scholarly journals The implementation and impact of crime prevention / crime control open street Closed-Circuit Television surveillance in South African Central Business Districts

2002 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Minnaar
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Crime Prevention ◽  
South African ◽  
Crime Control ◽  
Street Crime ◽  
Surveillance Systems ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
Central Business Districts ◽  
Cctv Surveillance ◽  
South African Police

The use and implementation of public open street Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) surveillance systems in Central Business Districts (CBDs) in South Africa solely for the purpose of crime control (reducing street crime) or crime prevention (deterrence) has in South Africa been a relatively new intervention within the broader context of crime prevention programmes. One of the drawbacks to its implementation for this purpose has been its costs and the inability of the South African Police Service to fund such implementation in the light of other more pressing priorities and demands on its finances and resources. However, the initiative to start implementing and linking CCTV surveillance systems in CBDs in the major metropolitan cities of South Africa to local police services was taken in the mid-1990s by Business Against Crime of South Africa (BACSA). This article, using case study overviews from four South African CBD areas (Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria (Tshwane) and Durban), traces CCTV use as crime control or prevention surveillance, how they were implemented, the rationale behind their implementation and the operationalising of them in terms of preventing street crime and its uses in other surveillance. In addition it also looks at this initiative from the perspective of the growth and commercialisation of the management of these services, and the co-operation and co-ordination structures in partnership with the South African Police Service (SAPS). Furthermore, it reviews the purported impact on the reduction of crime of these systems in CBDs and finally the application of public crime surveillance by the CCTV control room operators (private security) in co-operation with the police (response team) and the role it plays in the observation, recording, arrest and conviction of suspects.

Safeguarding the Republic? The South African Police Service, Legitimacy and the Tribulations of Policing a Violent Democracy

2021 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-108
Author(s):  
Guy Lamb
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Public Trust ◽  
The South ◽  
Police Service ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
The Republic ◽  
South African Police ◽  
High Crime ◽  
Excessive Use Of Force

Since 1994 the South African Police Service (SAPS) has undertaken various efforts to build legitimacy in South Africa. Extensive community policing resources have been made available, and a hybrid community-oriented programme (sector policing) has been pursued. Nevertheless, public opinion data has shown that there are low levels of public trust in the police. Using Goldsmith’s framework of trust-diminishing police behaviours, this article suggests that indifference, a lack of professionalism, incompetence and corruption on the part of the police, particularly in high-crime areas, have eroded public trust in the SAPS. Furthermore, in an effort to maintain order, reduce crime and assert the authority of the state, the police have adopted militaristic strategies and practices, which have contributed to numerous cases of excessive use of force, which has consequently weakened police legitimacy in South Africa

scholarly journals Total Quality Management (TQM): A Catalyst for Service Delivery in the South African Police Service

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 5
Author(s):  
Michael Reddy
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Total Quality ◽  
South Africans ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
War Zone ◽  
Constitutional Right ◽  
South African Police ◽  
Social And Cultural Factors ◽  
Policy Solutions

September 2014 marked the release of the 2013/14 crime statistics in South Africa by the National Commissioner of the SAPS and the Minister of Police. Does a sense of safety and security fill the atmosphere? Do most South Africans, investors, and tourists alike believe that the crime rate in South Africa is reflective of a war zone and that South Africa is in a quagmire that engenders irretrievable damage to the lives of the citizenry and the economy? It is accepted that crime is a conflation of a number of economic, social and cultural factors; hence as a reviewable point, can the SAPS ensure the development of unassailable and perpetual policy solutions, underpinned with the highest quality that provides a guarantee of the citizen’s basic constitutional right to freedom and life. This article reviews literature on TQM and extrapolates lessons learnt to the practical functioning of the SAPS with a view to provide a myriad of TQM principles that may be considered by SAPS Management; this could serve as a catalyst for an improved policing service in South Africa.

Companies convicted of economic crimes and their participation in government tender processes in South Africa: A comment on Namasthethu electrical (PTY) LTD v City of Cape Town and another (201/19) [2020] ZASCA 74 (29 JUNE 2020)

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 102-122
Author(s):  
Jamil Ddamulira Mujuzi
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Public Procurement ◽  
Cape Town ◽  
African Countries ◽  
The Public ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
The Government ◽  
South African Police ◽  
Economic Crimes

In South Africa, persons or companies convicted of fraud or corruption or companies whose directors have been convicted are debarred from participating in bidding for government tenders. Although it is easy to establish whether or not a natural person has been convicted of an offence, because a certificate can be obtained from the South African Police Service to that effect, it is the opposite with juristic persons. This issue came up in the case of Namasthethu Electrical (Pty) Ltd v City of Cape Town and Another in which the appellant company was awarded a government tender although the company and its former director had been convicted of fraud and corruption. The purpose of this article is to analyse this judgment and show the challenges that the government is faced with when dealing with companies that have been convicted of offences that bid for government tenders. Because South Africa is in the process of enacting public procurement legislation, the Public Procurement Bill was published for comment in early 2020. One of the issues addressed in the Bill relates to debarring bidders who have been convicted of some offences from bidding for government tenders. Based on the facts of this case and legislation from other African countries, the author suggests ways in which the provisions of the Bill could be strengthened to address this issue.

scholarly journals PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE: Addressing violent crime in South Africa

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sibusiso Masuku
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Violent Crime ◽  
The South ◽  
Police Service ◽  
Factors Associated ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
South African Police ◽  
Better Than

South Africa’s high levels of violent crime have a significant effect on people’s lives. A review of the trends and risk factors associated with violent crime begs the question about who should be leading the effort to prevent violence? The South African Police Service currently has this responsibility – but is this appropriate? And which other departments should be playing a greater role?

