Date: 24/05/2005
Source: Department of Correctional Services
Title: Balfour: Correctional Services Dept Budget Vote policy debate, NCOP
Budget Vote address in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) by the Minister of Correctional Services, Ngconde Balfour, MP
Chairperson
Cabinet Colleagues
Honourable Members
MECs and Members of Provincial Legislatures
Honoured Guests
Stakeholder and Community Representatives
In describing the Freedom Charter, former President Nelson Mandela has the following to say of what he regards as a revolutionary document. “Like other enduring political documents, such as the American Declaration of Independence, the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Communist Manifesto, the Freedom Charter is a mixture of practical goals and poetic language. It extols the abolition of racial discrimination and the achievement of equal rights for all. It welcomes all who embrace freedom….”
It is from these sources that the inspiration for our Constitution of 1996 was derived. As much as some of us would want to deny the impact of the Freedom Charter on the lives of ordinary South Africans, the objectives that it promotes made possible the current radically-changed political landscape in our country. It was the Freedom Charter that inspired millions of South Africans to shake off the shackles of the past and provide a vision of the future.
No more are people imprisoned because their skin pigmentation happens to be black. No more are people detained because they support the African National Congress. No more are people jailed because they could not produce a piece of paper that their jailers forced them to carry at all times. No more are prisons places of oppression where blacks are subjected to the brutality and cruelty of prison officials who knew no other way of dealing with offenders except through inhumane treatment.
In line with the Freedom Charter and as emphasised by our Constitution, those guilty of serious crimes will be incarcerated, not to exact vengeance but to bring about life-changing attitudes while paying their debt to society.
The White Paper on Corrections in South Africa shares these objectives of the Freedom Charter and the Constitution of 1996. It envisages a criminal justice system that recognises the humanity of every person, even those who commit crimes against the people of South Africa. The Department of Correctional Services is committed to bringing about a correctional system in place of a penal system that lends itself to retribution instead of correction. This is a commitment, we believe, that is shared by our colleagues in the criminal justice system as well as the Honourable Members of this House. Through the White Paper, we can make a significant contribution to fighting the scourge of crime and criminality, changing the mindsets and attitudes of those who are still susceptible to positive behavioural changes while incarcerating those who are bent on causing mayhem in our communities.
I am joined in this commitment by all senior managers in my department who last week adopted a Declaration of Commitment that is aligned with the objectives of our Constitution and by extension, those objectives of the Freedom Charter that relate to conditions of human dignity for all.
The Declaration of Commitment adopted by senior managers of Correctional Services includes a commitment:
* to transform prisons into ethical and secure centres with a correcting influence;
* to transform Correctional Services into a rehabilitation institution able to afford offenders an opportunity for beginnings of a new life, free of crime and with personal growth and development;
* to empower our members to take their place as cadres of the Public Service and;
* to uphold and promote the values and principles of our Constitution.
It is against this Declaration of Commitment that Correctional Services should be measured by the people of our country. Of course, we want to deliver a world class service to our people and this will remain our ideal. We are however, painstakingly aware, that in order to deliver on this ideal there are certain fundamentals that must be in place. While we can take charge of some of those fundamentals, there are others outside our sphere of control such as access to greater resources that could constrain us in reaching our objectives in the shortest possible time.
As a starting point, the vehicle to achieving some of these objectives is through the implementation of the White Paper. In this regard, we have identified 36 correctional centres throughout the country that would pilot the implementation of the White Paper, starting in this financial year. To be known as Centres of Excellence, the 36 centres, with six in the Western Cape, two in the Northern Cape, four in the Free State, five in Gauteng, six in KwaZulu-Natal, two each in Mpumalanga, North West and Limpopo and seven in the Eastern Cape, will be the benchmark of service delivery in the correctional system based on the roll-out of the White Paper. Central to this would be correcting offending behaviour and the implementation of development programmes with the aim of rehabilitating offenders. Critical to the success of this would be ensuring that communities either, through individuals, families or organisations, recognize and adopt corrections as a societal responsibility.
Let me cite an example of how communities could play a major role in corrections. Thousands of our youth and school-going children, especially in the Western Cape, are caught up in using the habit-forming drug, commonly known as tik. It is causing devastation in our communities with teachers having to deal with scores of cases on a daily basis. There are even cases where mothers and fathers are sharing tik with their children. The pushers and dealers are in our communities, wreaking havoc. Children are resorting to theft and crime in order to satisfy their craving. Many of them are being criminally charged and will end up in prison when they should not be there. I believe no child should be imprisoned for using tik. They should be in programmes in our communities, helping them to break this cruel habit. I have no place for such children in prison but I certainly have place and would make place for those who perpetrate these deeds against our youth. No prison will be too overcrowded to break the back of those who deal in the misery of our people through dealing in and selling drugs such as tik to our children.
