L Ramatlakane: Western Cape Community Safety Prov Budget Vote
2007/08

6 June 2007

Speaker
Premier Ebrahim Rasool
Fellow Cabinet members of the Western Cape Provincial Government
Members of the Legislature
Chairperson of the Provincial Standing Committee on Community Development
Our partners in the Criminal Justice cluster
Leaders of our communities
Leaders from the different religious faiths
Invited guests

Honourable Speaker, we once again stand before the Western Cape Provincial
Parliament to present our budget for the Department of Community Safety for the
financial year 2007/08.

In this budget we will affirm our priorities and our commitments as to how
best we will protect our people of the Western Cape from crime.

It is undeniable that crime affects all of us in many different ways.

But the sad reality of our crime profile in South Africa today and in
particular it the Western Cape is the fact that as many as 73,4% of the murders
committed in our province, are committed by perpetrators who know their
victims.

And 57% of these murders occur within our communities, on our street corners
close to our homes.

Our reports further reveal that from this, 62% of the females murdered, were
murdered in private homes or residences.

Of the 62% of females, it is reported that only .6.8% of the victims did
report the crime or have laid a complaint of domestic violence prior to the
murder.

Furthermore we have established that more than 70% of the murders committed
in our Province are as a result of an argument between the perpetrators and the
victim.

Speaker, here the abuse of alcohol also played major role in as many as 46%
of the murders committed.

If there is nothing we can do collectively as a society to influence good
human and moral behaviour, we may end up also seeing up to 40% more females who
may be murdered by their partners.

This startling revelation about the psychology of crime begs a question from
all of us in society as to what we are doing to stop serious violent crime.

Clearly these statistics reflect a single reality that government and the
various agencies fighting crime will never be able to stem the tide of serious
violent crime unless we as individuals and communities are prepared to act in
unison with government.

The revelation further raises very acutely the issue of social morality,
fabric and values in our society today.

We have witnessed so many times the blatant barbarity of family members
killing and maiming other members.

This clearly reflects that our society is in deep crisis and that in order
to expunge ourselves from this morass, we have got to re-evaluate the values
and ethics we practise in our daily lives in relation to those we love.

It is against this background, Speaker, that as the Department of Community
Safety we present our budget of R202 million to this House for 2007/8 financial
year.

Speaker in our 2006/07 Budget Statement, I committed the Department and our
Provincial Government to achieving certain goals in the fight against
crime.

Let me reflect very briefly on some of these achievements and deliverables,
but equally important the lessons we have learnt in this regard.

Speaker, our social crime prevention programmes focussed on addressing
crimes against women and children.

In this regard the Hands Off Our Children (HOOC) campaign facilitated the
second phase of its educational programmes addressing Child Abuse at 150
pre-schools through live industrial theatre productions.

These programmes were mainly aimed educating children on the prevention of
child abuse.

During the implementation of the programme, training as HOOC care workers
was extended to 503 members of our communities from areas such as Lingelethu,
Gugulethu, Harare, Delft, Kuilsriver, Kraaifontein, Oudtshoorn, Belhar,
Mosselbay, Nyanga, Strand, Bellville, Atlantis, Worcester, Knysna, Beaufort
West and Ceres.

This programme was implemented in conjunction with our partners i.e. the
South African Police, Community Policing Forums, the Departments of Education
and Social development and various non-governmental (NGO) organisations
including Molo Songololo, RAPCAN etc.

Similarly Speaker, as per our promise last year, the Department's Complaints
centre has been established and hit the ground running within the context of
our developmental state. We have appointed experienced investigators who now go
into communities to finalise complaints as opposed to just a paper based and
office based approach to handling complaints.

To ensure that all law enforcement agencies work in a synergised manner to
build safer communities, the Department has developed an integrated complaints
centre whereby even complaints against our Provincial Traffic Services can be
channelled through the same complaints centre.

As part of our constitutional and legislative commitment in improving
civilian oversight over law enforcement, the Department continues to undertake
quarterly evaluations of the South African Police Service and we envisage
extending this process to the Metro police.

Speaker it worth noting that the process nationally of restructuring and
re-organising the Community Policing Forums has been a direct replica of our
interventions and practises in the Western Cape.

Anti-rape strategy

Speaker, the Provincial Anti-Rape Strategy that was launched in August last
year is a commitment we undertook in our budget statement in this House last
year as part of our commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of Women's march and
our commitment to building women's rights and the people's contract.

