Services, Ms Loretta Jacobus MP, NCOP
14 June 2007
Chairperson of the NCOP
Deputy Chairperson of the NCOP
Cabinet colleagues
Chairpersons and members of the select committee
Members of Parliament
Distinguished guests
The Commissioner of Correctional Services, your Executive Management Committee
and the rest of the staff
Ladies and gentlemen
With your indulgence, I would like to step further back and recall what we
said, in 2004, as representatives of our people, we said "For too long our
country contained within it and represented much that is ugly and repulsive in
human society." It was a place in which to be born black was to inherit a
lifelong curse. It was a place in which to be born white was to carry a
permanent burden of fear and hidden rage. "It was a place in which to live in
some places was to invite others to prey on you or to condemn oneself to prey
on others, guaranteed neighbours who could not but fall victim to alcohol and
drug stupors that would dull the pain of living, who knew that their lives
would not be normal without murder in their midst, and rape and brutal personal
wars without a cause".
I stand here today almost on the eve of our national commemoration of the
1976 Student's revolution/uprising that ushered a new era in the struggle for
the democratisation of our country- a day from now. Today amongst us in this
august House are leaders and cadres of that revolution who, though their
political activism and resistance to Apartheid education, defined a new path
that helped shape the current democratic education system. I must in the same
vein allude to the fact that when we look back we see many reasons for
celebration in Correctional Services against an environment that sometimes
militates against the attainment of our goals. I should also acknowledge that
we have standing challenges some of which are brought about by the mere fact
that we are managing people who have wronged the society. Chairperson, I can
confidently proclaim that under the leadership of Minister Balfour we are on
course to meet this nation's expectations.
Chairperson I wish to use this platform and opportunity to salute the
gallant men and women of the 1976 youth generation - the brave youth that later
swelled the ranks of the African National Congress (ANC)'s revolutionary army,
uMkhonto We Sizwe.
Development and care
We would have failed to move towards the attainment of the National
Democratic Revolution and aspirations of our people as encapsulated in the
Freedom Charter if we did not as government divert whatever minimal resources
we have, to ensuring a just and peaceful society in which all our citizens
shall leave without fear. Chairperson, underpinning the whole programme is the
Offender Rehabilitation Path which we are committed to implement with much
greater vigour this year. Key to this is the Offender Rehabilitation Path
(ORP), so that we completely move away from penal system of retribution and
punishment. In keeping with that direction we have finalised a model for giving
practical meaning to the new policy direction â the Offender Rehabilitation
Path. The nine phase programme seeks to re-engineer our offender management
approach to be needs based and informed by an offender's life cycle as each
stage demands different interventions by the Department and other players in
government and society.
The offender rehabilitation path does not only assist the offender to adapt
to the corrections environment, but it also brings together the agents that
will give meaning to the six service delivery areas the department has
identified in relation to offenders, namely: security, facility, correction,
development, well-being and social reintegration. Interventions in these
service delivery areas are based on thorough assessments in terms of security,
risks and needs of offenders.
Chairperson and honourable members, the department has surpassed the targets
it set for the past financial year as it reached 17 818 offenders with its 48
psychologist against the target of 15 500 offenders. The same applies to
spiritual care sessions with 164 582, sessions taken place against a target 162
500, 86 571 social work sessions took place as well as AIDS awareness sessions
with 1 159 offenders and officials trained as master trainers as apposed to the
targeted 445 for the pas financial year. We are also encouraged by productive
engagement of offenders with activities like sport, arts and cultural
activities, formal education and skills training in production workshops and
farms. During the past financial year, 102 000 offenders participated in sport,
arts and culture programmes. We will however continue to strive to improve
numbers of beneficiary offenders to all our programmes.
Our department is very much concerned about the health and welfare of its
staff and offenders in its custody. Hence, we have decided to source the
assistance of two researchers from the Human Sciences Research Council to
capture, analyse and tabulate health information collected during our health
needs assessment campaign in order to provide the department with an overview
of the current status of health resources, programmes and services. This
information will assist the department on proper planning and appropriate
allocation of resources in order to improve the quality of health care rendered
to our offender population.