Besides the challenge of overcrowding, another major challenge facing the department if we want to succeed with the rehabilitation of offenders is to tackle head-on the scourge of prison gangs and related violence. The phenomenon of prison gangs is as old as prison itself and as long as we have inmates, these gangs will remain. But this does not mean that we should not be addressing the challenges presented by prison gangs. While prison gangs exist throughout the country, it is especially strong in the Western Cape and Gauteng. And their existence is not unrelated to street gangs that operate within our communities. Again, our young people are most susceptible to the influences of these gangs and it is not uncommon to find primary schoolchildren being caught up and involved in the gang network. The department is currently engaged in a process with departments in the criminal justice system and other stakeholders to tackle the issue of prison gangs and related violence but this cannot be done without the active involvement of communities who bear the brunt of gang activities. We will be embarking on initiatives this year to better prepare our members and the public in dealing with this problem.
Earlier this year a book called The Number by Jonny Steinberg was published dealing with the prison gang phenomenon. I expressed my appreciation to the author for his work in this regard. However, I differ strongly with him on the view that consensual sex between inmates should be allowed in prisons. Our core business in Correctional Services is to correct offending behaviour. As much as some of us might want to deny it, the dividing line between consensual sex and coercive sex in a prison environment is so blurred that it is non-existent. Yes, in line with our human rights approach in Correctional Services, we will continue providing for the basic needs of inmates. But when you are incarcerated for crimes against society, you also forfeit certain rights that exist in an open society.
As I stated earlier, overcrowding remains one of the biggest challenges facing the department. While the Judiciary will be deliberating this issue with other stakeholders in September, together with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, SAPS, the NPA and the Department of Social Development, we have in place a strategy to better manage overcrowding. Of course, the sustainable solution is to lower the number of offenders committing crime but that is a responsibility to be shared by society. Amongst the measures being used to deal with overcrowding are:
* Managing the levels of awaiting trial detainees through the IJS Case Management Task Team and the Inter-Sectoral Committee on Child Justice. The success of this depends to a great extent on the levels of cooperation that exist at local levels where IJS clusters have been set up. In many areas there has been a willingness on the part of magistrates and prosecutors to address this and in those areas, the processing time of dealing with ATDs has improved significantly. There is also a role for MECs responsible for safety and security to play in this regard. The scope of Community Police Forums should be expanded to include other IJS stakeholders such as Correctional Services where such stakeholders are not involved in police forums. Honourable Members will be aware that the placement of ATDs within the criminal justice system is still not finalised. It is my view that their placement should not be within Correctional Services. Our focus should be on sentenced offenders rather than on ATDs. A protocol between the relevant JCPS departments is necessary in order for this matter to be dealt with effectively.
* Managing the levels of sentenced inmates through improving the effective and appropriate use of conversion of sentences to community correctional supervision, release on parole and transfers between correctional centres.
* Through the departmental capital works programme, upgrading existing facilities and building new correctional centres that are both cost effective and rehabilitation-oriented.
Honourable Members should be aware that new correctional centres are being built at Leeuwkop, Klerksdorp, Kimberley and Nigel with others due to be built in the next financial year in KwaZulu Natal, Limpopo, the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape.
* Encouraging an approach to appropriate sentencing that is focused on facilitating rehabilitation.
* Improving the correction and development programmes within the department to ensure enhanced facilitation of rehabilitation.
* Encouraging the improvement of the first and second levels of correction in the family and social institutions respectively.
* Encouraging community involvement in social reintegration.
The total inmate population at 28 February 2005 was 187 000 while our capacity is 113 825. Those awaiting trial account for 52 000 with 135 000 sentenced offenders. It means that about four out of every 1 000 South Africans are incarcerated at any given time. This should give Honourable Members a fair idea of the enormity of the challenge of overcrowding.
You might also be aware that the department implemented the Inmate Tracking System as a pilot project in Durban Westville Medium A Correctional Centre. This pilot project was also extended to the Johannesburg Medium A Correctional Centre. The main functions of this project are to accurately identify awaiting trial detainees, to decrease the time spent in processing ATDs for court appearances and visits and to monitor the movements of ATDs through a personal tracking device. The pilot project has assisted in identifying weaknesses in the system, especially with regard to the tracking device that is attached to the wrist of ATDs. This includes inmates attempting to destroy the wrist tag. Such culprits must know that action will be taken against them for destroying state property. However, the tracking system has greatly benefited identifying ATDs on a daily basis through the use of the biometric finger print reader and the electronic facial photograph facility. The pilot project at Johannesburg has yielded positive results thus far but consideration will only be given to extending its use after the completion of an intensive evaluation of the current pilot projects.
