scholarly journals The criminalisation of gang activity in South Africa: reassessing the rationale

Author(s):  
Delano Van der Linde

Criminal gang activity presents a substantial threat to the safety and security of, in particular, the inhabitants of the Cape Flats in Cape Town. The State has intervened legislatively through the form of the Prevention of Organised Crime Act 121 of 1998. This is somewhat of a ‘super-criminalisation’ given that similar common law and statutory measures already existed prior to the promulgation of the Act. What is the rationale for the criminalisation of gang activity in South Africa? Furthermore, if there is sufficient rationale for this super-criminalisation, is there sufficient basis to argue for the additional responsibility of gang leaders, which is currently left uncovered by the Act?

Author(s):  
Hendrik Van As

Certain marine living resources of South Africa are under severe threat from international organised crime syndicates in conjunction with local fishers. These criminal activities erode respect for the rule of law and lead to socio-economic degradation and the proliferation of gangsterism. The current government approach as custodians of the resources is to maximise the return from confiscations. SAPS are not using the full power of the law to address poaching of marine living resources, particularly abalone, as a priority crime and do not allocate their resources commensurate with the value of the commodity. As a country that is beleaguered by fisheries crime, overfishing and exploitation, South Africa must take a tough stance and should pursue criminal organisations with all the power that the state can muster. It must also ensure that national fisheries resource management is improved so that local communities can benefit. The implementation of a conforming strategy would be socially and politically unpopular, but the future benefits will outweigh the outlay.


Author(s):  
Will Jackson

Abstract Just as a friend is often defined as somebody we like, friendship is thought of as a social, moral, and emotional good. The aura of friendship is in its virtue. But the meaning of friendship depends on who claims it and who the person appears to be whom they describe as their friend. This essay investigates the meaning of friendship in the lives of single mothers in South Africa between the two world wars. The context is Cape Town, where single mothers classified as “white” or “European” attracted the attention of the state. In case records pertaining to the 1913 Children’s Welfare Act, the meaning of friendship was contested between magistrates, police detectives, welfare workers, and single mothers themselves. The struggle over how a case should be resolved was to a great extent a struggle over the meaning of friendship. To the authorities, “friends” were a disturbing presence in the lives of single mothers. While the image of healthy, secure, and stable colonial family units was articulated around the relationship between a mother and a child, it was underwritten by the taken-for-granted presence of a male provider. Analyzing cases where men were in various ways absent forces our emphasis away from the normative standards that guided child welfare work and into the messier social realities against which those standards were applied.


2009 ◽  
Vol 50 (1) ◽  
pp. 91-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gibson Alessandro Cima

On 30 June 2006 at the annual National Arts Festival in Grahamstown, South Africa, two giants of South African protest theatre, John Kani and Winston Ntshona, performed as the original cast of the landmark struggle drama Sizwe Banzi Is Dead (1972). The revival marked the first production of the play in over twenty-five years. After its brief stint at the National Arts Festival (30 June–5 July 2006), the play transferred to the Baxter Theatre in Cape Town (11 July–5 August) and then entertained a monthlong run at the State Theatre in Pretoria (17 August–17 September). After its turn at the State, the production stopped shortly at the Hilton College Theatre in KwaZulu Natal (19–23 September) before settling into an extended engagement at Johannesburg's Market Theatre (28 September to 22 October). In March 2007, the original cast revival of Sizwe traveled to the British National Theatre before finally ending its tour at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in April 2008.


Author(s):  
Francois Venter

This second edition of 2006 offers an interesting range of topics, in this instance all covered by South African authors.In her analysis of the "institutions supporting constitutional democracy" established by the South African Constitution, Professor Christina Murray of the University of Cape Town argues that thethe institutions share the roles of providing a check on government and of contributing to transformation.  The newness of democracy, the great demands on the state and the political dominance of the governing party in South Africa are identified as the greatest challenges of the institutions discussed.


Urban Studies ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 45 (12) ◽  
pp. 2565-2593 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gustav Visser ◽  
Nico Kotze
Keyword(s):  

Obiter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
PJ Badenhorst

This decision focused on the impact of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (28 of 2002, hereinafter “MPRDA”) on an old-order mining right (based upon a mineral lease) which had been converted into a mining right in terms of the transitional arrangements of Schedule II of the MPRDA. In particular, the court held that consideration in the form of a (contractual) royalty, as provided for in the mineral lease, remains payable upon conversion of an old-order mining right by its former holder (miner) to the grantor of the common-law mining right. The outcome of the decision, namely, continued liability for contractual royalties, has far-reaching consequences for such former holders of old-order mining rights. Continued liability would result in double payment of royalties by miners. This is because under the new dispensation, statutory royalties can be imposed by the state (s 3(1)(b) of the MPRDA) and were imposed and became payable upon commencement of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Royalty Act (28 of 2008) on 1 March 2010. From the said date, in terms of this decision, double royalties would be payable by miners. If correct, it can be taken one step further. Owing to continued receipt of contractual royalties, former holders of common-law mineral rights would not have suffered an expropriation of property by virtue of the provisions of the MPRDA for purposes of item 12(1) of Schedule II of theMPRDA. Such expropriation would have taken place if the contractual duties to pay royalties had indeed been terminated upon cessation of old-order mining rights (as to such a possible claim, see further, Badenhorst and Mostert Mineral and Petroleum Law of South Africa 2004 (Revision service 7) 25–53). These consequences will be explained in more detail in this discussion as well as the correctness or not of the decision. I have written about the acquisition, nature, content, transfer and loss of old order rights before (see Badenhorst “The Make-up of Transitional Rights to Minerals: Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, SomethingBlue …? 2011 4 SALJ 763–784) to which the reader is referred. This decision sheds new light on this topic. 


Author(s):  
Khalil Goga

Following the end of apartheid, the South African state has faced a number of challenges. One of these has been the growing spectre of organised crime, which has weighed heavily on the public consciousness. The narrative has been one of organised crime, which is becoming increasingly sophisticated and dangerous, pitted against a weakening and ill-equipped state. This article seeks to give insight into the legal and institutional measures taken by the South African state over the last 20 years. It focuses on direct state responses to organised crime, primarily changes to legislation and enforcement structures. It finds that although the state has been active in changing legislation to combat organised crime, it has often been its own worst enemy where enforcement is concerned, and has consequently lost some important tools in the fight against organised crime.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
G. Thomas LaVanchy ◽  
Michael W. Kerwin ◽  
Gregory J. Kerwin ◽  
Meghan McCarroll

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