The Anti-Rape Strategy aims to reduce gender based violence, particularly on
women and children and it is aligned to the national Anti-Rape Strategy.

The Anti-Rape Strategy Forum which was established as a direct result of
this strategy and aims to drive its implementation, consists of nine
departments, including five national departments, eight civil society
organisations and faith-based formations as well as the Provincial Community
Police board.

Victim support programme

The Victim Support Programme aims to increase support to victims of crime
enabling them to heal and move on with the least possible harm or loss in their
lives.

Achievement

This programme has enabled the establishment of victim support rooms and
victims support management committees in almost all the policing stations in
the province.

To date the programme has deployed 1 778 trained victims support volunteers
in all our police stations (including satellite stations) in the province.

The roll out of this programme could not have been possible without the
support and our partnerships with the South African Police Service, Business
Against Crime and our Community Policing Forums.

During the second half of last year, the Department opened a further eight
victim support rooms.

Today all our 168 police stations have rolled out such facilities which are
up and running.

Bambanani school safety programme

Speaker, over the last few years we have witnessed an ever-increasing level
of crime within our schools. It was and is against this background that we
introduced our Bambanani Safer Schools Programme as intervention which was
rolled out jointly with the leadership of the Department of Education.

The programme is aimed at making our schools through normalising the
learning environment. The positive impact we must note though will only be
effective in the medium and long term.

Achievement

Speaker, the Bambanani School Safety Programme has deployed 500 trained
volunteers at 109 schools that are affected by high levels of crime in the Cape
Metropolitan.

Under this programme, the 500 volunteers were trained in self-defence and
are now contracted for over a period of two years.

In addition, we received a buy-in and tangible support from the national
Department of Labour for our programme. The Department availed an amount of R1
million for the further skilling and development of the volunteers.

The funding will be utilised to train the volunteers in accredited Level “E”
and “D” Security work to enhance their effectiveness and to be able to meet the
objectives of the programme whilst at the same time contributing to their
employability.

The general report from these interventions at these schools is that while
there are minor weaknesses towards this programme, there is however a positive
sign in that the deployment of our volunteers has become a secondary
complimentary force to sector policing in those affected areas.

Drug and gang prevention programme

Speaker, gangsterim and drug abuse remain a historical, parasitical fact
within our province which feeds into one another.

The Drug and Gang prevention programme was initiated as an intervention to
assist communities in addressing this challenge that is fast tearing young and
old people apart.

The challenge is that it has changed our places, turning them into boxing
rings or even war zones.

It is also a challenge that informs us that we must have an
inter-governmental integrated programme aimed at engaging with mobilising youth
at risk, parents and community members into action against the prevalence of
drug and gangsterism.

To date this programme has initiated interventions in areas such as Elsies
River, Mannenberg, Guguletu, Hanover Park and Mitchell's Plain.

Youth at risk from these areas were engaged in intensive workshops and were
educated in respect of the risks and dangers of drugs.

The programme also ensured gang interventions in Gugulethu , New Crossraods
and Nyanga. 93 youths who were involved in gangs were identified and were sent
on a needs assessment and conflict resolution training camp.

The impact resulted in the ending of that conflict amongst them.

As a result many of them have now joined the Chrysallis Academy to under
going leadership training

Achievement

Twenty (20) of these youth as a result entered the 3 month short-term
leadership training course at Chrysalis.

On the education front, the Department through this programme also rolled
out the Choose To Live Educational road shows at 70 schools where more than a
100 pledges were signed declaring these schools as drug and gang free
zones.

An additional 25 youth leaders were trained as part of the Street Smart
Youth and were deployed to raise awareness in communities.

A further significant milestone of this programme was the training of 85
youth volunteers as part of the Ke-Moja methodology as substance abuse
facilitators.

This programme has facilitated 400 drug abuse referral sessions as a means
of treating and rehabilitating drug users.

Traffic law enforcement

Arrive Alive

Speaker, our Department together with the Department of Transport are
working together to ensure that we continue to reduce road fatalities in our
province.

For the last five years, the Arrive Alive campaign has made a significant
impact in the province as is evidenced by the consistent decrease in motor
vehicle collisions and road fatalities particularly during the December and
Easter holiday periods. But much more must still be done to change driver and
motorist behaviour

Achievement

We have seen an incremental increase in traffic volumes by approximately 45
000 per month and about between 3 000 and 9 000 new driver licences issued per
month.

