/ 2 December 2008

Call for unity in fight against crime

A unified approach comprising all sectors of the economy and society is needed to fight crime in the country, Deputy President Baleka Mbete said on Monday.

”I believe that in so doing we will leave no space for the criminals to operate based on their thriving on our differences,” Mbete told the crime summit 2008 in Midrand.

Mbete said public-private partnerships need to bring about practical initiatives and be harmonised.

Anti-crime intelligence needs to be strengthened and skills development within the intelligence unit should be improved.

Mbete commended the Department of Safety and Security for deploying police officers to stations where crime fighting is actually taking place.

Referring to the 16 days of activism campaign, she said social crime is still a major challenge.

”In this campaign, we urge men and women to name and shame perpetrators.”

Mbete said what appeared as simple and anonymous reporting went a long way to fighting crime, because simple and straightforward approaches are needed.

”This country can be on top of the challenge of crime and our justice system will be continuously revamped in the interest of beefing-up our efforts in this regard,” Mbete said.

There has also been a steady decline in fraud, and anti-corruption strategies have to ”bite hard” against criminals; however, there is a continued feeling that drastic efforts are not being made.

Safety and Security Minister Nathi Mthethwa, meanwhile, said corruption and ill-discipline in the police service will not be tolerated.

Mthethwa said police officers involved in corrupt and other criminal activity such as organised crime need to recuse themselves from the service.

”Ill-discipline together with corruption can lead to people dying in some instances,” he said, referring to allegations of deaths in police cells.

”We are up in arms against those who belong to, who are part of the organisation… corruption will not be tolerated,” he said.

Addressing corruption is a challenging task. However, it needs to be fought.

”Whilst the line between what constitutes corruption and what is merely ill-discipline is often blurred, the results are the same — that is, the loss of public confidence in the police and an environment where crime is able to flourish.”

Mthethwa said there needs to be more synergy in the fight against crime and that communication, co-ordination and accountability are key in strengthening this.

Mark Lamberti, the chairperson of Business against Crime, said the culture of lawlessness in the country is a direct consequence of government policy.

He said national consciousness about crime and what constitutes a crime has been dulled.

This is because there is a lack of respect for the law and that the chances of being caught are low.

”Lawlessness is a direct consequence of government policy — the efficiency of the criminal justice system is simply too low to be a deterrent,” he said.

Lamberti said ”horrendous crimes” such as the rape of grandmothers and children must have a deeper explanation.

He cited three contributing factors, which should be considered, and these were deep-seated socio-pathic tendencies, the strong link between dysfunctional families and crime, and that apartheid had destroyed the fabric of society.

”That it [the consequences of apartheid] can be addressed in 14 years is naïve,” said Lamberti. — Sapa