Chairperson
Our budget for this financial year is R9,234 billion with a projected establishment of 36 000 members and operational costs for an average offender population of 192 000 and 76 000 supervision cases and parolees. Compensation of employees is projected at 64 percent of the Vote.
Expenditure on security is expected to increase rapidly, reaching R4,2 billion by 2007/08. Much of this is to cater for increased staff numbers as a result of the introduction of the seven-day working week. The Department is in the process of phasing out the costly overtime system for essential weekend services, thus creating greater work opportunities in line with government’s job-creation strategies. On 1 April the Department started introducing the seven-day week with Saturdays as a normal working day. Members will continue receiving double pay for working on Sundays. Already, we have 1 000 new recruits undergoing training in our two training colleges and they will be deployed to correctional centres upon completion of their training. At the same time, I want to point out that I remain committed to seeking improvements in the conditions of service of staff members.
While escapes from correctional centres were limited to 171 last year, many security breaches and escapes are becoming increasingly violent. The brutal attack on two nurses at Emthonjeni Youth Centre, Baviaanspoort, in March cannot be allowed to go unpunished. I cannot allow our members to be easy targets for criminals. These criminals, some of whom are found within our ranks and who aid and abet escapes, must know that we will use whatever means necessary to track them down. Area Commissioners have been tasked to develop strategies for both enhanced security in centres and corruption prevention, based on an assertive and tight management approach. Corrupt officials who believe they are insulated against exposure will be treated similarly to those who they assist in perpetrating criminal deeds. We will find you even if it means using unconventional methods to nail you. I have no qualms about putting such corrupt members amongst the very offenders that they are supposed to safeguard society against.
Our partnership with the Special Investigation Unit in uncovering fraud and corruption in the Department has resulted in 175 disciplinary referrals, 132 criminal referrals of members and 25 criminal referrals of doctors. Crime Intelligence of SAPS also plays a vital role in dealing with fraud and corruption. We are also building our own intelligence capacity to deal with incidents of corruption both amongst members and offenders. Corrupt members are however in the minority. I am confident that the vast majority of correctional officials are committed and dedicated to their responsibilities.
I will continue propagating for better service conditions for those members. Last year I stated that I would prioritise this. I am pleased to report that the department will soon be engaging the services of private partners to develop a business case in order to take this work forward. We will also be spending R80 million on the installation of advanced technological equipment at 65 correctional centres. Equipment to be installed includes items such as CCTV cameras, biometric readers and scanning devices. In addition, a National Security Plan and Minimum Security Standards for correctional centres will be implemented during the year. It is our belief that these initiatives will form a firm foundation for improving service delivery in terms of our obligation to ensure the safety and security of officials, inmates and service providers as well as the broader community; and in the process contributing towards the creation of an enabling environment in which the rehabilitation of inmates can take place.
Our 52 new Correctional Supervision and Parole Boards will also for the first time make provision for victims of offenders to make representations and they are also permitted to attend sessions of the Parole Boards. This is a significant step in the quest to establish and promote restorative justice as an acceptable and viable mediation process. Chairpersons are appointed from communities, giving society a key function within the parole system. All Chairpersons, except in the Western Cape, have been appointed and I will be calling all of them to a joint meeting some time this year in order for them to fully get to grips with their responsibilities both to the department and communities. It is my belief that the parole system should show considerable improvement in future with the views of communities given greater consideration. Recently, I had the occasion to listen to an 80 year old mother pleading for her son to be placed on parole as she had no one to care for her. It is such cases that Parole Boards should also be dealing with, giving community members the opportunity to give inputs on parole considerations.
On Freedom Day I stated that an announcement would be made on remission of sentences for inmates, parolees and probationers. I would be making the details thereof public fairly soon but I want to sound both a word of caution and warning in this regard. Do not for one moment mistake this to be a sign of government being soft on crime. On the contrary, the justice system agencies, including Correctional Services, will not hesitate to slam anyone back into prison who thinks that they are above the law. While we are reaching out a hand of humanity with the firm understanding that those who are a risk to society will remain incarcerated, those who are to gain from the remission of sentences must take this one opportunity that they have to change their lives for the better. Inmates are being given a second chance by the country. They must make use of it by becoming productive citizens and not falling back into crime. I am under no illusion about the propensity for people to fall back into crime but want to appeal to communities and families to reach out to those who are due to return to their communities. I also wish to appeal to business to give released offenders a chance to seek gainful employment. They have made mistakes. They have also hurt victims and families of victims, many of whom still carry the pains and scars of the crimes committed against them. Let us all join hands in a common attempt to show them the error of their ways and direct them onto a path of changed lives and attitudes.