The department committed itself to accelerate the facilitation of access for
offenders to antiretroviral treatment by identifying Correctional Centres that
meet the minimum criteria for accreditation as Comprehensive Prevention, Care,
Support and Treatment Centres. During the reporting period eight Correctional
Centres were accredited by the national Department of Health as Comprehensive
Prevention, Care, Support and Treatment Centres. These are Kroonstad Medium C,
Groenpunt Correctional Centre, Kimberly Correctional Centre, Johannesburg
Medium C, St Albans Medium B, Qalakabusha, Pietermaritzburg and Durban
Westville. Many others are under consideration as we strengthen our partnership
with the Department of Health to wage our offensive against the pandemic.
During the period of October to December 2006, a total number of 1600
offenders were receiving antiretroviral treatment, either at the nearest public
health institution or department's accredited sites. With regard to the
HIV/AIDS prevention programme, 1159 offenders and officials were trained as
peer educators to strengthen the prevention initiatives. A total of 47438
offenders were exposed to various HIV/AIDS awareness activities.
Rehabilitation and Social Reintegration
One major challenge the faces us and any correctional system in the world is
to ensure that as many offenders as possible are productively engaged in
programmes aimed at not just keeping them busy, but those that will help turn
them into law abiding and socially responsible individuals. In that regard it
gives me great pleasure to report to this house that we have fulfilled an
undertaking we made last year of finalising a policy on compulsory
rehabilitation programme for all offenders. We also trust that all key players
and partners will join hands including offender families in a true spirit of
Operation Masibambisane to ensure that we succeed in these programmes.
Chairperson, let me also outline that Correctional Services is contributing
in the war declared by the President on poverty and under development. Last
year we approved our poverty alleviation policy to give impetus to the social
responsibility programmes we were already implementing. It is with a sense of
pride that I report to this house that in the 2006-7 financial year, we
re-affirmed many unemployed youths, women and children who are victims and
survivors of abuse or neglect. We adopted many orphanages, poor schools and
crèches. We also assisted many victims of the HIV/AIDS pandemic, rural poor,
child headed households and the elderly through many interventions we have
made. These include food donations, soup kitchens, food production assistance
with development of food gardens, life and business skills development,
furniture and clothes, blankets and birthday/Christmas parties for terminally
ill, children and the elderly.
We also assisted in community infrastructure development initiatives as we
have done in the Athlone House of Strength â a one stop centre for women and
children victims and survivors of abuse in Mbekweni, Paarl, the Baptist Church
building in Gugulethu and also low-cost houses in Mbekweni. We would appeal to
Members of this House in particular those of the Select Committees to visit
these beneficiaries to demonstrate our collective resolve to fight poverty with
all our energies. My office can provide details of the projects assisted. We
will intensify these initiatives as we rollout our new poverty alleviation
policy, because Correctional Services can ill afford to wait passively at the
end of the criminal justice system and to cry foul when scores are sent for
incarceration for preventable crimes. We believe that the criminal justice
system is a cycle through which offenders go and we occupy a critical position
of facilitating social re-integration that requires us to strengthen our
outreach to the communities we are serving.
Together Corrections, Care and Development programmes aimed at offenders
will be contributing in shaping and implementing and in both programmes
significant progress was made in the developing various policies and procedures
that are aligned to the White Paper on Corrections. The implementation of the
compulsory programmes as well as the revision of current programmes and the
possible implementation of new programmes is a phased-in process which will
commence in this financial year, starting within the Centres of Excellence and
to be expanded to all Correctional Centres.
Honourable members, I still want to re-emphasize the fact that the
constitutional stipulation prohibits the admission of children into
Correctional Facilities except as the last resort. Chapter 2, section 28 of the
Bill of Rights is clear on this constitutional imperative. Every child has the
right not to be detained except as the measure of last resort and has the right
to be:
1. kept separately from detained persons over the age of 18 years and
2. be treated in a manner and be kept in conditions that take into account the
child's age.
