Interface with communities must go beyond taking statements from crime victims at police stations, but securing convictions.
Crime statistics released last year indicated that the tide against crime was turning and that more and more South Africans were joining the crusade against crime. Whilst the majority of police officers remain dedicated to the cause, there have been some notable challenges, including failure by some police to effectively communicate which leads to negative perceptions in the eyes of communities.
When society reports cases, some police officers take statements yet fail to return to provide on-going updates on investigations and in fact, in areas where positive progress was made, criminals arrested and sentenced, failure to report back still creates an impression that police are useless.
To correct this, communications and interactions are going to be improved at police station level because that is where investigators interface directly with the public. This will be done as part of the on-going training of police officers particularly through community forums as well as directly with crime victims.
This is an undertaking made at a quarterly MINMEC meeting hosted by the Minister of Police, Nathi Mthethwa in Cape Town today.Present were the Acting National Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi and various provincial MECs responsible for policing; namely Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Western Cape, Northern Cape, Limpopo and Free State, whereas Eastern Cape and North West tendered apologies.
“The current assessment and monitoring of police stations will need to be reviewed so that it becomes a broader oversight function where communities become involved in these monitoring processes. We all shared a view that there needs to be a uniform monitoring and evaluation criteria for all police stations countrywide, to enhance service delivery.
It cannot be left to press engagements from the police leadership and MECs to communicate, but improvements must begin at the station level.Police station commanders must attend community policing forums regularly and must be known within the communities which they are policing. Such interactions will not only improve service delivery but also strengthen partnerships,” stated the Minister.
The meeting further noted that police must step up policing approaches and move towards securing harsher convictions. There is a need to compare the conviction rate vs. arrests that have been made, so that we can measure the impact of all these strategies.“Policing in South Africa must now be taken to a higher level; we need to move beyond arrests.
What will build confidence in the justice system is when police secure more convictions but also informing the very same communities about such outcomes. To secure convictions we would need better-trained investigators who present watertight cases in courts,” emphasized Minister Mthethwa.
Fundamental in improving policing in South Africa in future, is through the strengthening of various legislations which are aimed at reducing crime. That is why in 2012, six Bills will be placed before Parliament starting in March this year until February 2013. These include the South African Police Service Amendment Bill, Dangerous Weapons Bill, Private Security Industry Regulation Amendment Bill, Firearms Control Amendment Bill, Criminal Procedure Amendment Bill and the South African Police Act.
Some of the strategic focuses of these Bills include aligning of operations in line with the Constitution, improving systems, control and regulate firearms possession and ownership and to assist in the fight against crime so that offenders will be easily identified; particularly in regard to crimes against women, children and the elderly. The underlying expression of these legislations is to reduce crime but equally ensure that police secure more convictions, as such favour law-abiding citizens whilst dealing a heavy blow to criminals.
“If we have structures that are aligned, we will be able to make progress in the fight against crime. Challenges will vary in terms of policing, whether one looks at resources of personnel but as you look closer to the issues, you discover that in some cases there has been an under-spending from that particular unit. We cannot continue to provide excuses to the public when in fact the real challenge is actually a resource management issue that needs to be addressed both systematically and managerially,” highlighted the Minister.
The meeting further noted some of the current reported cases on police brutality and strongly condemned such acts. To correct this, the Ministry has strengthened the oversight body ‘that polices the police’, that is the Independent Complaints Directorate. With effect 1 April 2012 it will be known as the Independent Police Investigative Directorate.
In changing the focus and the name to Independent Police Investigative Directorate we are sending a clear message that the new body will focus on not just processing complaints but the emphasis is on developing strong investigative capacity.
Not only will they now have the legislative capacity to investigate police officer involved in human right abuses but will also be able to use this investigative capacity to investigate issues of systemic corruption.
The meeting reiterated and concluded with a need to build more police stations around the country, particularly in rural areas which were historically disadvantaged for whatever reason.General Mkhwanazi then briefed the meeting that this is a priority focus for SAPS in the coming years precisely in ensuring that communities do not travel long distances to report crime.
However, more importantly would be to capacitate these new police stations with the right kind of resources, proper command and control, proper monitoring systems and officers who are committed to crime reduction.
Enquiries:
Zweli Mnisi
Cell: 082 045 4024
Police must improve communication and interaction with public