The Department will also be upgrading healthcare facilities in correctional centres and appointing medical practitioners, pharmacists and nursing personnel. Additional social workers, psychologists and spiritual care workers will also be appointed.
Under the programme Development, greater emphasis is being put on equipping offenders with skills to make them more employable. The Department estimates that it will receive revenue of about R89,7 million during 2005/06, mostly generated through the sale of products from correctional centre workshops, hiring out offenders’ labour and letting official personnel accommodation. Part of the income generated by offenders’ labour is paid to offenders as a gratuity. The George Correctional Centre is an excellent example of inmates acquiring skills that could be used in seeking employment upon their release. With the assistance and guidance of trained artisans, inmates renovated huge sections of the prison, building a facility that lends itself well to effective unit management and rehabilitation programmes.
In our efforts to facilitate a change in mindset by managers and staff members, a number of programmes are being put in place. These include:
* Conducting a Management Development Programme for 400 Junior and Middle Managers in partnership with the Tshwane University of Technology. About 8 000 Managers are targeted over the next three years.
* Newly recruited staff undergoes a new basic training programme based on a Learnership on Correctional Science.
* A training framework has been completed for the training and retraining of staff deployed in the Centres of Excellence.
* To create capacity in the scarce skills areas, the Department has awarded bursaries to students in study fields such as Pharmacy, Psychology, Communication and Information Technology.
* Various Learnerships are being introduced including Public Services Administration, Treatment of Young Offenders in Custody, Spiritual Care Workers and Supervision and Parole.
A Career Pathing Model aimed at levels 2-12 within the Department will be implemented in this financial year after the completion of negotiations with labour. This upward mobility will ensure the improvement of several of our lower level staff and enhance the well-being for those qualifying staff members. To be phased in over three years, the costs in the first year will be R99,4 million.
The Department’s quest for excellence depends to a great extent on the quality of individuals that we employ. We remain committed to developing the best correctional system world-wide. To achieve this, Correctional Services must become a preferred employer. Young professionals within the provinces must be stepping forward to build a cadre of quality leadership within Correctional Services that will give momentum to our vision in the years ahead. In the past, the Department has always been the preserve of males in terms of its employment policies and practices. Deliberate actions were taken to turn this around and to date the Department has raised the number of female officials to 7 372 compared to 4 000 in 1995. At senior management level, this has also changed significantly with 33 female correctional officials filling such positions. The finalisation of a gender policy in the Department will ensure that we take gender relations and equity issues into the mainstream of our policy development processes.
We will shortly be endorsing the UN Charter of Fundamental Rights for Prisoners. We will also champion the call for African countries to comply with prison-related charters emanating from the continent. Our participation in Bi-National Commissions and Joint Commissions of Co-operation has resulted in us hosting several delegations from various countries including Rwanda, Angola, Lesotho, Botswana, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, the Czech Republic, Sudan as well as the Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights under the African Union.
There is a spirit of commitment prevalent in the Department, the extent which I did not experience when I addressed this House last year. Our National Council for Correctional Services led by Judge Siraj Desai and the Office of the Inspecting Judge under Judge Hannes Fagan have contributed significantly to turning around perceptions of the Department. There is a greater willingness amongst the public to discuss correctional matters and we remain determined to project a positive image of Correctional Services through our actions. Much of this has to do with the support that we receive, including that of the Select Committee on Constitutional and Security Affairs led by Chairperson Kgoshi ML Mokoena. I want to thank all the Members for the faith and trust that you display and also wish to express my gratitude to all stakeholders including labour unions, NGOs, CBOs, spiritual-based organisations and service providers for partnering us. Our labour unions have confirmed their commitment to cooperation with regard to our respective roles. Correctional Services is accepted and acknowledged as an essential service. We have agreed on mechanisms to deal with challenges, mindful of the circumstances around being an essential service.