Twice in the State of Nation Address, the President of the country alluded
to the urgent need to reduce the number of children in custody. The Department
of Correctional Services is vigilant in monitoring and managing the reduction
in numbers of children in our facilities. To this effect the department has
developed a template providing detailed information about each and every child
within the Department of Correctional Services to stakeholders like Department
of Justice (DoJ), South African Police Service (SAPS), Department of Eductaion
(DoE), National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and Department of Social Services
(DSD) in order to fastrack the removal of children to secure care facilities
and diverting them to alternative sentencing options. To date there are 1 149
children in our facilities as compared to 1 336 at the onset of the previous
financial year (2006/07).
The Department of Correctional Services has in addition undertaken a
baseline audit on its facilities, services and programmes to address the needs
of vulnerable groups including children. Subsequently an integrated action plan
has been developed by the Department to address the needs of these vulnerable
groups. The implementation of this action plan will commence in this financial
year.
Corrections
On that occasion in 2004 we said in part, "It was a place in which to live
in other neighbourhoods was to enjoy safety and security because to be safe was
to be protected by high walls, electrified fences, guard dogs, police patrols
and military regiments ready to defend those who were our masters, with guns
and tanks and aircraft that would rain death on those who would disturb the
peace of the masters. Our concern chairperson is the emerging worrying trends
of not just aggressive and violent offenders but the increase of offenders
incarcerated for sexual offences that has gone up from 4,12% over the last six
years to 15,06% of the total offender population, particularly in the Limpopo,
North West and Mpumalanga region where the rate is much higher.
Indeed this changing profile of our offenders does not only indicate the
safety and security challenges of the vulnerable women and children in our
communities, but also the safety of our officials which we regard as
sacrosanct. I would have failed in my duty, if I do not pronounce on this
platform how proud we are of our correctional officials who are the engine
behind these social development interventions. On behalf of the Minister, the
Commissioner, the Executive Management Committee and the rest of the personnel,
I wish to state that your endeavours did not go unnoticed. We salute and
encourage you to soldier on and make your mark in building a better life for
all South Africans.
Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons
The Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons under the leadership of Judge Nathan
Erasmus has, in consultation with various role-players including the Department
of Correctional Services, in a short period of time initiated a number of
strategic changes to the work of the Judicial Inspectorate. The changes are
aimed at expanding the focus of the Inspectorate beyond overcrowding of
facilities. Chairperson, allow me to respectfully remind the members of the
house that the establishment of the Judicial Inspectorate of Prisons forms part
of this government's ongoing transformation process which is aimed at
transforming the old inherited prison services, to a Department of Correctional
Services which is focused on and equipped to ensure that inmates in our country
are detained under humane conditions, treated with human dignity and
rehabilitated so that they can when released from custody again occupy their
rightful place in society.
The changes implemented by Judge Erasmus will greatly enhance the
Inspectorates' ability to build on these results thus ensuring effective
oversight for the community by the community. The Minister, the department and
I will continue to support the work that is being performed by Judge Erasmus
and his team.
Conclusion
I can say without fear of contradiction that, we are firmly on course in
building an ideal correctional system that cares for both victims and
perpetrators of crime. Let me conclude by calling upon all of us to join a
national partnership to correct, rehabilitate and reintegrate offenders for a
safer and more secure South Africa. I do believe that correctional services can
indeed be a place of new beginnings in this age of hope. I would like to take
the opportunity to congratulate the newly appointed Commissioner of
Correctional Services Mr Petersen. He is inheriting a very able team that we
have the confidence in steering us in where we want to go. I am convince under
your stewardship we will continue on the path that we have started to tread
since 2004 in building a correctional service that is inline with our White
Paper. Our future will be determined by the actions we take today.
I thank you
Issued by: Department Correctional Services
14 June 2007