Despite these pressures, during the 2006/07 year , a decrease of 13% and 42%
in road fatalities was recorded during the 2006 Safer Festive Season programme
in December and the Easter weekend respectively.

A noticeable and commendable decrease in fatalities during this period is
that of pedestrians.

These successes area attributable to our integrated approach to road safety
management which has been premised upon the twin principles of zero tolerance
to reckless and negligent driving as well as road safety education programmes
in partnership with our communities.

In inculcating our Road Safety awareness amongst learners, road safety
practitioners conduct presentations for educators to assist schools to
integrate road safety in the curriculum as part of life skills programme.

To date 80 presentations were undertaken at schools throughout the province
where 1 760 educators were reached in the foundation phase.

Community policing

Speaker, President Thabo Mbeki early this year, read out the ANC's 95th
birthday 8 January statement and made the following remarks.

The President said: "We have worked so hard since 1994 to transform the
South African Police Services and other institutions of the criminal justice
system to serve all our people more effectively and to work to safeguard their
safety and security.

"We have increased the numbers of police personnel , improved systems of co
ordination and managements and improved the efficiency of our courts and
prosecution services.

"Yet, we have recognised from the birth of democracy that these efforts will
not succeed unless we make tangible progress in addressing those socio-
economic conditions that feed crime and violence.

"We have recognised that the police serviced and government agencies cannot
fight crime alone, and it requires the involvement and active participation of
all communities and all sections of society to meet this challenge." –
President Mbeki on ANC 95th birthday: 8 January statement.

Speaker, the Bambanani community volunteers have continued to walk our
streets and defend our communities, complimenting the South African Police
Services and the Provincial traffic law enforcement in the fight against crime
and building a safer home for all .

For the last four years, we have seen these volunteers in our townships, and
locations.

These are the people who know and have the love of their communities. They
live with these communities in Zwelethemba, in Zwelihle, in Mbekweni, in
Zolani, in Kwa Mandlenkosi, in Blue Downs, in Bonteheuwel, Bridgeton, in
Bongoletu, Kwa Nonqaba, in Conville and Khayelitsha.

For the 2006/07 financial year, a total of 1 208 of these volunteers from
these communities have been trained in projects such as neighbourhood watch,
farm watch, traffic safety, youth volunteers, safer schools and for the safer
festive season programme.

Achievement

When four years ago , we introduced this model of community policing model,
never seen before, we saw civilians now rubbing shoulders with the police,
something that was at an all time low before. Today things are much
better.
We can say today, without fear of contradiction, that with the Bambanani
Neighbourhood watch volunteers an impact has been made.

In that in the first year of our Safer Festive season programme we saw
contact crime for only that period coming down by 18%, then by 2.2% in the
second year, by 27% in the third year and by 12% the past festive season -
this, the police admit, they would never have achieved alone without the
volunteers.

In addition to this, as a result of our deployment of the volunteers to work
as part of our train safety programme, we saw crime on trains decreasing by 48%
for t he 2004/05 year, by 21% for the 2005/06 year and decreasing by 30.3% for
the 2006/07.

Speaker, the impact of this social (people's) contract ensured the active
participation of 5 225 Bambanani volunteers in the 2006/07 safer festive
season.

This social compact between government through our Department, the police,
traffic law enforcement resulted a further reduction in crime by 12% during the
festive season of 2006.

The Child Rapid Response Unit

Speaker, under this programme, we also have the Child Rapid Response Unit -
a unit that is driven by our local Community Policing Forums, the Department
and our Bambanani volunteers.

When we initially established this unit as an intervention to assist our
communities in tracing missing children, it immediately grew and spread across
the province.

Achievement

We now have 30 new Child Rapid Response Units with volunteers read to be
deployed in the event of our children going missing.

For the period of April 2006 to March 2007, the unit has achieved the
following results:
145 children were reported missing. The Unit found all of 145 children.
Regrettably, of these, five were found dead while the other 140 were found
alive and were reunited with their families.

South African Police Service
Speaker, the South African Police Service in the Western Cape under the
leadership of Commissioner Petros, is the leading agents in the prevention of
crime, detection and investigation of crime, and in particular curbing violent
crime.

I often refer to them as “Amapolisa Omzantsi Afrika” because of the
commitment to serve the nation that I observed in them.

Despite them facing the daily possibility being ambushed while attending to
crime complaints, despite them having to operate in the most challenging
environment, our police continue to make us proud by delivering the goods.