To Commissioner Linda Mti and our staff throughout the country, including those at head office and in our regions – you are out of the starting blocks in your efforts to build a correctional system that truly belongs to all South Africans. Do not relax that pedal. I have trust and confidence in the managers in all our centres as well as in our members who are at the coalface of delivery. I will continue being available to listen to you and will continue engaging you whether it is in your office or in correctional centres. So many members and even inmates have discovered a way to reach the Minister directly. They simply call me on my cellphone. If we want to succeed in delivering a quality service, we must open the doors of communication and I invite all Members of the NCOP to similarly be in touch with me if you believe that you can contribute towards making a positive difference within Correctional Services.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Correctional Services
24 May 2005
Source: Department of Correctional Services
Title: Balfour: Correctional Services Dept Budget Vote policy debate, NCOP
Budget Vote address in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) by the Minister of Correctional Services, Ngconde Balfour, MP
Chairperson
Cabinet Colleagues
Honourable Members
MECs and Members of Provincial Legislatures
Honoured Guests
Stakeholder and Community Representatives
In describing the Freedom Charter, former President Nelson Mandela has the following to say of what he regards as a revolutionary document. “Like other enduring political documents, such as the American Declaration of Independence, the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Communist Manifesto, the Freedom Charter is a mixture of practical goals and poetic language. It extols the abolition of racial discrimination and the achievement of equal rights for all. It welcomes all who embrace freedom….”
It is from these sources that the inspiration for our Constitution of 1996 was derived. As much as some of us would want to deny the impact of the Freedom Charter on the lives of ordinary South Africans, the objectives that it promotes made possible the current radically-changed political landscape in our country. It was the Freedom Charter that inspired millions of South Africans to shake off the shackles of the past and provide a vision of the future.
No more are people imprisoned because their skin pigmentation happens to be black. No more are people detained because they support the African National Congress. No more are people jailed because they could not produce a piece of paper that their jailers forced them to carry at all times. No more are prisons places of oppression where blacks are subjected to the brutality and cruelty of prison officials who knew no other way of dealing with offenders except through inhumane treatment.
In line with the Freedom Charter and as emphasised by our Constitution, those guilty of serious crimes will be incarcerated, not to exact vengeance but to bring about life-changing attitudes while paying their debt to society.
The White Paper on Corrections in South Africa shares these objectives of the Freedom Charter and the Constitution of 1996. It envisages a criminal justice system that recognises the humanity of every person, even those who commit crimes against the people of South Africa. The Department of Correctional Services is committed to bringing about a correctional system in place of a penal system that lends itself to retribution instead of correction. This is a commitment, we believe, that is shared by our colleagues in the criminal justice system as well as the Honourable Members of this House. Through the White Paper, we can make a significant contribution to fighting the scourge of crime and criminality, changing the mindsets and attitudes of those who are still susceptible to positive behavioural changes while incarcerating those who are bent on causing mayhem in our communities.
I am joined in this commitment by all senior managers in my department who last week adopted a Declaration of Commitment that is aligned with the objectives of our Constitution and by extension, those objectives of the Freedom Charter that relate to conditions of human dignity for all.
The Declaration of Commitment adopted by senior managers of Correctional Services includes a commitment:
* to transform prisons into ethical and secure centres with a correcting influence;
* to transform Correctional Services into a rehabilitation institution able to afford offenders an opportunity for beginnings of a new life, free of crime and with personal growth and development;
* to empower our members to take their place as cadres of the Public Service and;
* to uphold and promote the values and principles of our Constitution.
It is against this Declaration of Commitment that Correctional Services should be measured by the people of our country. Of course, we want to deliver a world class service to our people and this will remain our ideal. We are however, painstakingly aware, that in order to deliver on this ideal there are certain fundamentals that must be in place. While we can take charge of some of those fundamentals, there are others outside our sphere of control such as access to greater resources that could constrain us in reaching our objectives in the shortest possible time.
As a starting point, the vehicle to achieving some of these objectives is through the implementation of the White Paper. In this regard, we have identified 36 correctional centres throughout the country that would pilot the implementation of the White Paper, starting in this financial year. To be known as Centres of Excellence, the 36 centres, with six in the Western Cape, two in the Northern Cape, four in the Free State, five in Gauteng, six in KwaZulu-Natal, two each in Mpumalanga, North West and Limpopo and seven in the Eastern Cape, will be the benchmark of service delivery in the correctional system based on the roll-out of the White Paper. Central to this would be correcting offending behaviour and the implementation of development programmes with the aim of rehabilitating offenders. Critical to the success of this would be ensuring that communities either, through individuals, families or organisations, recognize and adopt corrections as a societal responsibility.
Let me cite an example of how communities could play a major role in corrections. Thousands of our youth and school-going children, especially in the Western Cape, are caught up in using the habit-forming drug, commonly known as tik. It is causing devastation in our communities with teachers having to deal with scores of cases on a daily basis. There are even cases where mothers and fathers are sharing tik with their children. The pushers and dealers are in our communities, wreaking havoc. Children are resorting to theft and crime in order to satisfy their craving. Many of them are being criminally charged and will end up in prison when they should not be there. I believe no child should be imprisoned for using tik. They should be in programmes in our communities, helping them to break this cruel habit. I have no place for such children in prison but I certainly have place and would make place for those who perpetrate these deeds against our youth. No prison will be too overcrowded to break the back of those who deal in the misery of our people through dealing in and selling drugs such as tik to our children.