Understanding one’s rights when arrested and detained: An assessment of language barriers that affect comprehension

2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-30
Author(s):  
Terrence R Carney
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
The Other ◽  
University Graduates ◽  
Judicial Process ◽  
South Africans ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
South African Police ◽  
The One ◽  
Readability Level

Difficult text formulations, on the one hand, as well as poor linguistic skills and comprehension on the other, can severely hamper the communication effort of basic human rights during the judicial process. The rights entrenched in s 35 of the Constitution of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996), as they apply to individuals who are arrested, detained and accused, and read out by a member of the local South African Police Service (SAPS), are written in a legal register that can be too difficult for additional language speakers to understand. This begs the question of whether arrested, detained and accused individuals are fully aware of their rights and whether they can exercise these rights if they do not understand the language that expresses them. This article appraises the potential comprehensibility of the notice of rights (SAPS 14A), as provided to arrested, detained and accused individuals by the SAPS. The researcher’s assessments indicate that the text is pitched at an English readability level suited to university graduates and could be too difficult for South Africans with limited schooling and linguistic abilities to comprehend. A revision of SAPS 14A is offered as an illustration of a possible improvement to increase readability and, subsequently, better access to the mentioned rights.

scholarly journals NEW BLOOD: Implications of en masse recruitment for the South African Police Service

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Bruce
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Civil Service ◽  
Class Formation ◽  
The South ◽  
Police Service ◽  
South Africans ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
And Gender ◽  
South African Police

This article is concerned with the process of en masse recruitment implemented within the South African Police Service since 2002. As a result of this process the personnel strength of the SAPS has increased dramatically from 120 549 in 2002 to 199 345 in 2012, an increase of over 65%. A large proportion of SAPS personnel are now people who have joined since 1994 and particularly since 2002. En masse recruitment has in part addressed the legacy of apartheid by promoting racial and gender representativeness in the SAPS. In so doing it has facilitated entry into the civil service by a significant number of black, and particularly African,South Africans, thus contributing to ‘class formation’. At the same time the process does not ensure political non-partisanship on the part of the SAPS. It also has not necessarily contributed to ‘better policing’ in South Africa. While it may have increased the potential that the SAPS will enjoy legitimacy, this cannot be achieved by recruitment alone.

scholarly journals Perspectives on Stock Theft Prevention in the Selected Provinces of South Africa: Failures and Successes

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 1029-1038
Author(s):  
Witness Maluleke ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
South African ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
South African Police Service ◽  
Preventative Measures ◽  
Kwazulu Natal ◽  
South African Police ◽  
Data Collections ◽  
The Relationship

Residents of Limpopo (LIM) and KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Province are witnessing higher rates of stock theft, with the inhabitants of the selected communities living in fear for the prevention of this scourge. This study explores the extent of this crime in the selected areas of LIM and KZN, considering contributory factors, determining the relationship between the South African Police Service Stock Theft Units (SAPS STUs) and other relevant stakeholders, as well as looking at existing strategies (And their failures and successes) in responding to this crime effectively. A qualitative research approach coupled with Non-probability: Purposive sampling was used in this study. The targeted population consisted of 113 participants. For data collections, Focus Group Discussions (FGDs), Key Informant Interviews (KIIs), and Observation Schedules were adopted. lack of appropriate preventative measures has led to rise of stock theft, it was, therefore, discovered that both the affected livestock farmers and members of the community lost confidence toward the police, Besides, the perspectives on stock theft prevention in LIM and KZN reflect a greater challenge, with inadequate solutions present, since the current preventative measures are ineffective. Thus, understanding stock theft phenomenon is critical to its prevention as the sector of livestock in South Africa is the contributory key to the value of the agricultural economy.

scholarly journals South African Police Services Officials` Perceptions of Community-Police Relations in Durban, South Africa

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 224-230
Author(s):  
Siyanda Dlamini ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Crime Prevention ◽  
South African ◽  
Police Officers ◽  
Community Policing ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Police Services ◽  
Prevention Activities ◽  
South African Police

Police officers’ views about police-citizen relationships are shaped not only by opportunities to interact with community residents during normal police work but also in part by efforts due to the larger police mission of encouraging and supporting such attitudes. In recent years, police in different countries has shifted from the traditional reactive form of policing towards community-oriented approaches. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to explore police officers’ views of citizen-police relationships and community policing in Durban, South Africa. A qualitative research approach was adopted, to explore such perceptions in the study area. The findings collected through semi-structured interviews with the South African Police Services personnel suggested that police officer were dissatisfied and at best ambiguous about citizens’ participation in crime prevention activities or support for the police in a township dwelling. However, in a suburban area, the perceptions marked an improvement in their attitudes on various dimensions. These include officers’ views about the overall police mission, increased emphasis on service-oriented policing in contrast to a law enforcement approach, support for community policing, perceived citizens’ willingness to cooperate with the police in crime prevention activities, and decreased cynicism about citizens. These findings suggest confidence in the utility of community policing ideas.

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