Whilst we still have a long way to go in reaching the ideal of complete
peace and stability without our communities, this province for the 3 rd year
running achieved a continuous decline in contact crime.

During the 2006/07 year, the province recorded a 17% decline in crime
exceeding the national target of 7 to 10%.

Achievements

Contact crime

In the last four years, contact crime has accumulatively declined by
23%.

Also for the last four years, murder decreased accumulatively by 24.5%.

Serious violent crime

Since the restructuring within the South African Police Services though it
was met with scepticism from some quarters, it has enabled the placement of
members of specialised units at station level and therefore ensuring the
transfer of specialist skills and that crime will be addressed at the lowest
level.

We have also see a back to basics approach through the deployment of a
number of senior personnel from the level of commissioners being deployed to
our stations.

Confiscations

* 1 701 firearms and drugs to the value of more than R20 million were
seized.
* 2 422 firearms, 2 668 magazines, 30 616 rounds of ammunition were
destroyed.

Speaker, as a result of community involvement in social crime prevention
programmes, the South African Police recorded the following:
* the closure of four drug factories in and around Cape Town
* the arrest of 116 persons
* confiscation of 30 handguns, 11 automatic rifles, 317 rounds of
ammunition
* confiscation of drugs to the street value or R180 million
* the recovery of stolen vehicles and other property worth R330 000 and R489
000 respectively.

Taxi industry related action

Speaker, let me also mention that our police together with its partners its
partner agencies have been working closely together and around the clock in
building strong cases against those who are disrupting the taxi industry by
breaking the laws of our land.

We will remind the public and the role players that the South African Police
Service is not the responsible agency that facilitates negotiations to end
conflict, shootings and hostilities in the taxi industry. Police don't
negotiate. They enforce the law.

With regard to the recent taxi industry related violence, progress has been
made. There are 13 who have been arrested and five firearms.

The South African Police are implementing the recommendations and acting on
the information obtained from the Ntsebeza Commission of inquiry into the taxi
industry criminality. Several names were forwarded to the police for further
investigation. It is these suspects that are currently part of a much wider
investigation into criminality in the taxi industry.

Local Criminal Record Centre

Speaker, in this regard let me also report that the successes of the police
positively linking suspects to crimes, is as a result of a high- tech Criminal
record centre.

It is this centre that was instrumental in the success of police
investigation in the famous Dina Rodriques murder trial, which also received
high praise from the judge who presided over the trial.

Also worth mentioning as a result of the work by this centre, is the
positive identification of two rape suspects who committed the crime some 26
years ago. As we speak the two suspects are behind bars waiting to have their
day in court soon.

The Directorate of Public Prosecutions

Speaker, our prosecutorial services continue to work in partnership with the
police and all are other agencies in ensuring that we continue to tighten the
noose on crime.

The integrated law enforcement agencies continue to implement the High Flyer
project as we cannot afford to let go of it because here we are concerned about
the future of our generation.

Focussing on organised crimes and other serious and violent crimes, this
agency recorded many successes which include the following:
* Working closely with the SAPS to establish the Organised Crime Component in
the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions. This was undertaken to
reinforce integration amongst law enforcement agencies.
This unit paid particular attention to crimes such as:
* Bank robberies, cash in transit heists, truck and car hijackings, business
robberies, syndicate house robberies and ATM attacks
* Drug trafficking
* Human trafficking
* Organised corruption
* Racketeering and money laundering
* Gang related matters under the Prevention of Organised Crime Act (POCA)
* Trafficking in precious metals and diamonds

Achievements

Speaker we want to report the following:
With regard to the Gang Pilot Project (POCA), we achieved groundbreaking
judgements in the high courts:
* Shamiel Eyssen and nine others were convicted in the Cape High court under
the POCA legislation, racketeering, and other offences. All of them were given
a total prison sentence of 124 years and six months
* Nazir Kapdi, a well-known high flyer criminal and leader of the underworld,
had his bail application turned down.

Other POCA related successes include l prosecutions are:
* L Sederstroom and three others. Members of Americans; sentenced to three
years
* William Green, Shaun April, Ashley Figlan - all members of the Mongrels -
sentenced to 15 years.
* Wilfred Scheepers - Hard Livings - sentenced to five years.
* Neville Thomas, Clive Murphy - Americans - sentenced to 12 years.
* Jonathan Africa and Elcardo Frazer - Joy gang - sentenced to six years.
* Morne April - Joy Gang. Sentenced to six years.