Besides the challenge of overcrowding, another major challenge facing the department if we want to succeed with the rehabilitation of offenders is to tackle head-on the scourge of prison gangs and related violence. The phenomenon of prison gangs is as old as prison itself and as long as we have inmates, these gangs will remain. But this does not mean that we should not be addressing the challenges presented by prison gangs. While prison gangs exist throughout the country, it is especially strong in the Western Cape and Gauteng. And their existence is not unrelated to street gangs that operate within our communities. Again, our young people are most susceptible to the influences of these gangs and it is not uncommon to find primary schoolchildren being caught up and involved in the gang network. The department is currently engaged in a process with departments in the criminal justice system and other stakeholders to tackle the issue of prison gangs and related violence but this cannot be done without the active involvement of communities who bear the brunt of gang activities. We will be embarking on initiatives this year to better prepare our members and the public in dealing with this problem.
Earlier this year a book called The Number by Jonny Steinberg was published dealing with the prison gang phenomenon. I expressed my appreciation to the author for his work in this regard. However, I differ strongly with him on the view that consensual sex between inmates should be allowed in prisons. Our core business in Correctional Services is to correct offending behaviour. As much as some of us might want to deny it, the dividing line between consensual sex and coercive sex in a prison environment is so blurred that it is non-existent. Yes, in line with our human rights approach in Correctional Services, we will continue providing for the basic needs of inmates. But when you are incarcerated for crimes against society, you also forfeit certain rights that exist in an open society.
As I stated earlier, overcrowding remains one of the biggest challenges facing the department. While the Judiciary will be deliberating this issue with other stakeholders in September, together with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, SAPS, the NPA and the Department of Social Development, we have in place a strategy to better manage overcrowding. Of course, the sustainable solution is to lower the number of offenders committing crime but that is a responsibility to be shared by society. Amongst the measures being used to deal with overcrowding are:
* Managing the levels of awaiting trial detainees through the IJS Case Management Task Team and the Inter-Sectoral Committee on Child Justice. The success of this depends to a great extent on the levels of cooperation that exist at local levels where IJS clusters have been set up. In many areas there has been a willingness on the part of magistrates and prosecutors to address this and in those areas, the processing time of dealing with ATDs has improved significantly. There is also a role for MECs responsible for safety and security to play in this regard. The scope of Community Police Forums should be expanded to include other IJS stakeholders such as Correctional Services where such stakeholders are not involved in police forums. Honourable Members will be aware that the placement of ATDs within the criminal justice system is still not finalised. It is my view that their placement should not be within Correctional Services. Our focus should be on sentenced offenders rather than on ATDs. A protocol between the relevant JCPS departments is necessary in order for this matter to be dealt with effectively.
* Managing the levels of sentenced inmates through improving the effective and appropriate use of conversion of sentences to community correctional supervision, release on parole and transfers between correctional centres.
* Through the departmental capital works programme, upgrading existing facilities and building new correctional centres that are both cost effective and rehabilitation-oriented.
Honourable Members should be aware that new correctional centres are being built at Leeuwkop, Klerksdorp, Kimberley and Nigel with others due to be built in the next financial year in KwaZulu Natal, Limpopo, the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape.
* Encouraging an approach to appropriate sentencing that is focused on facilitating rehabilitation.
* Improving the correction and development programmes within the department to ensure enhanced facilitation of rehabilitation.
* Encouraging the improvement of the first and second levels of correction in the family and social institutions respectively.
* Encouraging community involvement in social reintegration.
The total inmate population at 28 February 2005 was 187 000 while our capacity is 113 825. Those awaiting trial account for 52 000 with 135 000 sentenced offenders. It means that about four out of every 1 000 South Africans are incarcerated at any given time. This should give Honourable Members a fair idea of the enormity of the challenge of overcrowding.
You might also be aware that the department implemented the Inmate Tracking System as a pilot project in Durban Westville Medium A Correctional Centre. This pilot project was also extended to the Johannesburg Medium A Correctional Centre. The main functions of this project are to accurately identify awaiting trial detainees, to decrease the time spent in processing ATDs for court appearances and visits and to monitor the movements of ATDs through a personal tracking device. The pilot project has assisted in identifying weaknesses in the system, especially with regard to the tracking device that is attached to the wrist of ATDs. This includes inmates attempting to destroy the wrist tag. Such culprits must know that action will be taken against them for destroying state property. However, the tracking system has greatly benefited identifying ATDs on a daily basis through the use of the biometric finger print reader and the electronic facial photograph facility. The pilot project at Johannesburg has yielded positive results thus far but consideration will only be given to extending its use after the completion of an intensive evaluation of the current pilot projects.
