not have the time, expertise and resources to pursue these cases effectively. Part one, on commercial crime, is the product of a continuous process of consultation between stakeholders burdened with the onerous task of combating commercial crime in South Africa. Following a high-profile exercise in 1996 on re-engineering the criminal justice system as a whole, Business Against Crime`s working group on commercial crime decided to undertake a similar exercise to track the way in which the system deals with commercial crime. A task team was formed to conduct this project.

The final report, which is published here, is based on interviews with key role players2 and the proceedings of a consultative workshop held in November 1996. The report was accepted by the board of Business Against Crime in May 1997, and, following a presentation to the NCPS executive co-ordinating committee in June 1997, has been accepted as a priority project of the NCPS. The challenge will be for NCPS ministries with the necessary decision-making powers to co-ordinate and implement the proposed recommendations.

Part two largely centres on a case study of government corruption in poverty alleviation programmes (ie social pensions), and highlights general problems in transforming the public sector. The final section, which deals with controlling institutions to combat corruption, provides an important link with part one. While the proliferation of such bodies is impressive, and demonstrates the government`s political will to address corruption, concerns are raised about their ability to tackle corruption effectively. In conclusion, benchmarks for a successful anti-corruption strategy are considered, and future areas for research outlined.

Commercial crime and corruption increasingly feature in the public consciousness, both locally and abroad. Many a political party has ridden to power on an anti-corruption platform, and recent media reports suggest that the `politicisation of corruption` has already occurred. The pervasive culture of mistrust and institutional corrosion which such activities encourage, as well as the huge cost to South Africa`s struggling economy, make them crimes to be dealt with as a matter of national priority.

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