The Directorate Of Special Operations

Speaker, the Directorate for Special Operations have also had a number of
successes in serious economic offences and organised crime.

They include:

Economic offences

* The successful conviction of Mr Peter Gardener and Rod Mitchell in the
famous Leisurenet trial on charge of fraud. Both men were sentenced to eight
and seven years respectively
* The conviction of Mr David Malatsi on a count of corruption for money he had
received from Count Ricardo Augusta. Mr Malatsi was sentenced to five
years.
* The arrest of the Fidentia bosses Mr J Arthur Brown and Brian Maddock with
regard to the R250 million theft from the Education and Training Sector
Authority. Their trial will commence before the end of the year.

Organised crime

In respect of organised crime, here are some successes:
* The conviction of Mr Tony Dos Santos on a charge of racketeering and was
sentenced to eight years in prison. This conviction was the first of its kind
in the High courts of our country.
* Two British nationals were arrested as they were attempting to export drugs
with a street value of R364 million to the United Kingdom (UK). They were both
convicted and sentenced to pay a fine of R1,5 million and nine years in
prison.

Speaker, the DSO also led Project Guanxi, which is aimed at addressing
trans- national organised crime involving Chinese nationals:
* In Operation Forest, an undercover operation, several Chinese nationals and
South Africans were arrested. They were charged with racketeering relating to
illegal trafficking in abalone worth R40 million.
* In Operation Blackjack the DSO confiscated abalone with a value of R10
million and arrested eight people who will also face racketeering
charges.
* In operation Bear Trap, the DSO confiscated abalone worth R9,5 million and
arrested seven individuals who will also face charges of contravening the
Marine Living Resources Act.

Speaker in total, Operation GUANXI through these operations, confiscated
abalone with a collective value of R29 273 119 million.

Provincial justice department
Speaker, the Justice Department in the Western Cape has over the last year been
hitting the ground running to improve work on the levels of service delivery in
the 42 magisterial districts and 55 magistrates' courts in the province.

Projects such as Project Isondlo, which put emphasis on tracing maintenance
defaulters and beneficiaries, are running at full steam.

To ensure success in this regard, a process to trace those who defaulted was
rolled out which resulted in the successful tracing of 79 % of the
defaulters.

Finally a number of projects were implemented to bring access to justice to
our communities in need giving impetus to our constitutional imperatives of
access to justice.

Asset Forfeiture Unit

Speaker, the Asset Forfeiture Unit is a critical partner in our fight
against crime and the organised crime world in particular.

In the last financial year, the Unit has continued in its own unassuming
manner to build on its successes ensuring the forfeiture of more than R20
million worth of assets of known criminals hitting the high flyers where it
hurts most, their pockets.

Drugs and abalone related items accounted jointly for more than 60% of this
amount.

For the last year, the Unit has been focussing on municipal houses and
properties, which are outlets for illegal trading in liquor and drugs.

We shall remember that we have identified 150 houses belonging to the City
of Cape Town, which are outlets where drugs and other illegal criminal
activities take place.

We are of the view that the local authority concerned must seize these
houses, as they have not utilised those houses for the purpose they were
intended for.

The Asset Forfeiture Unit together with the South African Police Services
has targeted 10 properties that were identified as generators of violent crime,
drug and liquor outlets.

We are encouraged by the High Court order in this regard as it sent out
clear message that: "if you allow your property to be used to sell drugs and
liquor it will be taken away from and declared forfeited to the State."

Speaker, as I reflected on the achievements of these agencies collectively,
we all agree that the key to their continued success has been the political
will to ensure and operationalise the integrated approach between agencies to
fight crime in partnership with our communities.

But having said this, we will be the first to admit that we still have a
long way to go in reducing the levels of certain categories of crimes in
certain specific communities in our province.

This in particular bears reference to impoverished communities where violent
crime even though on the decline, it remains at unacceptable levels. These
crimes are directly linked to the levels of alcohol consumption in the these
communities and therefore having a concomitant effect on families which leads
into neighbourhood violence, murder and attempted murder.

We have come to understand through past experience and practise that there
is no quick fix solution to the unacceptable violent crimes and social fabric
in our communities.

Coupled to the process of community participation and social mobilisation,
it is equally important that we continue to foster inter- agency co operation
in particular between the Police and the our Prosecutorial Services.