Chairperson
Our budget for this financial year is R9,234 billion with a projected establishment of 36 000 members and operational costs for an average offender population of 192 000 and 76 000 supervision cases and parolees. Compensation of employees is projected at 64 percent of the Vote.
Expenditure on security is expected to increase rapidly, reaching R4,2 billion by 2007/08. Much of this is to cater for increased staff numbers as a result of the introduction of the seven-day working week. The Department is in the process of phasing out the costly overtime system for essential weekend services, thus creating greater work opportunities in line with government’s job-creation strategies. On 1 April the Department started introducing the seven-day week with Saturdays as a normal working day. Members will continue receiving double pay for working on Sundays. Already, we have 1 000 new recruits undergoing training in our two training colleges and they will be deployed to correctional centres upon completion of their training. At the same time, I want to point out that I remain committed to seeking improvements in the conditions of service of staff members.
While escapes from correctional centres were limited to 171 last year, many security breaches and escapes are becoming increasingly violent. The brutal attack on two nurses at Emthonjeni Youth Centre, Baviaanspoort, in March cannot be allowed to go unpunished. I cannot allow our members to be easy targets for criminals. These criminals, some of whom are found within our ranks and who aid and abet escapes, must know that we will use whatever means necessary to track them down. Area Commissioners have been tasked to develop strategies for both enhanced security in centres and corruption prevention, based on an assertive and tight management approach. Corrupt officials who believe they are insulated against exposure will be treated similarly to those who they assist in perpetrating criminal deeds. We will find you even if it means using unconventional methods to nail you. I have no qualms about putting such corrupt members amongst the very offenders that they are supposed to safeguard society against.
Our partnership with the Special Investigation Unit in uncovering fraud and corruption in the Department has resulted in 175 disciplinary referrals, 132 criminal referrals of members and 25 criminal referrals of doctors. Crime Intelligence of SAPS also plays a vital role in dealing with fraud and corruption. We are also building our own intelligence capacity to deal with incidents of corruption both amongst members and offenders. Corrupt members are however in the minority. I am confident that the vast majority of correctional officials are committed and dedicated to their responsibilities.
I will continue propagating for better service conditions for those members. Last year I stated that I would prioritise this. I am pleased to report that the department will soon be engaging the services of private partners to develop a business case in order to take this work forward. We will also be spending R80 million on the installation of advanced technological equipment at 65 correctional centres. Equipment to be installed includes items such as CCTV cameras, biometric readers and scanning devices. In addition, a National Security Plan and Minimum Security Standards for correctional centres will be implemented during the year. It is our belief that these initiatives will form a firm foundation for improving service delivery in terms of our obligation to ensure the safety and security of officials, inmates and service providers as well as the broader community; and in the process contributing towards the creation of an enabling environment in which the rehabilitation of inmates can take place.
Our 52 new Correctional Supervision and Parole Boards will also for the first time make provision for victims of offenders to make representations and they are also permitted to attend sessions of the Parole Boards. This is a significant step in the quest to establish and promote restorative justice as an acceptable and viable mediation process. Chairpersons are appointed from communities, giving society a key function within the parole system. All Chairpersons, except in the Western Cape, have been appointed and I will be calling all of them to a joint meeting some time this year in order for them to fully get to grips with their responsibilities both to the department and communities. It is my belief that the parole system should show considerable improvement in future with the views of communities given greater consideration. Recently, I had the occasion to listen to an 80 year old mother pleading for her son to be placed on parole as she had no one to care for her. It is such cases that Parole Boards should also be dealing with, giving community members the opportunity to give inputs on parole considerations.
On Freedom Day I stated that an announcement would be made on remission of sentences for inmates, parolees and probationers. I would be making the details thereof public fairly soon but I want to sound both a word of caution and warning in this regard. Do not for one moment mistake this to be a sign of government being soft on crime. On the contrary, the justice system agencies, including Correctional Services, will not hesitate to slam anyone back into prison who thinks that they are above the law. While we are reaching out a hand of humanity with the firm understanding that those who are a risk to society will remain incarcerated, those who are to gain from the remission of sentences must take this one opportunity that they have to change their lives for the better. Inmates are being given a second chance by the country. They must make use of it by becoming productive citizens and not falling back into crime. I am under no illusion about the propensity for people to fall back into crime but want to appeal to communities and families to reach out to those who are due to return to their communities. I also wish to appeal to business to give released offenders a chance to seek gainful employment. They have made mistakes. They have also hurt victims and families of victims, many of whom still carry the pains and scars of the crimes committed against them. Let us all join hands in a common attempt to show them the error of their ways and direct them onto a path of changed lives and attitudes.
