FREE DAILY EMAIL

Date : 08/12/2005
Source: Department of Correctional Services
Title: Balfour: Announcement of Festive Season Security and Anti-Escape Strategy of Correctional Services


  Speech for the announcement of the Festive Season Security and Anti-Escape Strategy of Correctional Services by Minister Ngconde Balfour at Zonderwater Correctional Centre

Chairperson
Executive Mayor of Cullinan
Commissioner Linda Mti and your top management
Media representatives
Officials, ladies and gentlemen

The Government of South Africa in general and the criminal justice cluster in particular has noted with great concern the recent spate of cash in transit heists and armed robberies by people who have demonstrated clearly a complete disregard for human life. We have also noted that the recent foiled escape attempts and escapes in Zonderwater and Flagstaff resembled similarities to the current spate of armed robberies, as they were made by people serving long term sentences for armed robberies and related murders.

As the police are making successful arrests, our institutions have to provide accommodation for these daring heartless robbers and killers, further increasing risks associated with their incarceration. As we have observed in Zonderwater's recent cases of foiled escape attempts that resulted in deaths of two offenders and a serious injury to one of our staff members, our dear Dirk Thiart, these groups would go to any lengths to escape from our centres including the smuggling of weapons through syndicates, manipulation and bribery of officials and compromising the integrity of their visiting family members if not putting their lives at risk.

The current environment of robberies actually compounds existing challenges facing Correctional Services during the festive periods, where many offenders do all in their power to escape from incarceration apparently in pursuit of further criminal activities. This has necessitated a comprehensive and integrated intervention to tighten security in our correctional centres during the festive season and beyond.

I wish to assure all South Africans that our commitment to create safer institutions, more advanced security system remains unwavering, because we seek to keep our societies safe. The Department is progressively closing the security gaps identified or exposed in the system with among others, the following:

* Roll out of the R88 million state-of-the-art security in 66 centres that include 36 correctional centres of excellence and 30 other high risk centres around the country. The programme is 100% complete in the Eastern Cape, 95% complete in Gauteng, including Zonderwater Correctional Centre that will be completed on 20 December 2005, while significant progress is being made in other regions.

* We have also just approved a R436 million contract for the installation of high perimeter fences with detectors and a close-circuit television system to optimise security of our centres and relief for custodial staff to focus on more value adding operations of correcting the offending behaviour. A contract was signed last week and today the management and the company are discussion modalities for rolling out the project without delays.

These are part of the implementation of our policy on minimum security standards for Correctional Services, focusing on physical and technology security pillars of the programme.

As Correctional Services we are increasingly winning the war against security breaches and escapes as demonstrated by the recent incidents in Zonderwater and Leeuwkop correctional centres. By the end of November we had further reduced escapes by 11% in 11 months compared to last year (165 escapes between January and November 2004 compared to 117 escapes during the same period in 2005). We, however, remain very concerned about escapes including the recent one in Flagstaff in the Eastern Cape, and the continued smuggling of illegal and dangerous weapons into our correctional centres.

Our statistics actually reveal that risks remain very high in maximum centres where we foiled escapes recently, in medium security centres where we had 46% of our escapes and awaiting trial detention centres where 38% of the escapes were registered this year. We believe one more escape in one more too much, and therefore we have approved the introduction of stringent security measures for the festive season that will be effectively co-ordinated with our partners within the criminal justice system - like police, intelligence and justice to ensure that the high risk detainees are safely accommodated, transported and monitored by officials vetted for integrity.

We also wish to make an appeal for all South Africans including inmates, families and friends of offenders to bear with these stringent measures in the interest of public safety. These will be legitimate inconveniences in the interest of public safety and the safety of officials, offenders and their families.

The measures include curtailing of a number of privileges enjoyed by offenders from mid-December 2005 and mid-January 2006 for high risk categories of offenders such as maximum, medium and awaiting trial detainees. These measures will be applicable to all these categories with exceptions only granted by the Area Commissioners and Regional Commissioners as they deem fit. For example categories of offenders who pose limited threat to public safety, such as mothers with babies, women, juveniles and people with disabilities may be exempted. These measures include that:

* All the staff of the Department of Correctional Services is expected to be forever ready to respond to a call of duty during the festive seasons, this includes those currently granted leave over this period;
* Senior managers will conduct impromptu visits and spot checks in all our correctional facilities; * Various measures will be administered to reduce the threat of escape, trafficking in prohibited substances, threatening security of other inmates and the staff;
* Security at the entrance and exit points will be drastically enhanced;
* An exceptional regime will be introduced to control visitation rights to various categories of inmates including prohibition of contact visit and consultation for specific categories of inmates considered to high risk. Visits will only be conducted during week days and exception for weekend will only be allowed under exceptional circumstances and with the permission of the Head of Correctional Centres. No exceptions will be made for ATD though. Families and friend must at all times bring their identity documents (IDs) as no one will be allowed visitation rights without positive identification;
* Control and restrictions over use of telephone within the facilities for the duration of festive period;
* Imposition of limits for various forms of recreation especially those that involve use of facilities outside security walls of the correctional facilities;
* Restriction on access to and acceptance of various forms of parcels usually allowed to eligible inmates; as well as
* Periodic and impromptu searches around and within the facilities.

Escapes from correctional facilities constitute an unacceptable threat to staff and members of the public in general. Both the Police and the Correctional Officials will forever be on the alert for responding to reports from the public on information that may help improve public safety and security during the festive season. This will involve respect for above measures aimed at improving the security of all inmates and the public in general.

Let me to reiterate that "guns kill people" and when smuggled into our correctional centres there is no number of personnel that can be used as human shields to avoid escapes. Given the nature of the attempted escapes which clearly demonstrate disregard for human life, let me sound a strong warning to every inmate or person seeking to aid an escape that together with the police we would respond promptly with a commensurate level of force to stop the attempts and protect the South African public. Our capacity has been significantly improved for any eventuality which may pose a threat to inmates, officials and the public. In fact we have outperformed ourselves with the employment of additional 3000 personnel during this year as part of repositioning the department for effective implementation of the White Paper on Corrections.

To all South Africans, officials and offenders we wish every one of you a safer and accident free festive season.

I thank you.

Issued by: Department of Correctional Services
8 December 2005
   

SPONSORED BY

Advanced