We want to continue to support their initiative in building capacity,
training and overall skills development so that the quality of service we offer
is beyond reproach.

In this regard our courts have shown that they too will not tolerate
lawlessness and wanton criminal behaviour in our communities.

Impartiality aside, our judges and magistrates have shown criminals the RED
CARD and they have understood that the collective rights and safety of our
communities is paramount in a society where democratic values are
non–negotiable.

And therefore we want to engage and support our communities who rally to our
courts to oppose bail and to ask our courts to be mindful of the decisions and
the implications of their judgements.

Our bail legislation remains one of the most modern and progressive pieces
in the world and allows for communities to petition our courts in defending the
peace and stability of their communities.

Our commitments to this budget

Speaker
Our quest to build safer communities is one that is gaining momentum year by
year.

It is a quest that needs us as communities to build on our successes and
become organised in building strong partnerships with the South African Police
Service.

President Thabo Mbeki makes further reference to this resolve when he
delivered the ANC's 8 January statement on the occasion of the ANC's 95th
birthday this year.

The President said: "We have worked so hard since 1994 to transform the
South African Police Services and other institutions of the criminal justice
system to serve all our people more effectively and to work to safeguard their
safety and security.

"We have increased the numbers of police personnel , improved systems of co
ordination and managements and improved the efficiency of our courts and
prosecution services.

"Yet, we have recognised from the birth of democracy that these efforts will
not succeed unless we make tangible progress in addressing those socio-
economic conditions that feed crime and violence.

"We have recognised that the police serviced and government agencies cannot
fight crime alone, and it requires the involvement and active participation of
all communities and all sections of society to meet this challenge." –
President Mbeki on ANC 95th birthday: 8 January statement.

Therefore, Speaker, in looking ahead as the police and our integrated
criminal justice cluster, we will once again make the clarion call to our
communities to continue to strengthen the partnerships between government and
the people and join our people's contract to make our neighbourhoods safer for
all.

This collective budget commitment will tackle crime and pay particular
attention to the following:
* stabilising the taxi industry while deploying experienced investigators to
bring perpetrators of the sporadic shootings to book
* integrating resources and human power with a view to reduce crimes such as
murder and armed robberies
* implementing social crime prevention, social transformation and educational
awareness programmes in the 15 priority areas and build positive youth and good
citizenry, social cohesion and social integration.

The South African Police Service

National cabinet set a target that the South African Police in each province
bring down crime and violent crime by between 7 to 10% percent each year.

I am encouraged that for the past two years, our police in the Western Cape
have surpassed this target.

This budget comes in the form so personnel, resources, vehicles, recruitment
and deployment reservists and Bambanani volunteers in priority areas affected
by crime.

Together with the South African police, these will work towards:
* Reducing crime by 7 to 10 % with an emphasis on these crimes:
* Focussing on the following priority crimes: murder, attempted murder, rape,
indecent assault, assault (GBH), assault common, robbery (aggravated), robbery
(common)
* Improving service delivery by implementing internal development programmes
for senior management. Such a programme will be aimed achieving organisational
efficiency and managerial capacity at station level and in so doing bringing
experience in policing to the station level.
* The SAPS to continue to foster partnership and community relations.
* To introduce Sector police report-back meetings to communities at least once
a month on the pattern of crime in a particular area.

In this way, Speaker, we aim to build and strengthen partnerships with our
communities.

The Department of Community Safety

The Department will also embark and implement sustainable social crime
prevention programmes and educational programmes on youth and women
particularly in the 15 priority areas mentioned by the Premier in his budget
speech.

We want to report that work on these areas has already commenced in the form
of activating sector policing and the recruitment of reservists in these
areas.

These include:
* The deployment Bambanani volunteers as force multiplier to complement law
enforcement operations led by SAPS and Metro police.
* Targeted social crime prevention through education and awareness programmes
to address the root causes of crime in these areas
* Building social capital and social cohesion through community network
formation, and building of communities with positive moral behaviour, good
values with an emphasis on youth .
* Mobilising communities with the aim of increasing and building abroad front
against crime.

The primary task for these interventions will be to:
* Reduce fatalities on our roads by 5% through an increase in law enforcement
operations;
* The Drug and Gang Prevention programme to conduct no less than 38 educational
schools road shows on the prevention of drug and gangsterism and reach at least
20 000 learners( primary and secondary);
* The Liquor control programme to facilitate 109 alcohol abuse prevention
programmes.