The Department will also be upgrading healthcare facilities in correctional centres and appointing medical practitioners, pharmacists and nursing personnel. Additional social workers, psychologists and spiritual care workers will also be appointed.
Under the programme Development, greater emphasis is being put on equipping offenders with skills to make them more employable. The Department estimates that it will receive revenue of about R89,7 million during 2005/06, mostly generated through the sale of products from correctional centre workshops, hiring out offenders’ labour and letting official personnel accommodation. Part of the income generated by offenders’ labour is paid to offenders as a gratuity. The George Correctional Centre is an excellent example of inmates acquiring skills that could be used in seeking employment upon their release. With the assistance and guidance of trained artisans, inmates renovated huge sections of the prison, building a facility that lends itself well to effective unit management and rehabilitation programmes.
In our efforts to facilitate a change in mindset by managers and staff members, a number of programmes are being put in place. These include:
* Conducting a Management Development Programme for 400 Junior and Middle Managers in partnership with the Tshwane University of Technology. About 8 000 Managers are targeted over the next three years.
* Newly recruited staff undergoes a new basic training programme based on a Learnership on Correctional Science.
* A training framework has been completed for the training and retraining of staff deployed in the Centres of Excellence.
* To create capacity in the scarce skills areas, the Department has awarded bursaries to students in study fields such as Pharmacy, Psychology, Communication and Information Technology.
* Various Learnerships are being introduced including Public Services Administration, Treatment of Young Offenders in Custody, Spiritual Care Workers and Supervision and Parole.
A Career Pathing Model aimed at levels 2-12 within the Department will be implemented in this financial year after the completion of negotiations with labour. This upward mobility will ensure the improvement of several of our lower level staff and enhance the well-being for those qualifying staff members. To be phased in over three years, the costs in the first year will be R99,4 million.
The Department’s quest for excellence depends to a great extent on the quality of individuals that we employ. We remain committed to developing the best correctional system world-wide. To achieve this, Correctional Services must become a preferred employer. Young professionals within the provinces must be stepping forward to build a cadre of quality leadership within Correctional Services that will give momentum to our vision in the years ahead. In the past, the Department has always been the preserve of males in terms of its employment policies and practices. Deliberate actions were taken to turn this around and to date the Department has raised the number of female officials to 7 372 compared to 4 000 in 1995. At senior management level, this has also changed significantly with 33 female correctional officials filling such positions. The finalisation of a gender policy in the Department will ensure that we take gender relations and equity issues into the mainstream of our policy development processes.
We will shortly be endorsing the UN Charter of Fundamental Rights for Prisoners. We will also champion the call for African countries to comply with prison-related charters emanating from the continent. Our participation in Bi-National Commissions and Joint Commissions of Co-operation has resulted in us hosting several delegations from various countries including Rwanda, Angola, Lesotho, Botswana, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Swaziland, the Czech Republic, Sudan as well as the Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights under the African Union.
There is a spirit of commitment prevalent in the Department, the extent which I did not experience when I addressed this House last year. Our National Council for Correctional Services led by Judge Siraj Desai and the Office of the Inspecting Judge under Judge Hannes Fagan have contributed significantly to turning around perceptions of the Department. There is a greater willingness amongst the public to discuss correctional matters and we remain determined to project a positive image of Correctional Services through our actions. Much of this has to do with the support that we receive, including that of the Select Committee on Constitutional and Security Affairs led by Chairperson Kgoshi ML Mokoena. I want to thank all the Members for the faith and trust that you display and also wish to express my gratitude to all stakeholders including labour unions, NGOs, CBOs, spiritual-based organisations and service providers for partnering us. Our labour unions have confirmed their commitment to cooperation with regard to our respective roles. Correctional Services is accepted and acknowledged as an essential service. We have agreed on mechanisms to deal with challenges, mindful of the circumstances around being an essential service.
To Commissioner Linda Mti and our staff throughout the country, including those at head office and in our regions – you are out of the starting blocks in your efforts to build a correctional system that truly belongs to all South Africans. Do not relax that pedal. I have trust and confidence in the managers in all our centres as well as in our members who are at the coalface of delivery. I will continue being available to listen to you and will continue engaging you whether it is in your office or in correctional centres. So many members and even inmates have discovered a way to reach the Minister directly. They simply call me on my cellphone. If we want to succeed in delivering a quality service, we must open the doors of communication and I invite all Members of the NCOP to similarly be in touch with me if you believe that you can contribute towards making a positive difference within Correctional Services.
I thank you.
Issued by: Department of Correctional Services
24 May 2005
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