Road safety and traffic law enforcement

Speaker, our ability to prevent road fatalities will have a positive effect
on the country's programme of ensuring the safety of its people.

Therefore we commit to:
Reduce road fatalities by 5% through an integrated law enforcement approach
between provincial traffic law enforcement and the traffic at local
authorities.

Recruit, train and deploy trained traffic law enforcement officers on our
roads to beef up visibility and move towards a 24 hours traffic service
starting in key provincial towns.

Training and development

On training and development, the Department commits to:
* Train 5 000 community volunteers yearly over the next three years in
prevention techniques and support towards the 2010 FIFA World Cup, tourism and
safety.
* Train 500 community volunteers to be deployed on the schools safety programme
starting at the 109 priority schools.

Building of partnerships

Speaker, the fight against crime requires that we work with partners that
are communities across the Province. And this is route the Department has been
following.

This is also the route that President Mbeki is alluding to as the direction
we need to take by building partnerships with organised formations,
non-governmental organisations, faith based organisations and community civic
organisations.

In building this front against crime with our communities, we commit
to:
* Engage with local crime combating organisations and building capacity to
prevent crime in local communities.
* Work with business civil society formations in developing effective crime
combating partnerships at regional and provincial level
* Grant capacity and resources to stakeholders in developing short, medium and
long term plans to deal with crime like violence against women, children,
drugs, youth diversions and gangs.

Speaker in building partnership, we may fail in our duty if we leave behind
the role of the religious and faith-based organisations.

Religious leaders play such an important and an influential role in the
lives of communities.

And the very same individuals, who commit crimes in communities, have
somewhat of a connection or historical attachment to a church in that
community.

We have argued in discussions with religious leaders that setting aside time
in a Sunday church service and speak out against people who commit crimes in
their communities, will make an impact in turning around the moral standing of
that community.

Through the Karos document - a blueprint for peace and stability - that was
developed by religious leaders in the province, we believe that religious
organisations will me contributing to building peace and will be assisting
government's quest to build safer communities.

In this regard religious organisations like the Muslim Judicial Council have
committed to play an active role by helping to identify and recommend youth at
risk who may be admitted on government's educational and training programmes at
the Chrysalis Academy.

Speaker, in preparation for the 2010 World Cup, we aim to co ordinate an
integrated safety programme to fight crime with:
* 22 000 trained police officers
* 16 000 trained Bambanani volunteers
* 35 000 private security officials.

Our police have shown the will and commitment under the leadership of
Commissioner Petros and his deputies that they are equally motivated to
shoulder with communities and the rest of civil society in dealing with
crime.

Our government is committed to partnering with all those who believe in
working together in building a Western Cape and a South Africa that is at peace
and one that is prosperous for all its citizens.

Conclusion

In conclusion Speaker, allow me to take this opportunity to firstly thank
the Acting Head of Department Mr Piko Mbambo as well as all the employees in my
Department - all of them have shown the necessary perseverance and the
commitment to deliver on its mandate to our communities.

Let me also thank Provincial Commissioner Petros and his police officers
across the Province who despite the adversarial conditions and constraints they
operate within continues to tighten the screws against crime.

Also allow me to pay tribute to those policemen and women who have fallen
with their boots on while fighting crime. To their loved ones and families we
say, this province is indebted to you and we salute all of them.

Policemen and women are loved, hated, battered, bruised and blamed. However,
in equal measure the see more pain and sadness in a single day that many of us
do in our lifetime.

My thanks also go to:
* Mr Rodney de Kock of the Provincial Directorate of Public Prosecutions
* Ms Tanya Morgenroodt of the National Intelligence Agency
* Mr Adrian Mopp of the Directorate of Special Operations
* Ms Hermione Cronje of the Asset Forfeiture Unit
* Mr Bongani Jonas- the Chief of the City Police.

Finally thank you to Ms Rhoda Baazier of the Provincial CPF Board and the
thousands of Bambanani Volunteers, the CPFs, the traffic law enforcement, and
to all the young people in our country wishing them a peaceful Youth month.

Also Speaker, let me take this opportunity and thank my family, my wife in
particular who has a been pillar of strength and has given me the support in to
continue to do the work that government has delegated upon me.

I thank you.

Issued by: Western Cape Provincial Government
6 June 2007
Source: Western Cape Provincial Government (http://www.capegateway.co.za)